Last week week while driving around exploring places for dinner around Klang Parade surrounding, we chanced upon a newly opened Thai restaurant by the name of Mae Porn Tom Yum Goong located just by the road next to the mall, and since Thai cuisine has always been one of our favorites, we went in to take a look.
Mae Porn Tom Yum Goong, next to Klang Parade
On first look I already have a positive feeling about the place. The almost-kopitiam style restaurant is air conditioned, clean, and with the parts of the walls filled with racks of Thai groceries. There were also staffs happily chatting in Thai language. Unlike Japanese restaurants with local staffs greeting you in the only line of Japanese language they know, over here they use Thai as their native language to communicate, not to give you a false sense of authenticity.
Anyway, the “menu” they have is a bunch of photos on the wall (look below), with many dishes cater to individuals, but there are also those for sharing. Each priced at between RM 6-8, great value for money even for Klang.
We’ve visited this place twice now and came away really satisfied.
For salads we’ve tried yam leb meu nang (chicken feet salad, RM 7), nam tuk (pork salad, RM 7), and yam goong (prawn salad, RM 8). Strong seasoning and definitely appetite opening, they go well with rice as well. The only “issue” we may have is that the chicken feet were cut in bigger chunks than what we’re used to so that took a bit of getting used to.
tom yam, kuey chap, moo ping (grilled pork satey)
The tom yam goong (RM 8) may not have big prawns or loaded with big chunks of seafood but certainly tasted every bit a bowl of authentic tomyam should.
We also tried their kuey chap (RM 7) and opted with no noodle since we had it with rice, the pork was tender and of course they also serve coagulated pork blood, a definite plus.
Lastly, moo ping (RM 3 per stick) certainly makes for good beer food, as any properly seasoned and grilled fatty pork should.
We’re certainly going to be back for more, the second trip already seen the place being filled pretty good with customers, I think it’s here to stay. Give it a try if you love some good authentic Thai food that also serves pork. Other alternatives are Go Thai SS2, Lai Thai seksyen 17 (changed name since), and Surasit TTDI.
Address: Mae Porn Tom Yum Goong Pelangi Point, Lintang Pekan Baru, Off Jalan Meru, Klang, 41150 Selangor GPS: 3.064992, 101.453392
Ever since we moved to Shah Alam, Setia City Mall has became our go-to shopping mall for movies and access to certain brands that we like, since it is basically the closest decent shopping center to us.
Now Haze will complain that I am one of the most insufferable person when it comes to choosing for food in malls as I usually prefer old-school eateries, but for this place, we’ve found a perfect venue that satisfy both of us – at Mr. Tuk Tuk
Mr. Tuk Tuk, the place we dined most often at Setia City Mall
Located at the lower ground level, Mr. Tuk Tuk is a rather small fast serving restaurant that offers Thai food. At first glance, it doesn’t look particularly “authentic” or fancy, just another one of cookie cutter mid price range sort of eatery. But look closer, and you’ll notice that the workers are mostly Thai, and the place is almost always packed.
tuk tuk noodle, fried chicken wing, beef salad
Most dishes here are catered for individual consumption, with a few “center plate” style suitable for sharing. Most dishes hovers around RM 7.80 to RM 10.80, very reasonable in a shopping mall setting.
For noodle lovers, their pad thai (RM 7.80) is one of the best I’ve tried in Malaysia, packed a punch and beautifully presented too. They also offer glass noodle and “tuk tuk noodle” which is similar to boat noodle (but actually filling) at the same price.
set meal, pad thai, beef salad, tomyam
Tomyam fried rice (RM 7.80) and pineapple fried rice (RM 9.80) were very decent choices as well, both tasted strong and properly seasoned. Then there’s other classic Thai single-dishes like basil chicken and basil beef (RM 9.80 each) if you feel like having steamed rice.
We also always order something to share as well. Tomyam and tom kha (chicken RM 7.80 to seafood 10.80) will not disappoint any Thai food lover, but if you want something out of the ordinary, try their beef salad (RM 10.80), slices of very lightly cooked beef marinated in a sort of sourish seasoning that is also littered with plenty of chili padi. It is very strong, spicy, and absolutely delicious.
red ruby, steam sotong, tom kha, thai honey chicken
If you’re at Setia City Mall or anywhere near it, give this place a try. I hope they open up branches at other places as well. Good Thai food is always welcomed in my book!
Address: Mr Tuk Tuk LG-69, Setia City Mall, Persiaran Setia Dagang, Setia Alam, 40170 Shah Alam, Selangor GPS: 3.085229, 101.458629 Tel: 03-3362 5738 Hours: 10 am to 10 pm
Over the CNY break and in conjunction to having my whole family staying over, we decided to bring mom to Khunthai for dinner, since Thai food is one of mom’s favorite cuisines aside from traditional Chinese fair. It turned out to be a pretty good decision.
Khunthai at Klang with my family
Khunthai is located at a rather remote area in Klang via KESAS highway, but fortunately it is rather simple to navigate to since it is just one straight long ghetto farming road to the rather lavishly built restaurant in the middle of nowhere. Forget about going there if a low-riding sports car is your only mode of transportation, but otherwise you’ll get there just fine after cursing at how bumpy the road is for about 5 minutes.
The menu is pretty extensive and covers all bases when it comes to Southern style Thai food. The restaurant is also pork free.
For the 5 of us, we ordered miang kham, chicken feet salad, and raw prawn salad to open up our appetite.
For those who’re not familiar, miang kham is a type of traditional Thai appetizer where you wrap a bunch of ingredients such as crushed peanut, shallot, ginger, lime, and so on with a Piper sarmentosum leaf. If you haven’t had this before, it is definitely something to try.
Raw prawn salad and chicken feet salad were both pretty spot on as well.
raw prawn salad, lala, kangkung belacan
To go with rice, we also had Thai style lala, kang kung belacan, and seafood tomyam. While the kangkung belacan was perhaps a little too oily for my liking, lala & tomyam did not disappoint. One thing to note though – have your lips prepared for how hot the food can get.
safe to say we enjoyed ourself really well at Khunthai
To be fair, there are other comparable Thai restaurants in the city with better access and similar pricing, but there’s always a bit of fun to travel to a god forsaken place from time to time for a dining experience that is just slightly different from the ordinary.
Address: Khun Thai 6, Jalan Kg Air Hitam, Taman Pendamar Indah 1, 42500 Klang, Selangor GPS: 2.960457, 101.439903 Tel:03-3081 3308
Now that we moved to Shah Alam, it’s time to explore the neighbouring places for food a bit, and there’s no better way to do this than starting out with some of the names that we’ve already familiar with – which is what brought us to Serai Thai Restaurant at Seksyen 3.
Serai Thai at Seksyen 3, Shah Alam
Serai has been quite successful since it first started out several years ago, we went to the Subang Empire branch and came away pretty impressed, so it was no surprise that we had some high hopes for their more Thai oriented version when we discovered it by typing “thai” on google map in search for dinner option nearby.
The restaurant is hidden in a quiet residential area, parking is plentiful, and interior is simple yet comfortable.
brinjal with belacan, tomyam, squid with salted egg
The menu is typical Southern Thai with influence of some Malaysian element. We tried three dishes for the two of us over dinner.
The tomyam seafood (RM 14 small)had quite a decent kick and while it wasn’t the most flavourful tomyam I’ve tried, it was more than decent and had the necessary ingredient to carry its own.
Brinjal with belacan (RM 10 small) was my favorite dish of the night, beautifully executed with the perfect balance of sweetness from brinjal complemented by the pungent belacan taste, bits of chopped dried shrimp completes this dish.
Squid with salted egg (RM 12 small) was another dish worth trying as well, they definitely didn’t skimp on the salted egg part at all.
dinner for two at Serai Thai, Shah Alam
We came away more than satisfied with our experience at Serai Thai, good food at fair price with a comfortable setting. If you’re hunting for decent halal food at Shah Alam, this is definitely a good option.
A decade or so ago, Thai food means tomyam, rice, and maybe a few other dishes and you’d have them for lunch and maybe dinner. Over the last few years, I’m glad that Thai cuisine scene in KL has matured quite a bit, and now you can find quite a few sub-categories. There’s the traditional Thai food, fusion (such as PLOY at Clearwater, Fa Ying), boat noodle, non halal options (Surisit, I’m Spicy, My Elephant), and even Thai street food.
Go Thai at PJ SS2
Personally, I have always love Thai street food of the non halal variety, and for a long time, Lai Thai (now Farm Thai) of Seksyen 17 was always my favorite. The place has its flaws, it’s cramped, stuffy, rather pricey, and service has a lot left to be desired, but there was no other options I knew of.
Then Go Thai sprung up at PJ SS2, the same row as those durian stalls that are always packed with people with stinky breath, and they offered just what I love most – non-halal Thai street food.
stewed pork leg rice (khao kha moo)
The restaurant is tastefully done up yet rather unpretentious. The workers speak Thai to each other, and the menu consists of a dozen of so dishes written on white board.
Most importantly, they offer khao kha moo (stewed pork leg rice, RM 9). This dish definitely offers great value, at less than RM 10 with quite a big portion of pork leg, rice, half an egg, and a small portion of vegetable. It was pretty good too.
Thai ice tea, fried pork slices with egg, tomyam seafood
At Go Thai, there are actually very few dishes without pork.
Moo thod khatiam (deep fried pork slices in garlic sauce with egg, RM 9) had those pork slices that was perfectly marinated while not overly spicy.
Tomyam seafood (RM 12) packed with fish slices, prawns, squid, and even some mussels, the broth was thick, spicy, and should satisfy any tomyam lover. It is also the highest priced item on the menu.
red ruby, kway tiao Go Thai, minced pork with rice, kway tiao nam sai
If you prefer noodle, there’s kway tiao nam sai (clear broth, RM 7) or kway tiao Go Thai (spicy version, RM 7), both were delicious, though portion is a little small for KL standard, but you get to order other stuff on the side, like tub thim krab (red ruby, RM 6), a dessert that is best on a hot day after meal.
KY & Haze at Go Thai
Skewers here are supposed to be very good too, and I think that’ll be on my order list the next time I go there. Haze likes the place, and so was mom and my brother when I brought them over during CNY.
There should be more of these type of restaurants everywhere.
Address: Go Thai 187 Jalan SS2/24, Petaling Jaya, Selangor GPS: 3.116831, 101.622893 Hours: lunch and dinner, closed on Mondays
red ruby, kway tiao Go Thai, minced pork with rice, kway tiao nam sai
