Last weekend after a morning hike at Taman Tugu (best jungle trail in the city), we decided to stop over in KL for breakfast prior to my afternoon futsal session. Initial plan was ICC Pudu but alas, the place was way too packed, and this is when I recalled I’ve always wanted to check out San Peng prawn mee, which coincidentally is just a few minutes away from Pudu.
San Peng Prawn Mee stall, KL
San Peng Prawn Mee is located in a make-shift semi alfresco “shop” right in the middle of Jalan San Peng (hence the name), the old school stall has been around for a long time, and is among the rare one that is fully operated by locals (family probably?).
Over here prawn mee and lam mee are their two most popular dishes, but they also offer kai si hor fun, fish ball soup, and various other combination you can think of.
Since this was our first time here, we decided to try the two dishes on the trademark.
The old lady who took our order had a very convincing sales tactic, which led to us ordering both dishes with extra prawns (RM 25 each). And as it turns out, it’s not a bad idea if you have enough cash, the prawns were huge, fresh, and absolutely delicious.
Prawn Mee & Lam Mee with extra prawns
The prawn mee is slightly different from the more famous Penang version. While both soup base involves prawn shells, chicken instead of pork is used in this interpretation. Apart from that, there’s also kangkung, fried shallots, smaller (normal size) prawns, mee + meehun, and chunks of perfectly poached chicken.
The soup was slightly lighter but packed with sweetness from prawn. I also like the fact that the big prawns have it’s head (the best part) attached, while the shell is otherwise removed from the body.
these prawns are fresh and super delicious
The lam mee is similarly delicious and came with similar ingredients except for the use of thick noodle that’s not entirely unlike udon and a thicker soup base. Personally I prefer how loh mee, but this version is pretty good too.
This is just the two most popular dishes here, I’m going to go back again and try some of their other dishes (and side dishes & extra ingredients). If you’re a fan of prawn mee, this version should be one to try out as well.
Despite having lived in Klang Valley for some 2 decades now.. the lure of proper Penang hawker dishes is always something that I can’t escape from. Over the years I’ve found quite a good selection of decent Penang style hawker dishes this part of the country, but they’re not “even”, some dishes are harder to find than others.
One such trickier dish is Penang style Loh Mee, which is distinctly different from the KL version, and I’m happy to add one to the list, with this candidate from Restoran Weng Soon in Taman Sri Muda, Shah Alam.
Weng Soon Kopitiam, Taman Sri Muda, Shah Alam
Before we start, the difference between KL loh mee & Penang loh mee, while can be difficult to spot with a single glance, is actually quite substantial.
The KL loh mee uses a much thicker version of noodle, often without option for meehun. Additionally, the KL version will spot a very different type of chili paste, if provided at all. Bean sprout & fried shallots are also only available in the dish from North.
Back to Weng Soon (or Weng Soon Tek) kopitiam in Taman Sri Muda. I was introduced to this spot by one of my Instagram connections who has been frequenting it for years.
The restaurant is a pretty unassuming kopitiam not unlike any other, perhaps only with the number of slseepy cats & dogs. The stall itself serves both prawn mee and loh mee, owned by a guy from Penang with a helper.
Penang style Prawn Mee & Loh Mee
What you get here is a very “average” bowl of Penang style loh mee or prawn mee, if you’re in Penang. Translation – since we’re in Klang Valley, that makes it a very good find and one that satisfy my cravings properly. The important ingredients are all there – prawns, mee, meehun, pork slices, 1/4 hard boiled egg, fried shallots, bean sprouts. The loh mee also comes with vinegar + finely chopped raw garlic.
To be fair, the sambal could use a bit of improvement, but I’m nitpicking. I’m going back to have more.
Address: Weng Soon Restuarant 40, Jalan Bersatu 25/9, Taman Sri Muda, 40400 Shah Alam, Selangor GPS: 3.0315469, 101.531027 Tel: 017-328 8636
Ask anyone about prawn mee in Penang and chances are the name Old Green House kopitiam will be in among the top 10 lists, doubly so if the list is created by youngsters who does not like to go to bed at reasonable hours.
Green House prawn mee stall, with extras to choose
Well, if you’re one of those who likes to have your prawn mee in for dinner or in the wee hours (operating from 6pm to around 3am), the stall at Old Green House kopitiam is the perfect choice.
In addition to the usual ingredients of prawns, egg, your choice of mee/meehun, and pork slices, there’s a host of different additional “extras” you can choose from depending on availability – from pork intestine, ribs, meatball, pork skin, roast pork, and even sausages. Additionally, you can have it with classic prawn mee soup, loh mee, or a mix between the two (often my choice!)
A standard small portion goes for RM 6.00, and additional ingredients run from RM 1.20 to RM 3.00.
pork intestine, and roast pork, two additions to the standard bowl
The soup is flavorful enough, and ingredients given are plentiful (see video), I was hoping they do also provide the classic kangkung but unfortunately it was missing on my visit. Both intestine and roast pork did give it that extra edge for me, and I’d be returning for those pork skin next time!
Last week I went back up to Penang for a bit and managed to meet up with Evon for a late afternoon “tea time” noms. The lady suggested prawn mee at Lebuh Presgrave, I am always happy to get some prawn mee in the system, so why not?
888 Hokkien Mee at Lebuh Presgrave (or 3rd road)
Lebuh Presgrave is also known as “3rd road” in Hokkien or Mandarin, as it is the 3rd road from Jalan Magazine, which was considered as the “first road”. This in fact goes down all the way to 7th road, but that sort of details aren’t exactly important.
The Prawn Mee (known as Hokkien mee in Penang), is locally referred to as the 888 Hokkien Mee. Essentially a house converted coffee shop with the anchor tenant being this big hokkien mee & loh mee stall.
Operation starts at 4:30 pm, and there’s usually quite a healthy line in front of the stall. It goes like this – line up, order, get your food, pay, eat.
prawn mee, loh mee, or mixed loh + prawn soup?
Like many food stalls in Penang, in addition to standard bowl of prawn mee or loh mee, there’s also a list of different optional ingredients you can add. We had ours with intestine and roast pork, in addition to the usual sliced pork, prawns, noodle, egg, bean sprout, fried shallots, and even lard.
I was going to have pork ribs as well, but at that time it wasn’t ready yet (see video), bummer. There’s also apparently pork skin from time to time.
hello Evon, and hello lard!
The verdict? Well, it isn’t famous and popular for nothing. The soup was on point (I had mixed broth), and everything was “just right”. Those bits of lard certainly also contribute to the overall taste. It was that wholesome feeling that I remember from childhood, would definitely go back again.
Address: 888 Hokkien Mee 67-A, Lebuh Presgrave 10300 George Town, Pulau Pinang GPS: 5.411107, 100.330574
A short while ago when I posted an Insta story update of Aik Prawn mee, a follower suggested Johnny’s Prawn Mee as a place any prawn mee fan should check out. As a proper fan of prawn mee, I did just that the first chance I had.
Update 2020: Johnny’s is now at Subang Bestari “Yat Yat Khan” kopitiam. Pleae refer to address below
Johnny’s Prawn Mee at Fullhouse Cafe, Taman Subang Murni
Johnny’s is located at Fullhouse Cafe at Taman Subang Murni. If you haven’t heard of this place, well, it is because it’s located somewhere between Shah Alam, Sungai Buloh, and Subang Airport, or aka – nowhere any sane person would go without a solid reason.
Johnny’s Prawn Mee offers three classic Penang hawker dishes – prawn mee, loh mee, and kueh teow soup. Over the past two visits, I tried two of my favorites – loh mee and prawn mee, in that order.
Loh mee because it is very difficult to find a good version of Penang loh mee in Klang Valley, with the only one I am aware of at Choon Prawn Mee in Seapark.
proper Penang style loh mee, Johny’s
The loh mee at Johnny’s comes with all the proper ingredients you’d expect, and a broth that is thick and flavorful. There’s prawns, hard boiled egg, pork slices, and garlic. You can also asks for extra ingredients if you so wish. I went with some pork intestine and was glad that I did.
RM 10 later and I was very, very satisfied. Best Penang loh mee I’ve had outside the island.
A few days later on an off day, I went again for the prawn mee, and ordered the version with extra prawns.
I must admit that I regretted ordering the extras a bit – there were simply way too much prawns! RM 15 for this bowl and I counted over a dozen pretty good size prawns. I’ve never thought it was possible to have too much prawn in prawn mee until now…
Johnny’s Prawn Mee, with extra prawns
Overall the prawn mee, like the loh mee I had before, did not disappoint. The broth had the unmistakable prawn shell sweetness to it, and there’s everything you’d expect – pork slices, prawns, kangkung, bean sprouts. If I had to nitpick, perhaps the only area of improvement here would be the chili paste, it was okay, but it could be slightly more fragrant perhaps.
Anyway, I’ll be back to Johnny’s for sure. Maybe to try the kuih teow soup next?
Address: Fullhouse Cafe 27-1 & 29, 1, Jalan Zuhrah BH U5/BH, Taman Subang Murni, 40150 Shah Alam, Selangor GPS: 3.162310, 101.544326 Tel:011-2319 0288
Address:
Yau Yat Khan
1, Jalan Bulan BL U5/BL,
Bandar Pinggiran Subang,
40150 Shah Alam, Selangor GPS: 3.165238, 101.547289 Tel:011-2319 0288
