Several weeks ago when I was trying to look for a particular unique dish in Klang (another story another time), we chanced upon this mysterious looking restaurant by the name of Restoran SM on Jalan Goh Hock Huat (fun fact, in Hokkien both Hock and Huat can be the same word). Since the adventurous spirit was with me, I decided to give it a peek.
SM Yong Tao Foo at Klang
As it turns out, Restoran SM is a rather old school yong tau foo outlet famous among the locals in Klang. In fact, the restaurant used to be located along Jalan Kapar before moving to this new location, which is actually the road parallel to the old location, perhaps just a stone’s throw away via bird eye’s view, if you have a really strong arm.
yong tau foo in soup or fried version, chee cheong fun
Ordering process here is similar to many other YTF places, there’s a ordering form that doubles as the menu, you’d simply note down the items you wish to have and pass it to the friendly server.
There are two types of yong tau foo, as usual, deep fried, and soup based. Additionally, you can also order noodle and chee cheong fun.
seaweed yong tau foo, tofu, brinjal yong tau foo
The service is usually pretty quick, and everything would be piping hot when served. Both fried and soup version tasted top notch with their super soft and tender filing that carries a flavor that’s not overly imposing. The seaweed yong tau foo is one of their specialty that you should try here.
And for those who loves Penang style chee cheong fun, order a plate too, you won’t be disappointed.
Address: SM Yong Tau Foo 72-74, Jalan Goh Hock Huat, Kawasan 18, 41400 Klang, Selangor GPS: 3.0544391, 101.444897 Hours: 8am to 5pm
On my trip to Ipoh when we were in this period of “Recovery CMO” back in August 2020 (yes, 2020 is a strange year), I was introduced to one of the more famous Ipoh hawker offerings by the name of “liu fun” at Choong Kee, or commonly also known as Big Tree, at Pasir Pinji, Ipoh – 忠记大树头炸料粉.
Choong Kee “Big Tree” at Ipoh
As it turns out, liu fun is almost entirely exactly like yong tau foo – with stuffed tofu, red chili, bitter gourd, long beans, tofu, and so forth. These comes both in deep fried as well as soup version. The only difference here is that instead of serving with chee cheong fun or rice like most yong tau foo places, in Ipoh, you get to choose your choice of noodle (meehun, yellow noodle, kuih teow etc) instead.
The ingredients (or yong tau foo in this case) = liu 料, noodle = fun 粉. Hence, liu fun 料粉.
Choong Kee is located under a big tree, and hence the name. While there maybe others that claim to be of same origin, this is apparently the one and only Choong Kee in the whole of Ipoh or anywhere else.
do you call it yong tau foo or liu fun?
There’s close to a dozen different ingredients to choose from, with the price clearly stated on the billboard atop the stall. The SOP is simple, take your pick and place them in a basket, and the operators will re-fry or put them in hot soup prior to serving.
The must-order here is their excellent fried turnip. Imagine a very good, crunchy & sweet version of fried radish, but better.
Pasir Pinji chee cheong fun, tapao only
To kick it up a notch, instead of their “noodle”, we actually stopped by the famous Pasir Pinji chee cheong fun and tapao a couple packs of these delicious carbs to go with the liu fun.
The chee cheong fun is super soft and carries an excellent texture that is just right, they also come with pickled green chili and a chili sauce that’s spicy and slightly sweetish. It is a must-try if you’re into chee cheong fun.
chee cheong fun, liu fun, and roast pork
Pairing the yong tau foo/liu fun with the chee cheong fun proved to be an excellent combination, and if you’re a fan of siu yok (roast pork), there’s a stall at Choong Kee offering that as well, get some!
Address: Choong Kee “Big Tree” 1213, Jalan King, Taman Hoover, 31650 Ipoh, Perak GPS: 4.582364, 101.085703 Tel: 012-507 1482 Hours: 8am to 5:30pm daily
Address: Pasir Pinji Chee Cheong Fun 1456, Jalan Pasir Pinji 5, Kampung Pasir Pinji Baru, 31650 Ipoh, Perak GPS: 4.578745, 101.08423 Hours: 10am to 3pm, closed on Sunday & Wednesday
While having one of my favorite wantan mee at Lucky Garden a couple weeks back, a slightly older Sikh gentleman politely asked to share the table, which of course I agreed. As usual, my breakfast was then accompanied by a single serving side dish of stranger conversation.
Pudu wet market, KL
It was during this exchange that the I was told about his favorite curry chee cheong fun place at Pudu wet market, and how all his decade old ex-classmates drools over the pictures on WhatsApp group chat whenever he posts them. So naturally, I decide to pay a visit to see what this is all about on the very next day.
It was actually my first time to the Pudu wet market, and to be honest I wasn’t really prepared by how big, busy, noisy, wet, and smelly this place is. This may turn off quite a few people, but I thought it brought a sense of nostalgia and live to the city. I kinda liked it, but if you drive there, do try to park some distance away instead of barging through the super congested streets surrounding the market.
curry chee cheong fun stall, Pudu Market
The curry chee cheong fun stall is right next to the Northern part of the wet market building and manned by a lady. You can ask for pure curry chee cheong fun (RM 2 for small portion, as in pic), or if you so fancy, add some yong tau foo pieces.
And yes, the curry chee cheong fun was on a league of its own, the curry has a bit of that kurma aroma to it which is rather distinctive, while also being a lot thicker than most. On top of that, there’s these little crunchy bits they put on top of those perfectly soft & smooth chee cheong fun. It was all well balanced and very, very satisfying.
curry chee cheong fun goes great with yau char kuai
My experience that morning was made more memorable by yet another stranger who came and shared table, this time another single serving conversation which ended up with the kind stranger offering me half a yau char kuai to go with my leftover curry sauce. Match made in heaven.
Address: Curry Chee Cheong Fun Pudu Market Jalan Pasar Baharu Kuala Lumpur GPS: 3.134275, 101.715213
A few weeks ago we made a trip to Seri Kembangan and met up with some relatives for a Yong Tau Foo lunch for the simple reason of the wife’s aunt saying this was the place to go for yong tau foo, so we did.
Our destination was Sister Kam (google map would say Sister Lam), a corner simple kopitiam set up with basic facilities, but also one that has a pretty busy kitchen with about half a dozen workers preparing yong tau foo on the spot. Parking was an easy enough affair, and we were lucky enough to get a table without having to wait.
some of the yong tau foo choices, made fresh on location
Ordering can be done via a piece of paper ala most dimsum style, you put a number next to the type of yong tau foo you want, and some 10 minutes later they’ll appear on your table. If you’re curious as to how they’ll look like, simply walk to the area near the kitchen and you’ll get to see many of the ready made ytf pieces on display just eagerly waiting to get into your stomach.
various types of ytf, plus curry chicken & hakka fried pork
For the 6 of us, we ordered a mixture of fried and soup version of yong tau foo. Additionally we also had a serving of curry chicken and hakka fried pork.
The yong tau foo were fresh and most importantly, with fish paste that are of pretty good quality. I enjoyed the hakka fried pork, but thought the curry chicken was a little light (though the potato was good).
We paid about RM 15 per person for the experience, which was pretty reasonable considering the fact that we also had some coconuts to go with. If you’re around the area it would be a decent place to fill up your stomach, but I would maybe think twice if I had to make a 45 minutes drive.
Address:
Sister Kam Yong Tau Foo
65, Jalan PSK 2,
Pusat Perdagangan Seri Kembangan,
43300 Selangor GPS: 3.013073, 101.700359 Tel: 03-8948 2878
While Klang is famous for bak kut teh, there are other options for food just in case the pork laden goodness is not exactly your most favorite thing ever (like it should). Today, let’s look at the pretty awesome chee cheong fun and yong tau foo stall that is Long Kei at Taman Eng Ann.
there’s always a queue in front of Long Kei
We actually stumbled upon this shop while looking for parking to get to the Eng Ann morning market. There always seems to be a healthy queue in front of the shop, a surefire indication that the food must be at least decent.
The selection of yong tau foo here is among the biggest I’ve seen anywhere. There’s green chili, brinjal, bitter gourd, fuchok, pork skin, various types of fishball/meatball, deep fried stuff, tofu, cuttle fish, and even kangkung, spoilt for choices really.
If you want to try one of each, you better come prepared with really big appetite.
two satisfied customers
We chose about 8-10 items to go with chee cheong fun. The sauce here isn’t overly complex but they seemed to get it just right, not overly sweet nor too thick. With the homemade chili sauce and a sprinkle of sesame seeds, it made for a more than decent meal for two under RM 20 (including drinks).
I think this could be one of our regular places whenever dimsum/yong tau foo cravings come calling.
Address: Long Kei Yong Tau Foo Jalan Kawasari 4b, Taman Eng Ann, 41150 Klang, Selangor GPS: 3.057452, 101.459852
