Yee Fatt Curry Mee

Ipoh is famed for its good food. One favorite among Ipoh folks is curry noodles. There are so many places in this clean city that offer good tasty curry mee. One such place is Yee Fatt (怡发) Kopitiam. It is located in Jalan Kampar at the round-about connecting Jalan Tokong, Jalan Kampar and Jalan Permaisuri Bainun - opposite the Methodist Girls' School.

The place is very popular. It is almost always full. The coffee shop serves a variety of local makan, but looking around the tables, it was very obvious that most people were there for the curry mee.

The noodles were prepared at a stall at the front of the shop. I asked the stall keeper if I could take some shots of his business. He was most obliging. In spite of his busy schedule, he managed a smile for me.

You could have your curry noodles wet or dry. The dry version is actually kon lo (干捞) with a thick curry gravy over it.

My bowl of wet curry mee came with curry chicken, bits of char siew (叉烧) and siew yuk (燒肉), topped with some mint leaves. A thick layer of curry oil floated on the surface.

The dry (kon lo 干捞) noodles was similar with a thick curry gravy concealing almost everything in the plate.

I did not like the curry mee. I found the curry flavor too strong. The spices they used were over-powering. The flavor was there, but there was too much of it in one bowl. There appeared to be an excessive use of lengkuas (a type of ginger). It masked the taste and flavor of everything else. There was also too much oil in the curry. We had to spoon out the oil to make it more palatable. The surplus that did not make it to our arteries was this much...

After a couple of mouthfuls, I declared that the sisters in SEA Park PJ make better curry mee. Except for my wife, the kins in my party initially differed. But before the meal was done, they gradually began to agree with my verdict.

We also ordered a plate of taugeh (bean sprouts) to supplement our noodles. Like all taugehs in Ipoh, they were wonderful. Fat and stubby, they were so fresh and delicious.

Besides the curry noodles, we also had some side orders, The wu kok (芋角) - a yam pastry with meat fillings - was served in a plate of 3 pieces. Very ordinary.

Likewise, the loh mai kai (糯米鸡) was also nothing to shout about.

My personal experience with the curry mee was not positive. But that does not necessarily mean that the curry noodles there is inferior. The large patronage in the shop attested to the real possibility I might be wrong. I guess it is a matter of taste and preferences. Certainly the shop is worth a visit and it is your decision to make whether to agree with the large number of Ipoh folks or with this outsider palate of mine.

Sisters curry mee 2

We finally made it to Bandar Puteri Puchong for more sisters' curry mee. Just to recap...


On 21-Mar-2010, I blogged about my favorite curry mee in SEA Park, PJ. The curry laksa stall is operated by 2 sisters. The son of one of the sisters opened a restaurant in Puchong selling the same curry laksa. I had been curious about this makan place and wanted to know how the son matches up to his mother.

We were cruising around Bandar Puteri Puchong one evening looking for another makan place when my wife spotted the shop. We went there the following Saturday for brunch.

The name of the shop is Restoran Sister Curry Laksa SEA Park (姐妹咖哩麵家). It is located on Jalan Puteri 2/6 in Bandar Puteri Puchong. There was quite a good crowd when we arrived there at about 10am. The place was pleasantly green and comfortably air-conditioned. Like all new style makan places, there was a outer section for smokers.

Even the menu was green. It basically offered the same curry and beef soup noodles as the SEA Park parent stall with additional side dishes, snacks, rice and vegetables. And like a good son, a picture of the mother and aunt was featured in the menu.

I ordered the same as I did in SEA Park. My bowl of curry mee looked very much like what I had in SEA Park - with chicken, see hum (cockles 鲜蚶), tau fu pok (豆腐卜) and some long beans. However with one sip of the curry, I could tell that the mother's cooking was superior. The curry was very much like his mother's - aromatic and not too much santan (coconut milk). But it was not the same. The mother reigned. Still it was not a bad bowl of curry noodle and I enjoyed it too. My only complaint was that the noodles were rather cold. It would had been better if it was served hot.

The beef soup was comparable. I don't think I could tell the difference between the beef soup there and the mother's. It was with the same beef, tripe and tendons, plus some beef meat balls which were not available in SEA Park. It tasted with the same deliciousness. Even the price, at RM10, was the same.

My wife had a bowl of curry without noodles. It was actually the same as my bowl with all the ingredients sans the noodles.

We also had a plate of taugeh (bean sprouts). It was very ordinary but adding to our bowls of curry, it made our meal a lot more pleasant.

Our drinks were hot coffee and iced lemon tea.

The place is really not a bad place for a nice curry laksa meal. It can justifiably boast on its 20 years of curry laksa legacy, albeit the mother's.

However the next time I have the craving of curry mee, I will most likely head towards SEA Park. It is much nearer and it is the original.

Sisters curry mee

The place in PJ to get a nice bowl of curry mee is in SEA Park. There is a stall in the Sun Fatt Kee coffee shop that serves real nice curry laksa and beef soup noodles.

Sun Fatt Kee is located at the junction of Jalan 21/11B and Jalan 21/17. It is opposite the SEA Park wet market and is directly behind the SEA Park Maybank.

The place is somewhat run-down and dilapidated. But hey, if you just want some really good curry mee, never mind the environment. The coffee shop is normally quite packed during the weekends. My last visit was on a Monday morning. It was quiet.

The noodle stall is operated by 2 sisters. From here in SEA Park, their business has apparently expanded. There is now a restaurant in Bandar Puteri Puchong known as Sisters Curry Laksa (SEA Park). This restaurant is operated by the son of one of the sisters, using the curry recipe of this stall. I have not visited the Puchong outlet. If I do, I will blog it. In spite of the new business, the sisters still run their stall in SEA Park.

I am quite avid about curry mee. I enjoy this uniquely Malaysian flavour. I have tasted curry noodles in many other places around KL, PJ and Subang Jaya. I did not come across one that I really liked until the sisters. Good curry noodles are mainly in Ipoh and Penang. Sisters is one stall that I have returned, again and again. The noodles come with the normal chicken shreds, see hum (cockles), tau fu pok and some long beans. The curry is aromatic and rich. They do not use too much santan (coconut milk) which is good. I do not like curry noodles that is saturated in santan.

 

There is however one exception that I find with the sisters. They are not very consistent. The flavour of their curry vary with the crowd. On weekends when they are busy, the flavour deteriorates. On my last Monday morning visit, it was superb.

 

The sisters also serve a good beef soup. You can have the beef soup with noodles. You can have the beef with the curry noodles. Or you can just have a bowl of beef soup without noodles. It is quite expensive. I ordered a bowl of beef soup for the purpose of this blog - just to take some pictures. It was RM10 for a small bowl. But it was nice. There was meat and tripe and tendons. Very delicious. However it was somewhat out of place with the curry noodles.

We used to bring our own mint leaves (which they sadly do not provide) and roast pork (for added flavour) when we go for our weekend bowls of sisters curry mee. And whenever I am there, it is always the big bowl for me. One of the small pleasures in life.

Next destination - Bandar Puteri Puchong.