I don't know why they call it Hokkein mee. This fat noodle is unique to Kuala Lumpur and the surrounding Klang Valley. And KL is predominantly Cantonese. It is an immensely popular noodle. A lot of my friends from Penang, Ipoh and Singapore come to KL asking for Hokkein fat mee.
It is for this reason that I keep a lookout for good Hokkein fat noodle - to bring my friends to. I don't think I have found the holy grail yet. But this shop sells an awesome noodle. The place is Restoran Damansara Hokkein Mee. It is located in PJ Uptown, on Jalan SS21/37, just a few shops away from the Sentul Hokkein Mee - the place that I had blogged on over 2 years ago.
This Damansara place is much more popular than Sentul. It's popularity spills to the five-foot walkway of the surrounding shops and to the road. The tables outside were 3 rows deep. May be a little of a nuisance, but people like to makan alfresco - in the open. The inside of the shop was largely empty.
The kitchen of shop is outside on the five-foot way. Perhaps another irritant to the neighbouring shops. A "chef" with a baseball was busily frying away.
On his kitchen table were plates of chu yaw char (猪油渣). Looked so tempting and appetising - and sinful. They were the extras. If you want the additional chu yaw char, you pay a little more. But for the sake of our hearts, we abstained.
We ordered a large plate of Hokkein meehoon-mee, a mix of the fat noodle and meehoon. It was fabulous. The flavour was delicious. It was dark with thick soya sauce. The goodness was obviously from the generous amount of pig lard used to fry the noodles. Even though we did not ask for the extra chu yaw char (猪油渣) they sprinkled a small amount over the plate. And fried into the noodles were ample chu yaw char that made the dish so very good. It was without a doubt very sinful, but absolutely a great tasting plate of Hokkein fat mee.
Next was a small plate of wat tan hor fun (形蛋河粉 - koay teow Cantonese style). It was not as spectacular as the Hokkein noodles. The koay teow was nicely browned and the gravy was smooth and tasty. No complaints.
We had a plate of la-la (clams) kam heong (金香) style. Compared to the noodles, the la-la was hopeless. I found the flavour similar to the fat noodles. I mean, I have no problem with the noodles flavour. In fact, I love it. But not on la-la. The la-la was supposed to be kam heong, and I didn't find any kam heong flavour in it. Also the la-la were small and hardly any meat in them.
And a plate of kai lan . It was blanched, with oyster sauce and deep fried shallots. Not bad at all.
I was still yearning for more Hokkein noodles. We added on a plate of koay teow Hokkein style. The preparation was similar to the fat noodles, with lots of lard and chu yaw char (猪油渣). It was just as dark and just as tasty. Their signature Hokkein style was distinct.
It was a great, simple and inexpensive meal. To all my friends in Penang, Ipoh, Singapore, or wherever you are - come on over. If you have a craving for some Hokkein fat mee, I know the exact place to take you.
Pun Chun (品珍) used to be a very popular wanton mee (雲吞麵) restaurant in Bidor, Perak. In the days before the North-South Highway, motorists on the trunk road used to stop at this shop for a bowl of their very popular duck drumstick soup noodles (鸭腿面). And the place was usually jam packed. The shop most probably prospered because of this motoring patronage. They were also famous for their chicken biscuit (鸡子饼), which was a gross misnomer for they were made entirely out of pork and lard.
I do not know why it took them so long. They finally found their way to the Klang Valley. And in my neighborhood too. When I saw their outlet in Ara Damansara, I wasted no time visiting it to relive the day when we used to relish their delicious noodles.
Their Ara Damansara branch is located on Jalan PJU 1A/3, on the other end of the row of shops where E-San Thai Kitchen is located. Besides this branch, they also have outlets in Kota Kemuning, Shah Alam and Bandar Puteri Puchong.
Contrary to my expectations, the place is very simply furnished - plastic chairs, cheap table tops and almost devoid of decor. They have a food counter at the back where the food is efficiently prepared entirely by foreign nationals.
They have racks at the side where on display for sales are cookies, white coffee and of course their famed chicken biscuits.
Their duck drumstick soup noodles (鸭腿面) topped their menu offering. Their duck soup is totally drumsticks. They do not serve other parts of the duck. I wonder where they get so many duck thighs, and what happen to the other parts of the ducks. The duck thighs are deep-fried or perhaps roasted and then boiled or steamed with a combination of herbs in a soup. Wanton noodles are added to this soup.
You could order the soup without the noodles. Personally I prefer this. Without being diluted by the noodles, I find the soup rich, tasty and very pleasant. I really do not care much for the meat. It is the soup that I relish and it is definitely better without the noodles.
For noodles, I prefer their good old wanton mee (雲吞麵). My choice is kon-lo (干捞) or dry, with some char siew (叉烧) for toppings. The noodle is Pun Chun is very good. It has the nice texture and it is not over-cooked.
Besides char siew (叉烧), you could also have curry pork ribs...
... or pork knuckles with your noodles.
And mushroom and chicken feet, which you can have with the noodles or just by itself.
And the wanton. Don't forget about their nice big wanton. Their wanton is not the typical pathetic wanton with meagre fillings that we find in most Malaysian shops and stalls. The wantons here are big with generous pork and prawn fillings - much like those we find in Hongkong. I enjoy the wantons here.
Lastly, I have to mention their pickled green chillies. I know it is trivial. But their pickled chillies is very nice - fresh and well pickled. Wanton noodles must be eaten with pickled green chillies, and each time I am there, I have my full share of this wonderful condiment.
Pun Chun is not fantastic. Still it offers a decent meal, with reasonable varieties and at affordable prices. Certainly it brings back some memories. And I am glad they have a branch in our neighborhood. Anytime I have a craving for a nice plate of wanton mee, it is just around the corner.
