Yut Loy @ Kuala Kangsar, Perak

(TJ is unable to review this place as thinking about it puts her cravings into a mad frenzy.)

K: As an old boy of MCKK, one of our hangouts during weekends was the Hainanese kopitiam Yut Loy. Our exclusive boys club was at the 1st floor of the restaurant, where only MCKK boys were allowed. The other lesser mortals would have to be satisfied with the ground floor.

The top item on the menu was definitely the pau. The pau was light and fluffy, with delightful fillings inside. There were kaya, red bean, beef and chicken fillings. There were other food of course, but the pau was the main draw. If you come during MCKK's Old Boys Weekend, you would have to order reaaaaal early (by phone if you can) because if you come and expect to get pau just like that, you are dreaming.

The paus are so good that they get the royal thumbs up from the Sultan of Perak!

However, there was one particular food that was actually really good and quite unique but I only discovered it after I left school.

Okay, I'm sure everyone had tried hainanese chicken chop and beef steak before, but the one thing that I am not sure many people have ever tried is egg steak. Yes, you read it right, egg steak!

The story goes that the MCKK boys were too broke to afford chicken chop or beef steak, so instead they ordered egg steak which is basically fried egg with gravy. It's the same gravy used for the beef steak and chicken chop, just poured on egg. The gravy is not your typical black pepper sauce but a brown sauce served with onions, peas and carrots.

Having said that, the beef steak and chicken chop is much better than the egg steak. But hey, if you want to try something unique, just give the egg steak a go!

Yut Loy
No 51, Jalan Kangsar
Kuala Kangsar
33000 Perak
T:  057766369

Price: $ - $$
Halal

(first pic courtesy of dammitlil)

Mee Udang Mak Jah @ Taiping

When asked for makan spots in Taiping, K's friends enthusiastically nominated the famous Mee Udang Mak Jah at Kuala Sepetang aka Port Weld. We were warned that it tends to be rather hot to dine in this open air stall during the day, so we came at night instead.

Finding the place was an anti-climatic adventure as we couldn't find an address. Turns out there's really no need for one as it's facing the ONLY trunk road from Taiping. There are a lot of Mee Udang stalls along the road but we were told to ignore them and only go for Mak Jah.

The famous dish is actually called Mee Udang Banjir (literally translates to Flooded Prawn Noodles) and is not the same as chinese style prawn mee. I've never actually had Malay style prawn mee before but whoa, this is good stuff I can't believe I've been missing out all my life!

The biggest difference between the malay style and chinese is that the former's soup is thicker and more tangy, probably due to a tomato base. Add the slow burning spiciness balanced with sweetness and you've got a bowl good to the last drop. It's served with crunchy fried shallots and of course, a generous serving of fresh prawns from Kuala Sepetang.

The noodle dish comes in two versions; "biasa" (RM7) and "special" (RM11). The difference is the size of the prawns, the latter served with bigger prawns.

K: I had the Mee Goreng Udang Biasa (RM7). It's basically mee goreng basah with a generous serving of prawns. The mee goreng udang was good but having tasted TJ's mee udang I have to admit, mee udang is waaaay better than the mee goreng.

According to an article published on a local daily that hangs proudly on display, the restaurant exclusively uses fresh prawns from Kuala Sepetang. No prawns = no mee udang = close shop. Fuh, that's commitment!

Afterwards a friend of K's asked him if he tried the cucur udang which we didn't since we were already quite full after eating the noodles. K's friend said the cucur udang is a must have too. Ah well, next time then.

Mee Udang Mak Jah is a family run restaurant and one of her children opened an outlet in Klang Valley! Some critics say it is not as good as the original but we have no complaints upon our recent visit there. Having missed out on the cucur udang at Kuala Sepetang, we didn't want to miss out on them this time. Alas, the Wangsa Maju outlet does not serve cucur udang.

K had a chat with the cashier who turned out to be the wife of Mak Jah's younger son. She says it's not easy to prepare the cucur udang, which is why it's not available in KL. Apparently the cucur udang is prepared by Mak Jah's older son, who is running the original outlet in Kuala Sepetang. He was supposed to come over to KL and serve cucur udang at the outlet here which would mean no cucur udang at Kuala Sepetang, but since his kids are still in school, the idea was shelved.

K was quite astounded at this bit of news. Since when was cucur udang so complicated that only ONE PERSON in the entire family knows how to prepare it? Not even the younger brother can prepare it?

Wow!! This must be a helluva cucur udang!! SAYA MESTI PILIH!!!

Another trip to Kuala Sepetang beckons....



In short - Slurp slurp burp! Good food + generous portions + good price = Must makan

Mee Udang Mak Jah
Jalan Taiping-Kuala Sepetang
Kampung Menteri,
Kuala Sepetang, Taiping
Open from 11am to 10pm daily*
*closed on Wednesday

OR

Mee Udang Mak Jah
No.22, Jalan Wangsa Delima 10,
Wangsa Maju (near Wangsa Walk)
Kuala Lumpur
Open from 11am to 10pm daily

Price - $
Halal