When ever we go to KL, my sister & brother in-law which was the permanent KL citizen will surely bring us to makan. I actual fact they need us to help 'hantam' the left-overs and to have more people to sit in so that they can try more food!  They can't handle the big feast by themselves...lol

Sai Kee, was one of the pioneer in KL Chinatown as they had occupied here more then 50 years, as my title says, 3 generations, from grand pa, father and follow by son. But i wonder how and why they choose to operate the stall at the back lane for half a century?!  Guess a name BACKLANE is not a ideal dining area right? Especially the old town house, you really can imagine how dirty, smelly, rats & roaches crawling here and there along the lane, and don't mention about dining there!

Alright, i couldn't believe my eyes when i heading to the stall. Guess what? 80% tables were patronized by the supporter! I was asking myself, are they really serving good food here, in  a DIRTY BACKLANE? Well, lets fine out!

Dishes Rating:

Traditional Hand Made Fish Paste Soup with Vegetable Thong Ow: 3.5/5
Steam Pork with Salted Fish: 3.5/5
Roast Pork Stir Fry with Tofu : 3.7/5
Black Bean Fish: 3/5
Balacan (Shrimp paste) Brinjals: 4/5

Average rating for this place:

3.5/5 for value
3.8/5 for taste & texture
3/5 for service
1.5/5 for cleanliness  (very dirty....at the back lane, what do you aspect?)
1.5/5 for atmosphere (back lane is very stuffy)

P/S: Teh Cehf has a heavy hand, 70% of the dishes are pretty salty, so do remember to ask for some adjustment to your liking OR opt for non salty dishes....lol. Actually, I dont like to dine here as it was really dirty to me.

For the full experience at Sai Kee, do visit our already not so new self-hosted food blog at:

http://www.gourmetgarden.com.my/2009/05/13/3-generations-cantonese-old-school-dishes-sai-kee-kl-chinatown-back-lane/

This afternoon went to the prawn fritters and loh bak stall at Weld Quey that I blog recently. I was not in a rush to be any where, thus I had time to seat down and slowly savour and try various methods to taste the fritters and loh bak.

The prawn fritters when taken on its own is actually cripy on the surface and soft and sweet on the inside. The sweetness is very mild and it is from the bean sprouts and prawns used. When taken with the raw yellow nooldes, it actually enhanced the fritters with its saltiness and absorbs the oiliness feeling. If taken with the home-mixed chili sauce, it gives the snack a spicy and tangy taste.

As for the loh bak, the feeling is filled with chopped shallots, five spice and cutted pork stips. The loh baks are sweet to taste. I tried two different way to enjoy the meaty rolls. First, it was cutted and re-fried and second method was just as it is. The re-fried version was more appertising because after it was cutted to smaller pieces, the fillings like the starch, shallots, meat and five spice were expose to the hot oil which brought togather the fragrant and taste. Better than the cold version!

Lastly, I tried having the prawn fritter, loh bak(re-fried) and yellow noodle all togather at one mouthfull. The combination worked, salty, creamy, sweet and fragrant taste, and crispy, crunchy, soft, strachy and QQ texture. With just a touch of the home-mixed chili, it adds some spice and tang.

It is definitely a different experience from the previous.

This stall, Leong Pui Kee, is located in Ipoh's famous 'Thong Sui Kai' (Desert Road), next to Robin Hotel. Basically, this stall sells Roti Bak Kua and sorts, but are particularly known for it 'Ngap Kuak Pau' or Chinese preserve meat wrap in duck's feet. This snack is a traditional Chinese snack, and is often savoured at movies or fun fairs during the olden days.

The ngap kuak pau is made of Chinese preserved meat (lap yuk), lard, ducks feet, soya bean sheet (fu chuk) and the special stewing gravy, the gravy used for roti bak kua. The lard is placed in between the ducks feet and the preserved meat, thus if you might noticed it. The snack is now not common in Penang, if found it is often the reduced version, without the whole duck feet or replaced with chicken feet.

I have actually tried out this treat in the past and still go back for more, may be because it is not easily found in Penang. I can still remember the days when the small independent cinemas are still around, road side stalls selling snack treats like cutted fruits, roti bak kuah, hamburger, steam peanuts, etc. Those were the days, cheap and good!

The Ngap Kuak Pau tastes sweet, creamy and rich because of the lard piece and preserved meat that is wrap on the feet. The texture is starchy because of the secretion of juices from the duck feet and firm to slight hard(if taken cold) due to the existence of the preserved meat. It is an experience not to miss and forget!


On average, I would give this place:

• 3.8/5 for value
• 4/5 for taste & texture
• 3/5 for service
• 3.5/5 for cleanliness
• 3/5 for atmosphere (hawker stall, where got!)
  
  

This place that we are going to review is located just off Jalan Weld Quey, at Tan Jetty. I was told by the owner that they are are only closed on Mondays and the operating hours are until 6 or 7 pm. This place was introduced to us by Criz when we were tasked to get some Loh Bak for our visiting relative from Hong Kong. The goodies were cold and lumpy by dinner time that day, thus we decided to make another trip here for the fresh version!





The fritters, Loh Bak and Taugua Chi are fried batch by batch after the previous ones are consumed. Thus, it is kept as fresh as possible. I heard that the owner also supplies to food catering businesses and hawkers in and around town. Therefore, if you would like to get them for your party, you could do so by phone. It was advised by the owners that I would be better to BBQ the fritters and loh bak after they get cold and soft. If reheat by deep frying will make it too oily for consumption.

Another advice from the owner is to take the prawn fritters together with raw/uncooked yellow noodles. This combination would reduce the oily feeling of the fritters because the noodle tends to absorb the oil from the fritters. We tried and it actually taste better. In fact, the noodles gave the fritters extra taste as the fritters themselves do not have much taste in them. But remember not to over do it with the chili sauce, it will kill the taste and texture of the combination of fritters and yellow noodle. Another way, personally, of enjoying the prawn fritters are by dunking them into something sweet and light like Thor Thou Theng(sweet peanut soup). It really brings it to another height in taste and feel. Something like french fries and ice-cream or milk shake. Damn!

The Loh Bak is average, heavier on the five spice and sweet taste. As for the Taugua Chi, it must be taken with the accompanying chili sauce to make it more appetising and tastier.

On average, I would give this place:

• 4/5 for value
• 3.8/5 for taste
• 3.8/5 for service (Very friendly and informative)
• 3.5/5 for cleanliness (Don't expect much from a cottage business)
• 3.5/5 for atmosphere (old school feel)

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