Terengganu Fish Curry Mee @ Restoran Triple One in Taman Ungku Tun Aminah, Skudai, Johor Bahru 丁加奴面

Food spotting is a hazardous pastime. Every so often we ate at a place that made us feel that we had wasted our precious calorie and cholesterol quota. Other times, we stumbled upon something so good that we felt like we were at the top of the world. Today is one such time for me.

Mee Hoon Kueh @ Restoran Sing Ting in Taman Ungku Tun Aminah 新天

I was food spotting in Taman Ungku Tun Aminah (TUTA) when I stumbled upon Restoran Sing Ting 新天 which was filled with customers. As I was curious, I went in to check and saw many people eating mee hoon kueh. Their happy faces tell me that I may have made another good food find.

Heritage Curry Laksa @ Lee Kee in Taman Sri Tebrau, Johor Bahru 李记柔佛辣沙

Lee Kee Johore Laksa has been around since 1946 when Madam Lee, the present owner's mother founded the business. Lee Kee began life as a mobile street peddler stall where its laksa was sold from place to place carried in two baskets slung across Madam Lee's shoulders.

Lor Mee @ Allisan Coffee Shop in Taman Century 亚存槟城卤面

Today, I am reminded once again that food spotting is a hit or miss thing and that taste in food is, to put it mildly, a highly subjective thing.

Fried Fish Bee Hoon Soup @ Famous Dart Fei Biao Noodle House | Taman Sutera Utama, Johor Bahru 飞镖

I was food spotting in Taman Sutera Utama when I stumbled upon this scene. The sign board says fish and soup and since I wasn't hungry, I thought this would do just fine for a quick lunch.

Tim Sum @ Restoran Haw Yi 好谊 in Taman Skudai Baru, Johor Bahru

During food spotting this morning at Taman Skudai Baru, I stumbled upon this scene of customers spilling onto the road outside Restoran Haw Yi 好谊. Thrilled by the possibility of another good food find, I took a closer look.

Curry Mutton @ Kerala Restaurant in Johor Bahru

Kerala Restaurant is a well established name in Johor Bahru well loved for its fish, chicken and mutton curries. Each time I was there, I saw heart warming scenes of three generation families - grandparents, parents and children - enjoying their curries together.

Nasi Lemak Breakfast in Johor Bahru @ Warung Madmoodiah

In case anyone wonders how I find my good eats in Johor, one of my favourite methods is to observe where people vote with their stomachs and pockets i.e. where there is a crowd, I will investigate as to what is drawing them in. Sometimes, I am rewarded with a lucky find. Today is another such time.

Curry Chicken @ Kerala Restaurant along Jalan Storey, Johor Bahru

Kerala Restaurant which began business in 1949 is one of the oldest established Indian restaurants in Johor Bahru. Kerala has a loyal clientele who have been dining here for generations. Kerala offers traditional Indian meals such as curry fish, chicken and mutton as well as thosai in a comfortable air conditioned setting, at competitive prices.

Curry chicken set for RM8.50

The curry chicken set served on a banana leaf comes with a large piece of chicken, curried cabbages, long beans, potatoes and egg plant on a bed of boiled white rice.

The rice is the long grained variety. It is clear and fresh tasting, and absorbs the curry and its flavours very well.

Fragrant, freshly fried poppadoms are served with the set meal.

The creamy chicken curry is aromatic, spicy but mild - it is not hot. Coupled with all the fresh ingredients, the natural sweetness of the chicken and vegetables becomes the dominant flavour.

Although I am used to and am expecting hot and even fiery curries, I found myself enjoying the mild and naturally sweet flavours at Kerala Restaurant.

Besides enjoying the chicken curry myself, Kerala is an ideal place to bring guests who are uninitiated to the pleasures of curry to start them off with a mild variety.

Restaurant name: Kerala Restaurant

Address: 77, Jalan Storey, Kim Teng Park, Johor Bahru

Hours: 6:30am to 7:00pm (closed on Sundays)

Map: http://g.co/maps/j5pw3

Halal

Date visited: 26 Jan 2012, 27 Jan 2012

Pontian Wanton Mee (in Taman Century, JB not in Pontian) Near KSL Mall, Johor Bahru, Malaysia

I am seriously not a fan of those American fast food chains but I did fall for their colourful and attractive shop fronts. Once in the US, I was so thrilled by the beautiful shop fronts of the different fast food chains that I was led to believe that I was in some sort of foodie's paradise. So I tried out the different fast foods on offer. After just 2 days of fast food for my daily 3 meals, the salt, sugar, trans fat, preservatives and unknown chemicals made me feel that my heart was about to stop at anytime.

Since that time, fast food chains with loud, colourful shop fronts are an automatic turn off for me.

Original Kacang Pool Hj Stall @ Hawker Centre beside Larkin Fire Station in Johor Bahru

Kacang Pool Haji at Medan Selera Larkin is probably the best known kacang pool stall in Johor.

Lontong Kering @ Warung Saga in Jalan Mahmoodiah, Johor Bahru

Enjoy a unique Johor dish in a special Johor Bahru warung.

Hiap Joo 协裕 Bakery and Biscuit Factory in Johor Bahru Old Town - Heritage Trail Edition

Johor Bahru, 25 Jan 1966.  Today, I performed my weekly ritual of going to the famous Hiap Joo bakery in downtown JB to buy bread and cakes for the family.

I like to go there with my trusty motor bike as downtown JB is very congested and it is really difficult to find a parking space for a car. With my bike, I can just park it on the curb at Kin Wah coffee shop just across Hiap Joo. I dash into Hiap Joo, make a quick purchase and off I go - just like the way many of Hiap Joo's regular customers do.

This wood fired oven has been the centre piece at Hiap Joo since 1928

To do this with precision and to get the freshest cakes and pastries, I know exactly when Hiap Joo's confectioneries will be taken out of the oven each day. The earliest batch of cakes and pastries leave the oven at about 12:30pm and the last about 2:30pm.

This large golden brown slab of banana cake at 50 sens

Hiap Joo makes a wide range of confectioneries and I am a die hard fan of their soft and moist freshly baked banana cakes. I can never get enough of these soft, feathery, melt in your mouth, fluffy fragrant cakes made with real bananas and with no preservatives or artificial flavourings. I also like the subtle smokey flavour from the browned skin.

At Hiap Joo, the whole family chips in to make the confectioneries every day. It is a heartwarming scene, that is a joy to watch.

The slabs of banana cakes are cut into bite size pieces by hand with amazing precision. Each piece is exactly the same size, reflecting the quiet pride and dedication that Hiap Joo put into their products. This commitment is ultimately reflected in the quality and taste of Hiap Joo's cakes and pastries that we enjoy so much.

I am sure to be a life long customer of Hiap Joo's, and hopefully my future generations too.

After note: Hiap Joo has remained true to its tradition over all these years. Prices, however, has kept up with the times. The slab of banana cake now sells at RM8.

->> Enjoy tradition, heritage and delicious food all at once.

Name: Hiap Joo Bakery and Biscuit Factory

Address: 13, Jalan Tan Hiok Nee, 8000 Johor Bahru

Map: http://g.co/maps/zzy9r

GPS: 1.456701,103.764421

Hours: Daily 8:00am to 6:00pm (closed on Sunday)

Halal

Date visited: 25 Jan 1966 (imagine lah!)

Salahuddin Bakery in Johor Bahru Old Town - Heritage Trail Edition

Take a trip back in time with a visit to Salahuddin Bakery today.

Sang Heng 甡兴 Kway Teow Soup in Johor Bahru Old Town - Heritage Trail Edition

Johor Bahru, 23 Jan 1966.  I was downtown to do some business at the bank today. By the time I was done, it was already lunch time and I was starving.

Ais Kacang ABC @ Joo Yee (Tan Kee Pelangi) in Taman Serene Hawker Centre, Johor Bahru. Update 2018 彩虹陈记

Johor Bahru has an iconic chocolate ice kacang by Joo Yee (Tan Kee Pelangi) stall at Taman Serene hawker centre (also known as Medan Selera Jalan Biru).

In Search of Johor's Best Beef Rendang

Beef rendang is a signature Minangkabau dish. The Minangkabau people come from western part of Sumatra Island in Indonesia.

It is not easy to find good authentic beef rendang in eateries.

The proper cooking process for beef rendang which takes about 4 hours is extremely tedious and requires plenty of skill, patience and dedication.

Credit

The first stage in cooking beef rendang is to use low heat to boil the thick beef chunks in coconut milk and curry spices. When most of the water has evaporated, the coconut milk and curry spices will turn into stew.

Credit

The second stage is to continue cooking the beef chunks in this stew by stirring and tossing the meat in a wok or deep pot with low heat. Continue until the stew turns into gravy.

Credit

When done, the unphotogenic beef chunks will look deep brown in colour on the outside due to the caramelised coconut milk. The cooking process saturates the meat with all the flavours from the coconut milk and curry spices, and seals it in with a caramelised coat. Good beef rendang is firm on the outside, and moist and tenderly soft on the inside.

Its fragrance is captivating. Each bite into the beef releases the flavour and fragrance sealed inside the meat during the long cooking process.

The labour intensive and time consuming cooking process make it hard to commercially produce beef rendang in the authentic way. Unfortunately, shortcuts or cutting corners will end up in inferior results. For example, too high heat or inattentiveness in stirring and tossing will result in over tough beef, ruining the dish.

Fortunately, my search for good beef rendang in Johor has turned up a few fine results which I share with you.



Restoran Azinur's rendang is saturated with the flavour of coconut and curry spices

Restoran Azinur in Taman Ungku Tun Aminah

Each bite of Restoran Kin Wah's rendang releases perfume like the squeeze of a perfume bottle

Nasi padang stall in Kin Wah coffee shop in JB old town

 



Restoran Mana Lagi's rendang is simply stunning in fragrance, flavour and texture

Restoran Mana Lagi in Taman Perling

 

I will continue my search for the best rendang in Johor and will post my favourite finds here. Any leads and tips are greatly appreciated J

Teochew Abalone Kway Teow Soup @ Yong Xin in Taman Ungku Tun Aminah

Yong Xin is a popular kway teow soup shop off Jalan Tun Aminah in Taman Ungku Tun Aminah (TUTA), Johor Baru.

Yong Xin’s fare is typical of traditional Teochew style kway teow soup. Teochews make up the majority of Chinese in Johor Bahru, so it is no surprise that kway teow soup shops selling this Teochew comfort food is ubiquitous here

Teochew Kway Teow Soup @ Sang Heng 甡兴 in Johor Bahru Old Town

To say that Sang Heng 甡兴 Teochew kway teow soup stall is an institution in Johor Bahru is neither a cliché nor an exaggeration.

Malaysian Coffee – My Favourite Kopitiams in Johor



Malaysian styled coffee is traditionally hand roasted with palm oil margarine in a large deep wok or a black cast iron drum over charcoal fire. I enjoyed many hours as a little boy watching coffee shop workers roast coffee beans by hand spinning the black cast iron drum behind coffee shops in old Singapore. That aroma of toasting coffee beans always transports me back to those blissful childhood days in an instant. In those impoverished days, we used to joke that catching the aroma 闻香 is free of charge ☻

By the way, I have not seen that contraption for many years now. When I find one, I must definitely take a picture and post it here for all to see.

The roasted coffee beans are then grounded with a noisy motorised grinding machine that sputter, trembles and shakes when it does its work – as if protesting the hard roasted beans being poured down its throat by the worker. The machine coughs out the grounded coffee into a waiting aluminium basin.

Traditional coffee is prepared with those uniquely Malaysian tall, long throated steel kettles.

The grounded coffee is filtered through these conical coffee socks made of white cotton muslin.

It takes skillful hands and a love of coffee to brew a good coffee. Keeping the coffee grounds too long or too short in the sock makes or breaks the coffee.

That’s why, those ubiquitous trendy franchise coffee made by students part timing for pocket money just won't cut it for me.

Good Malaysian coffee is bitter, full bodied and robust. Its magical aroma reaches your nose and lifts your spirit, before your first sip. In Malaysia, coffee is popularly sweetened with a large dollop of condensed or evaporated milk.

Heavenly….. ☻

Here are my favourite coffee shops (kopitiam in Hokkien) in Johor which I had the good fortune to visit. I will post others as I chance upon more good Malaysian coffee in Johor.

Kin Wah coffee shop @ 8, Jalan Trus, Johor Bahru old town

Hwa Mui coffee shop @ 131, Jalan Trus, Johor Bahru old down town

Cawanmas - coffee chain with its roots in coffee bean roasting. Various branches in Johor.

Never waste your daily caffeine quota again on lousy coffee ☻