Famous Lee Koh Kee Curry Laksa in Pekan Nanas 李国旗叻沙

Finally tasted the famous Pekan Nanas 婆婆叻沙 "Poh Poh" (grandma) laksa after missing it a few times.



Mdm Goh 胡玉香 still runs the stall she founded 50 years (now with the help of her sister-in-law). Mdm Goh still personally cooks the curry and sambal chili, the heart and soul of the dish.



Mdm Goh originally started a drinks stall outside her family home at 722, Jalan Sawah, Pekan Nanas, Johor. But, business wasn't good. Mdm Goh's brother-in-law suggested she switch to selling laksa and taught her the recipe.



Mdm Goh's first pot of curry laksa was an instant hit. Sold at 20 sens a bowl, it was sold out very quickly. Since then, generations of Pekan Nanas folks grew up with her laksa.



Mdm Goh said that not much have changed since the stall started. They still use fresh coconuts which they grate and squeeze out the milk themselves.



Ok... with a bit of help from technology nowadays 😄 Also, gas is used for cooking, replacing wood in the old days.



The eatery is a collection of assorted tables and chairs scattered around the front porch of Mdm Goh's family home. To a guy pining for old kampung life, this carefree, unpretentious setting already stole my heart.



Mdm Goh's porch eatery known to locals as grandma laksa "婆婆叻沙" has no official name for decades. When the media caught up with her a few years ago, they named the stall after Mdm Goh's late husband, hence the name Lee Koh Kee 李国旗 laksa.



Two of us, we ordered just one RM5 serving to share, as we were on a food trail around the Pulai-Pekan Nanas area and want to try as many different things as possible.



For RM5, our bowl of laksa was huge and loaded with noodles, fried tofu, fried tau pok, ngoh hiong, fish cake, and a couple of pork balls. But, they were all generic, bought from suppliers. There was also no seeham (blood cockles).

Mdm Goh said her laksa is meant to be a filling, staple meal at an affordable price.



Mdm Goh's laksa curry has nice medium body with a blend of well balanced mild sweet spicy savouriness.



Mdm Goh's laksa comes with a generous scoop of fiery red sambal chili (which she makes everyday).

The sweet spicy sambal is loaded with onions, chili peppers etc.

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A post shared by Tony Johor Kaki (@johorkaki) on Oct 1, 2018 at 1:53am PDT

The sharp sting from the sambal chili boosted the flavour index of the laksa curry by at least two notches. I love it.



👉 Check out 李国旗 laksa if you are around or passing by Pekan Nanas. It's a short 1 km drive off Lebuhraya Skudai - Pontian (the trunk road between JB and Pontian). Fifty year old 李国旗 laksa is synonymous with laksa to generations of Pekan Nanas locals. Whatever we may think of this laksa, to Pekan Nanas folks, Lee Koh Kee is not just a bowl of good laksa, but also the taste of home.

Other popular food stalls which you may like in Pekan Nanas 👈 click



Restaurant name: Lee Koh Kee Laksa 李国旗叻沙
Address: DH 722, Jalan Sawah 81500, Pekan Nanas, Johor
GPS: 1°30'46.5"N 103°30'43.7"E | 1.512911, 103.512124
Waze: 李国旗辣沙
Tel: +607 6992479
Hours: 8:30am - 3:30pm (Sunday off)

Date visited: 26 Jan 2018



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