As a big fan of Kim Lian Kee KL Hokkien mee, I was excited that they opened a branch in the newly launched Mid Valley Southkey in Johor Bahru. I am eager to know if I still need to go to Kuala Lumpur to get my KL Hokkien mee fix.
The queue formed up the moment Kim Lian Kee opened for business at 11am, which attested to the brand's following in JB.
The interior was bare bones, unpretentious, if a bit out of place in the rather swanky new mall. But, I did appreciate its authenticity.
The orange charcoal fire, leaping flames, and crazily whirling fire flies looked the part, heightening our expectations.
Our KL Hokkien mee arrived about 1 hour after our orders were taken. We were fine with it as we rather the chefs took time to cook good dishes for us than take short cuts. A sprinkling of lard cracklings topped the mound of black noodles. There was a slight caramelised sauce aroma from the steamy hot noodles. Price RM15.90+ per pax serving i.e. RM17.50.
The fat tai lok meen were well coated with dark sauce. The noodles were soft and there was very little if any spring to the bite. The noodles were more wet than lardy slick.
The sauce was savoury but not as intense or robust as its KL cousin. In other words, not much kick in it. There was also no wok hei despite the fiery drama we saw earlier. Lard taste was also a bit elusive.
The couple of prawns, pieces of cabbage, and pork slices added their own textures and flavours to the dish. I missed the taste and feel of small sotong (squid) heads and chicken liver which I liked in the Kuala Lumpur version.
Only when I bit into the occasional lard crackling was the taste and aroma reminiscent of the marvellous Hokkien mee I had in KL.
The chili sauce was salty spicy, more salty than I liked.
Information for you 👉 We finished our food because we were brought up that way. I shall have to drive to Kuala Lumpur for my KL Hokkien mee fix.
My take on the original Kim Lian Kee KL Hokkien mee at Petaling Street, Chinatown Kuala Lumpur 👈 click
Restaurant name: Kim Lian Kee 金莲记福建面
Address: LG, The Mall, Mid Valley Southkey, Persiaran Southkey 1, Southkey, Johor Bahru, Malaysia
GPS: 1°30'05.2"N 103°46'39.6"E 🌐 1.501447, 103.777652
WAZE: SOGO @ The Mall, Mid Valley Southkey
Hours: 11:00am - 10:00pm
Non Halal
Date visited: 12 May 2019
forget about this joint. not worth
ReplyDeleteEncik, how would you compare this to Damansara Uptown Hokkien Mee?
ReplyDelete3/10 SCORED
ReplyDelete3/10 only BIG let down
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ReplyDelete2/10. It was noodles drenched in black sauce. No wok hey at all. A far cry from KL Petaling Street. Don't waste your calories intake.
ReplyDeleteTHIS IS THE VERY DISAPPOINTED FOR THE COOK ARE NOT ENOUGH TO STAGE WHEN COME TO KL HOKKIEN MEE
ReplyDeleteNot nice n not worth at all
ReplyDeleteVery disappointed, order take away claypot log Shu fun $17.50 but give me hokkien new $15.90. bring back open up then realize cook wrongly..At mid vally
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