History of Bak Cheng ● King of Malaysia Bak Kut Teh ● Legend of Johor Bahru 木清肉骨茶歷史

In 2006, Bak Cheng Bak Kut Teh 木清肉骨茶 was awarded the title of King of Bak Kut Teh in Malaysia.

Soong Huat Bak Kut Teh near JUSCO Tebrau & IKEA 顺发肉骨茶

There are around 30 Shoon Huat 顺发肉骨茶 bak kut teh branches dotted around Johor Bahru making it the biggest BKT brand in the world. Shoon Huat BKT outlets all use the same blend of mild herbs and spices for their BKT stock, though each branch source for fresh pork separately. This morning, I revisited Restoran Soong Huat in Taman Desa Tebrau near JUSCO Tebrau and IKEA.

Street Side Handmade Teochew Kuih Stall at Jalan Harmonium 9 in JB

Stumbled upon a street side stall at Jalan Harmonium 9 which is popular for their crystal skin Teochew kuih. This is less than 5 minutes by car from IKEA and AEON Tebrau in Johor Bahru.

JUSCO AEON Tebrau in Johor Bahru. We Cook You Eat Service. CLOSED

CLOSED. Good news for JB folks who are too busy to cook at home - now you can buy fresh ingredients at the supermarket at JUSCO AEON Tebrau and have their chefs cook for you for a nominal fee of RM6 😮😋 No need to cook at home - no kidding 😄

Best Nyonya Food in Johor Bahru JB List. Grace's

If you are shopping in IKEA Tebrau, and if meatballs and chicken wings ain't your cup of tea, why not take a short 5 minute drive around the corner to Jalan Harmonium 12 for one of JB's best Nyonya food shops.

Swedish Meatballs & Chicken Wings @ IKEA Restaurant & Cafe. Tebrau JB

IKEA, the furniture shop from Sweden finally opened its doors in JB last week after 10 years of on again, off again news.

Breakfast at Grace's Mama Nyonya. Desa Tebrau

We went to Grace's Mama Nyonya for brekky this morning. We enjoyed their Nyonya laksa and mee siam, but the most memorable was their roti jala.

People & Places Cafe. Johor's Newest Check-in Hotspot

Popped by People & Places Cafe just now - because it's Johor Bahru's newest check-in hotspot 😄

Vegetarian & Vegan Ramen in Johor JB. Samurai Ramen Umami

Samurai Ramen Umami from Japan is the latest ramen shop to open (on 17 Jun 2017) at AEON Jusco Tebrau's Ramen Street. It's right at the front, on the left, and the largest shop at Ramen Street.

Best Ramen in Johor Bahru #1 of 10. 希望軒 Kibou-ken @ AEON Jusco Tebrau

Update 29 May 2019. Passing by Kibou-ken ramen at AEON Mall Tebrau City, I saw that they have a good promotion on. I am already a fan of Kibou-ken ramen, so this offer just makes it irresistible for me.

Menzo Ramen at AEON Tebrau City's Ramen Street in Johor JB

As I am a ramen lover, I am always on the lookout for good ramen in Johor Bahru but I have to admit that choices are limited so far. So, I am excited that AEON Tebrau City Mall recently launched a Ramen Street. 

Desa Tebrau Jalan Harmonium Sing Ting Mee Hoon Kueh 新天面粉糕 ☏ 07 288 5747

Restoran Sing Ting 新天面粉糕 | 87G, Jalan Harmonium 35/1, Taman Desa Tebrau, Johor Bahru ☏ 07 288 5747 ⏰ 10:00am to 9:00pm | 8:30am to 9:00pm on Sat, Sun & Public Holidays (Mon off)

Brunch today is at the popular Restoran Sing Ting mee hoon kueh in Taman Desa Tebrau. This is the branch shop by the same family that run the Sing Ting MHK shop at Jalan Besi 1 in Skudai for over 20 years (since the 1990s).

Nasi Campur at Desa Terbrau Sri Lanang Johor Bahru

We were food spotting in Taman Desa Terbrau when we stumbled upon this little street side nasi campur stall at the Sri Lanang public housing flats, at the foot of Block J.

Chap Chye Png Mixed Vegetable Economy Rice in Johor Bahru Desa Tebrau 旺来美食阁杂菜饭

While having breakfast at Kang Wei coffee shop in Taman Desa Tebrau this morning, we noticed that the mixed dishes or chap chye png 杂菜饭 stall here is very popular. Many people were eating in and more were taking away boxes of rice and mixed dishes.

Bak Cheng Johor JB Bak Kut Teh @ Desa Tebrau 木清肉骨茶

First when there was bak kut teh in Johor Bahru, there was Bak Cheng bak kut teh 木清肉骨茶. Bak Cheng BKT is one of the pioneers of JB bak kut teh, and perhaps the most respected and storied one.

Jing Seng Restaurant Desa Tebrau Johor 金城小食馆

Last night, we dropped by at the popular Jing Seng restaurant at Taman Desa Tebrau for a simple dinner. Small restaurants like Jing Seng are like Singapore's zi char 煮炒 (cook and fry) stalls which serve restaurant type dishes at affordable prices.

Penang Prawn Noodle Hokkien Mee in Johor Bahru Desa Tebrau 啊佬檳城福建面

We were pounding the pavement at Desa Tebrau in the morning when I caught a whiff of distinctive crustacean aroma from puffs of steam rising from a pot of boiling hot broth.

Kway Teow Soup and Fish Soup Stall at Hong Yee Kopitiam 宏艺 in Taman Desa Tebrau, Johor Bahru

Tony invited me to visit his kway teow and fish soup stall at Hong Yee Kopitiam 宏艺 in Taman Desa Tebrau.



Hong Yee 宏艺 in Taman Desa Tebrau is a typical bustling kopitiam with many busy food stalls.



Tony and his wife Sally run the (no name) fish soup and kway teow soup stall here at Hong Yee 宏艺. Tony had been a chef for many years - a profession that took him to Neptune at the old Clifford Pier in Singapore and Pine Court in Mandarin Singapore. Tony and Sally also lived a few years in Taipei where Tony worked in a restaurant specializing in Malaysian food.



While in Taipei, Tony was invited to demonstrate how to cook bak kut teh and assam fish on a Taiwanese TV show.



Tony makes his broth the old way, with big socket bones, pork trotter, ti poh (dried sole fish) and soy bean.

Tony's 4 year old stall is a small operation. He gets most of his ingredients at the Johor Jaya wet market, just like we do :D



RM8 got us this fully loaded bowl of kway teow soup with fried "chicken fish" (leather jacket fish 鸡鱼), tau ki, fish balls, lean pork slices, liver slices, a shell fish slice, a good size prawn and lettuce. 



Other than the shell fish which is canned and the fish balls which were commercially supplied, all the rest of the ingredients like this good size prawn were market bought.



The broth was tasty with savouriness and sweetness from pork bones and seafood. The soup was medium bodied and relatively clear 清.



We also had this fish head bee hoon soup RM7.50.



There was a generous amount of chunky tender pieces of fresh snapper fish meat in the broth.



The broth was heavy bodied, savoury and naturally sweet. (Tony uses a separate and different broth for his kway teow soup and fish soup.) The broth was tasty though my personal preference is for a clearer looking 清 broth. Tony added fried shallot oil to the broth, so it had that 葱油香 (shallot oil aroma and flavour).



If you are a chili lover, remember to try Tony's homemade sambal chili. It's very spicy hot with savoury notes from belacan (fermented shrimp paste).



If you are around the Taman Desa Tebrau area during breakfast or lunch time, Tony's Kway Teow and Fish Soup Stall is a good option.

Tony declined payment for our meal.

Restaurant name: Kway Teow and Fish Soup Stall at Hong Yee Kopitiam 宏艺
Address: No. 2, Jalan Harmonium 10, Taman Desa Tebrau, Johor Bahru
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/Yw7Br
GPS: 1.564434,103.795110
Hours: 6:30am to 2:00pm (Closed on Monday)
Non Halal

Date visited: 22 Aug 2014

Return to Johor Kaki homepage.

CLOSED Coffee and Cakes at Cestino Bakery and Bistro near AEON Jusco Tebrau, Johor Bahru

This is my second visit to Cestino near AEON Jusco Tebrau Mall, invited by Ah Zai, Cestino's Asst Manager.



Cestino is just a short walk through the AEON Jusco Mall covered car park or if you drive, just a 2 minute swing around to the Tebrau City Residences apartment blocks adjacent to the Mall.



As always, I can't help but stop to marvel at this giant mural of Marilyn Monroe taking pride of place at Cestino.

Cestino is a good place to chill as it is comfortable, has a good range of coffees and other hot and cold drinks, lots of cakes and desserts as well as cafe dishes like fish and chips. There is free wifi and ample free parking right at Cestino's door step.

During our visit, had a couple of Cestino's house blended coffees and a riot of colourful cakes :P







The Double Chocolate Walnut Brownie was moist, buttery with crunchy walnuts, and not overly sweet (RM10.90).





Other cakes I didn't taste today but they certainly look enticing enough for me to come back for them soon.



Cestino's tiramisu with chocolate, espresso, cheese and liqueur is one cool cake and among Cestino's hottest sellers (RM10.90).



Cheesecakes are one of my favourite cakes.



Cestino's macaroons come in 15 flavours including their signature salted caramel (RM3.20 each). Not my type of biscuit but I acknowledge that there are lots of macaroon fans out there :P



Cestino's Vanilla Cream Brulee with a rich, sweet custard base (RM10.90)





Cestino's Cream Brulee comes with this roselle poached pear. Interesting slightly tangy, sweet taste and crunchy juicy texture. Beautiful to look at too :))





We also tried Cestino's popular fish and chips (RM17.90).



I like Cestino's homemade tartar sauce. Rich, creamy, tangy and savoury with interesting crunchy bits of pickled vegetables like cucumbers mixed in.



Cestino's full bodied house blend coffees and lattes are made with aromatic Arabica beans.



Cestino's signature mocha for the coffee drinkers who like chocolate and espresso blend.



I snapped a pic of Cestino's hot beverage menu :P



For obvious reason, this is my favourite coffee blend at Cestino ;))

The next time you are nearby or in AEON Jusco Tebrau, drop by Cestino and check out their cakes and coffees. Cestino also has set lunch and high tea deals - ask about these value combo deals when you are  there.



Restaurant name: Cestino Bakery and Bistro
Address: Blok F-01-07 and 08, Jalan Harmonium 24/2, Taman Desa Tebrau, Johor Bahru
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/cMEhd
GPS: 1.550760,103.795630
Hours: 12:00 noon to 11:00pm (Closed on Mondays)
Non Halal