PART 2: Makan-Makan
24th - 27th Dec
As-salamu'alaikum.
Although Taiping town has plenty of good places to eat, finding one that suits my appetite could be a hassle if no proper research was done. Especially when it comes to HALAL foods. I love Chinese foods but outside of Klang Valley, it is quite difficult to find Halal Chinese restaurants, and I'm not talking about Chinese Muslims restaurants, cause those are confirmed Halal. Anyway thanks to reviews by food bloggers, I've found a couple of eateries that serve Halal Chinese cuisines by non-Muslim Chinese in Taiping. Here are the eateries that we'd stopped by to check out and savour what they have to offer on their menus.
1) Yut Sun Restoran, Jalan Pasar
This was our first stop after we'd checked in into our hotel. Looking at the exterior of the place, we weren't sure if this place really offers Halal food. But upon closer inspection, they do have a Halal certificate displayed next to the cashier counter. Alhamdulillah, we then proceeded with our orders. One thing about most old-school kopitiam/eateries in Taiping, is that most of their identities and looks are still maintained and well preserved. And Yut Sun is no different. This coffee shop offers the usual Hainan-style menu. The price might be slightly expensive for some of the dishes, but it's still quite reasonable. The place is open from the morning until around 4-5PM.
The interior and exterior of Yut Sun restaurant. With the Halal certificate, this eatery also attract Malay Muslims in addition to the Chinese & Indians.
I had a plate of fried koayteow, wouldn't say the best I've tasted. Nothing special about the taste actually. I give this a 3.5/5
The wife ordered the Hainanese chicken chop. The brown gravy was nice. This boneless chicken cutlet is lightly coated in batter unlike the breaded chicken Maryland. This is a 4.3/5 for me.
We were back here for lunch on the third day. I ordered the fried rice with beef ginger. This meal fared slightly better than the fried koay teow I had on the first day. I give this a 4/5.
2) Abang Sado Station, Jalan Tupai (UPDATE:CEASED OPERATION)
This "new kid on the block" had only opened a few months prior to our visit here. I'm not sure what concept this eatery is going for but it seems that they have a gymnasium with the same name on the floor above. The logo of the restaurant depicts a muscular man flexing his arms muscles. So is it like a gym/restaurant concept? They also have a picture of the Hulk painted on one of the walls which I find a little bit peculiar for an eatery. I didn't even bother to snap a photo of the Hulk wall-painting. Anyway back to the foods. We came here for dinner on the first day. The menu is a mix of local and western cuisines plus some unfamiliar type of dishes. Just for the sake of trying out, I ordered one local dish and one western dish. The price was a bit pricy for the western dish but the taste & quality balanced it out.
While waiting for the food to arrive.
The mutton fried rice was quite a treat. The mutton chunks were cooked with light soy sauce + black pepper sauce and bird's eye chilli (cili padi) for the extra hot taste. The cook certainly knows his trade. I give it a 4.5/5
I enjoyed this grilled chicken chop with black pepper gravy. Although the portion was smaller than the usual chicken chop you get elsewhere. Otherwise it'd be more enjoyable. The chicken meat was cooked to perfection. I give this a 4.5/5
3) Lian Thong Restaurant, Jalan Kota
This is another Halal old-school Hainanese eatery that we went to. This place is being runned by a very friendly uncle. Most, if not all of the staffs are senior citizens. I had a conversation with the owner while he was taking my order, and asked him whether he will pass down the family business to his children in the near future since he's a very old man. He replied that he doesn't want to impose on his children to take over the business after his time has passed. The children are free to choose whatever they want to do with their lives. And inheriting the family business is not something they are considering. So most probably the business will close down since there is no one else to take over. But who knows what the future lies eh?
The place opens from the morning and closes at noon.
Inside of the restaurant.
Fried koay teow. The flavour is slightly different from Yut Sun's. It costs RM3.50. I give this a 4/5.
This dry chilli chicken rice costs RM5.00. I give it a 4/5
The wife had a bowl of chicken soup mee for RM3.50. According to the wife this meal was pretty decent.
4) Restoran Bismillah, Jalan Taming Sari
Not to be mistaken with Bismillah Cendol, this eatery was established in 1900. And has been at the current building since 1932. Yes, that's 84 years and going strong. Restoran Bismillah is older than Hameediyah Restaurant, the first nasi kandaq restaurant in Malaysia. This eatery serves Indian Muslim dishes and still retain its nostalgic look.
The place is popular with the locals and tourists. It was jam-packed when we came for breakfast at 8AM. We were fortunate enough to get a table when we arrived.
The main attraction for breakfast is their roti canai (flat bread) varieties and its robust kari daging hitam (dark curried beef). The crispy roti canai was pretty decent. I give the roti canai a 4.3/5.
We also had roti telur (left) and roti bom (right). The roti bom was a bit sweet to my liking. Decent meals though.
Kari Daging Hitam. This is a favourite among the patrons. Having it with a plate of rice would be nice too. The meat is tender and the curry flavour is rich. This is a must-try! I give this a 4.7/5
5) Ansari Famous Cendol, Jalan Chung Thye Phin
I'm a kaki cendol and will always look for cendol during my travels. A trip to Taiping is not complete without indulging oneself with Ansari's mouthwatering cendol. Whether it's cendol biasa (plain), with pulut (glutinous rice) or with kacang (red beans), Ansari makes the best cendol in Taiping (alongside Bismillah Cendol). My preference has always been the cendol pulut. This is a must-eat for those who have sweet tooth like myself. And the price is definitely one of the cheapest out there. Tables at the restaurant are limited and the place is crowded most of the time. You might have to wait a bit to get a table.
Left side of photo: Customers lining up for takeaway orders. For those who loves Pasembor rojak, they also have that in the menu as well. As for me, I'm not big on pasembor so I'll just stick to the cendol.
I'm training Faree'ah to be a kaki cendol at a very early age. She will inherit my sweet tooth, no doubt.
The usual order. Cendol pulut priced at RM1.80 and they're generous with the green jelly-noodles too. The santan and gula melaka were added just the right amount. Although the place opens at 10AM, cendol pulut is only available after 12:30PM. I give this awesome cendol a 4.7/5
The wife had cendol kacang for RM1.50. Even the plain cendol is a winner. One or two reviewers (in tripadvisor) said that Ansari is overrated, I beg to differ. So, what is so awesome about Ansari's cendol? Well, you'll have to try it for yourself then..
6) Bismillah Cendol, Jalan Barrack.
Another awesome cendol place in Taiping is Bismillah Cendol. I came here for a bowl of cendol on the third day after spending the morning at the zoo. On previous trips, we have always enjoy Bismillah's cendol selections. But this time around, something was amiss. It wasn't as good as before. Maybe it was only that day, I'm sure Bismillah still maintains their awesomeness in the art of cendol-making. Cendol enthusiasts will always make a comparison between Ansari's and Bismillah's cendol. But I do enjoy both of them. Like Ansari, the tables are limited and the place is usually crowded with patrons.
7) Mom's Prison Corner, Jalan Taming Sari
Located opposite Taiping prison and next to the the prison handicraft showroom, this eatery is famous for serving a variety of authentic Malay dishes for breakfast and lunch. Among the delicacies available here are gulai patin tempoyak and ikan bakar, Ã la carte menu such as laksa, mee kari and koay teow sup are also available.
Nasi campur (mixed rice) is available as early as 9AM.
Nasi lemak was our selection for breakfast on our final day here. I give it a 4/5.
While waiting for the nasi lemak, I ordered the Roti Bakar Telur a.k.a Roti Gedik. Commonly known in Klang Valley as Roti Goyang or Roti Telur Goyang. It comes with honey and soy sauce as add-ons. A 4/5 on my rating.
8) Nasi Lemak Warung Muhibbah, Jalan Tupai
Another option for breakfast. They open at 7AM. When we got here, patrons were lining up for takeaway and almost all the tables were occupied. It seems like a popular breakfast spot among the locals. We ordered 2 plates of nasi lemak. Tastewise, I'm not really big on their nasi lemak. But maybe it suits your taste? Wouldn't know if you haven't tried yet, right?
Nasi lemak with curried chicken without the sambal. They were out of sambal nasi lemak by the time we got here so we didn't get the complete nasi lemak that we were hoping for. Without the essential sambal I couldn't say whether the nasi lemak was really good or not. But for what I had I give it a 3.5/5. Average at best.
There are two queues for ordering nasi lemak, one for takeaway and one for having-here. Do ask them for the correct queue.
9) Nasi Kandar A. Rahman, Jalan Raja Sulong
I'm not sure how many restaurant branches A. Rahman have in Taiping, but they seem to have quite a few. I personally have seen at least three of them while driving around town. Just for the sake of trying out, we had stopped by at A. Rahman in Jalan Raja Sulong near Taiping KPJ Medical Centre. And since Taiping is not known for having awesome nasi kandaq eateries I didn't put high expectations when we came here for dinner on the third night. The place was mostly occupied by football fans watching a live broadcast football match (BPL), and most of them just ordered drinks and not so much on the food.
So I ordered a nasi kandaq, with tandoori chicken and kurma curried beef + mixed curry gravies. The rice they were serving was not the usual white rice, it was more of a nasi minyak more than anything. Maybe they were out of white rice by the time we came (Isya' time). Verdict: the nasi kandaq doesn't taste anything like the ones in Penang, but that was expected. Still I'd say it was a decent meal. I give it a 3.8/5.
10) Restoran Nasi Arab Original Hadramout, Jalan Esplanade, next to Taiping Public Library
This is a branch of the Bertam Perdana Original Hadramout in Penang. We found this place by accident after having to make a detour while trying to find another eatery on the second night. Upon seeing the name Original Hadramout, my instinct was to try it out. I ordered a Lamb Mandi for dinner. Being an aficionado of Arabic Rice dishes, the quality of food served at this eatery wasn't up to par. The lamb soup was extra salty, the portion of the lamb meat was too small, and the sahaweq (chilli & tomato condiment usually served with Arabic Rice dishes) was too hot & spicy. Overall it wasn't a pleasant food experience for us.
The menu.
11) Oasis Arabic Yemeni Cuisine, Jalan Asam Kumbang
This is the place to go in Taiping if you're looking for authentic Yemeni (Arabic) cuisines. This eatery was converted from an old bungalow located along Jalan Asam Kumbang. We first came here back in Dec 2013. A must-come for us whenever we're in Taiping, this was our final stop before leaving Taiping for Ipoh. The pricing is reasonable and affordable insha Allah.
This family-run eatery is owned by a retired armed forces officer (Lt. Col.)
Opens for lunch and dinner. They are closed on Mondays.
The wife had Chicken Sheesh Tawouk for lunch. The chicken chunks were marinated and grilled to perfection.
And Hummus. The Hummus was a bit dry though.
I had this delicious Lamb Mandi. The rice was full of flavour and the lamb meat was succulent. I give this a 4.3/5. Highly recommended. Other dishes that are equally good are Lamb Madghout, Lamb Oqdah + Mulawwah (Yemeni flat bread) & Lamb Kabsah.
Other eateries worth mentioning:
a) Restoran Mee Udang Nur Zetty, near Changkat Jering Toll Plaza
b) Restoran Doli, Jalan Tupai
c) SBK Wisma Corner, Jalan Ong Saik opposite Wisma Persekutuan Taiping
d) Gerai Mee Combat, Larut Matang food court, off Jalan Panggung Wayang
e) Medan Selera Padang Sarkas, Jalan Sultan Abdullah, behind Balai Bomba Taiping
f) Deena Tomyam, Jalan Tupai, nearby Klinik Kesihatan Taiping
g) The Gate Cafe, Jalan Sultan Abdullah
Coming up next... Ipoh!