Latest news with #yongtaufoo
Malay Mail
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Malay Mail
Don't forget the ‘yong tau foo' when you order Hakka mee at this ‘kopitiam' hidden inside Seremban's iconic Templer Flats
SEREMBAN, July 15 — What we have before us is a simple plate of Hakka Mee. Flat yellow noodles, cooked just enough that they still retain a nice chew. Topped with seasoned minced pork and finished with a ladle of clear pork-based gravy. Sliced green onions add a touch of freshness. On the side, a small plastic saucer of pickled green chillies offers a sharp, clean contrast. This is a simple plate, yes, but perhaps its excellence lies in its very simplicity. Laid back vibes at this 'kopitiam' located on the ground floor of Seremban's Templer Flats. — Picture by CK Lim It is fitting, then, that we are in Seremban, where Hakka Mee is supposed to have hailed originally. Specifically we are at Kedai Minuman & Makanan Chop Hup Fatt, an old-school kopitiam located on the ground floor of the iconic Templer Flats in the old town centre. The shop's laid back vibes — not to mention its perfect pairing of Hakka Mee with yong tau foo — draw regulars from early morning till noon. Now this is what we call real charm. 'Kopi O' and 'cham'. — Picture by CK Lim Many early birds come here purely for the coffee and conversation, of course. Chop Hup Fatt keeps its drink offerings simple: robust kopi O and creamy cham are the most commonly ordered; the latter blending the best of both worlds and my personal favourite. The setting is equally straightforward; this unassuming shop has quietly built a reputation among locals for its steady hours, clean tables, and a menu that hasn't changed for decades. Therein lies a lesson for newer F&B operators: you grow a loyal following not by chasing the latest foodie trends (here today, gone tomorrow) but by consistently serving honest, unfussy food that customers can rely on. The unassuming shop has been operating quietly for decades with a loyal following. — Picture by CK Lim Back to the Hakka Mee: The trick here — if you can call it that — is to order your Hakka Mee with an accompaniment of yong tau foo. (Trust me, the regulars all do this so this hardly qualifies as a secret tip.) The selection is basic. You have the usual suspects: tofu puffs, eggplant, bitter gourd, lady's fingers — each stuffed with a bouncy fish paste. There are wantan and sui kao too, for those who love a dumpling or two. Opt for your yong tau foo in soup or fried to order. Lately I found that asking for everything to be fried, even the pieces of yong tau foo you plan to dunk in the soup, adds another layer of flavour to the proceedings. Opt for your 'yong tau foo' in soup or fried to order. — Picture by CK Lim Maybe it's just the extra grease — it probably is — but what works, works. Right? Another standout on the menu is the dry Soy Sauce Mee, which swaps the Hakka Mee's clear pork gravy for a rich, caramel-tinged dark soy sauce. Diners can choose their preferred type of noodles — from yellow mee to fat strands of loh shu fun (silver needle noodles) — or a mix. Toss the noodles together so each strand is slick with savoury sauce and you have a bowl that balances a beautiful plainness with a complex dance of flavours. Soy Sauce Mee — classic Chinese-style dry pork noodles. — Picture by CK Lim If you prefer something spicier, there's the laksa, which arrives rich and inviting, or soup noodles for those who like something with broth. For those looking to take a taste of Hakka cooking home, the shop has introduced a small line of frozen, ready-to-heat items. Dishes such as vinegar-braised pork trotters, Hakka fried pork, and hand-rolled suen poon chee (yam abacus seeds) are available for purchase. Strands of noodles slick with soy sauce. — Picture by CK Lim We are content to have our meal here, to sit at one of the tables and soak in the atmosphere. Neighbours catching up on the latest gossip, workers dropping by for a quick lunch, the morning sun that lights up the open-air courtyard. Chop Hup Fatt may not advertise itself loudly — not many of our Seremban friends even knew of the shop's existence — but it doesn't have to. For long-time patrons, they know they can always return here for the simple fare, for food tastes like home. Kedai Minuman & Makanan Chop Hup Fatt 十四楼合发茶室 Ground Floor, Templer Flats, Jalan Tun Dr Ismail, Seremban Open Tue-Sun 7am-1pm; Mon closed * This is an independent review where the writer paid for the meal. • Follow us on Instagram @eatdrinkmm for more food gems.
Malay Mail
29-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Malay Mail
Fuss-free ‘yong tau foo' and an espresso tonic surprise in Sungai Way at Restaurant Sungai Way Hakka Yong Tau Foo
PETALING JAYA, June 29 — Two weeks ago, we featured Kedai Kopi Hoh Piah in a story about pan mee being sold out of a home in Sungai Way. This week, we return to the same neck of the woods, quite literally only a few hundred metres away: Restaurant Sungai Way Hakka Yong Tau Foo. Run out of a house, the business sells yong tau foo, as its name suggests. But the immediate smell of coffee may lead you to believe otherwise. Like many businesses in Sungai Way, this is also run out of a house. — Picture by Ethan Lau A closer look at the decidedly lived-in setting reveals personality scattered across the shop, with Hello Kitty plushies sitting side by side with posters of The Mandalorian, and a drinks menu that offers everything from matcha lattes to, quite adorably, babyccinos. Then there's the espresso tonic (RM12 for a large), not something I'd ever expect to drink with yong tau foo, but an ideal remedy for our ridiculously hot afternoons. The menu claims it tastes like beer; I find it far more refreshing and effervescent, with a bitter edge that works like a palate cleanser. Anyway, onto the main event. The selection of yong tau foo here is short and sweet, so it's entirely plausible to try a little bit of everything. Most pieces go for RM2 each, with the exception of white tau foo and fish cakes, which are RM2.50. Unlike at larger stalls or restaurants, every piece here is fried or cooked to order, so even as the second table there, there was a short wait. So, what separates one yong tau foo place from another? Is it the breadth of options, or the quality of each offering? I think the proof is in the pudding. Or in this case, the stuffing. The stuffing is the best part of the 'yong tau foo' here (left). Fishcakes with chives are another highlight (right). — Picture by Ethan Lau After all, the part that's usually proprietary in stuffed tau foois the filling, not the tau foo itself. It can be fish paste, ground pork, or a mixture of both, and to me, it's the standard on which yong tau foo should be evaluated. By this metric, this place is a winner. Whether it's stuffed into bitter gourd, brinjal, okra or chilli, or wedged between sheets of beancurd skin, whether it's fried or served in soup, the filling retains a springy, snappy, meaty texture and carries a subtly savoury profile with just a smidge of sweetness. Here's how you know the filling is a point of pride: you can order it on its own, comically named 'fish slippery', a literal translation of the Cantonese yu waat, or fish paste. I highly recommend getting a few pieces and dipping them into the sharp, punchy chilli sauce for maximum enjoyment. They are best enjoyed with a healthy dipping of chilli sauce. — Picture by Ethan Lau The only anomaly that falls outside the purview of filling is the fishcake, which mixes chopped chives into the fish paste before frying it into a bouncy mass of satisfaction. The green edge of the chives adds just enough balance. It's also a good idea to get a few of these. Between the decor, matcha lattes (which I scoff at nearly anywhere else) and simple but good yong tau foo, Restaurant Sungai Way Hakka Yong Tau Foo is a family-run place that I feel embodies the classic family dynamic of existing with both tradition and looking toward the future, right down to the painfully utilitarian name. Some aspects, like the yong tau foo, harken back to a simpler time. Others, like the espresso tonic, are adapted to changing tastes, but all with the earnest charm of genuine human personality, rather than some agency's idea of a relatable brand identity. Restaurant Sg Way Hakka Yong Tau Foo 74, Jalan SS 9A/1, SS 9A, Petaling Jaya. Open Tuesday to Saturday, 10am-8.30pm. Closes at 5pm on Saturday. Tel: 017-354 7986 * This is an independent review where the writer paid for the meal. * Follow us on Instagram @eatdrinkmm for more food gems. * Follow Ethan Lau on Instagram @eatenlau for more musings on food and mildly self-deprecating attempts at humour.
Yahoo
23-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
My favourite yong tau foo stall at Cheng San Market & Cooked Food Centre
I've been going back and forth about sharing this little secret of mine. Well, I guess it's finally time to stop gatekeeping my all-time favourite yong tau foo stall near my neighbourhood. It's none other than… (drum roll)… Mei Ji Niang Dou Foo 梅記釀豆腐 at Cheng San Market & Cooked Food Centre. For the uninitiated, this market is located near eateries like Magic Kitchen, the ever-popular Lao Wu Ji Mutton Soup, and the renowned The Pine Garden cake shop. For the past 10 years, my family has been returning to this stall whenever the yong tau foo craving strikes. This stall has been around for at least 12 years and it's mostly handled by 3 ladies — I saw only 2 that day. If you're approaching Mei Ji Niang Dou Foo 梅記釀豆, remember to head to the queue to choose your ingredients first, before scurrying over to the main line with your bowls. The yong tau foo selection spans over 30 varieties, and sticks to the time-honoured classics — don't expect any modern twists. Each ingredient costs S$0.70, with a minimum of 6 pieces if you're adding noodles for S$4.90. Want to indulge yourself? Enjoy it with gravy — it's just S$1 more! I consider the pricing here to be affordable. On a side note, the line moves pretty fast, so don't worry about waiting for an insane amount of time. Some of the fried ingredients get a quick spruce-up with a flash fry in the deep fryer, especially my favourite stuffed eggplant! Soup lovers will adore the clear broth, which is clean tasting yet possesses a depth of flavour that's perfectly seasoned. The best part? It doesn't leave you feeling thirsty. For those who like it dry (like myself), remember to load your saucers with the chilli and sweet sauce provided at the stall front. Mix everything up well, tuck in, and enjoy the little party in your mouth! My usual go-to combination is kway teow + yellow mee. Alternatively, you can enjoy that with bee hoon, too. If Ang Mo Kio isn't that much of a hassle to travel to, why not head down to Cheng San Market & Cooked Food Centre and give their yong tau foo a try? Who knows? It might become your favourite yong tau foo stall as well. We tried Singapore's best-rated yong tau foo The post My favourite yong tau foo stall at Cheng San Market & Cooked Food Centre appeared first on
