Charred!

Despite what the title might say, this is not a post about something getting burnt. Rather it's about char siew (grilled pork). Not to be confused with siew yoke (roasted pork) see?

The very best char siew I have tasted (imho) was Meng Kee at Jalan Alor, introduced by Ah Hing (KL is his territory after all). Back then we would have to travel all the way down to Kuala Lumpur just to have some melt-in-the-mouth sweetly glazed grilled pork. Which wasn't very often actually seeing that we don't go down to KL unless there's something really important to do (like visiting Low Yat Plaza).

Meng Kee has since opened a branch at Shah Alam, which is much closer than KL but still not close enough. Luckily while browsing through KY's blog last week I came across a restaurant which reportedly serves good char siew. Good enough to compete with Meng Kee it seems. And it's located nearby!

I waltzed by today morning around 11-ish to check out the place. And for such an early hour it was already half full with hungry customers. Good sign no?

The obligatory entrance shot. They open from 8 a.m.

Yes that's a large amount of char siew hanging there...the entire left section!

Does it look good?

They do serve noodles too. Shown here is Hakka mee.

The verdict on the char siew? As you can see from the picture, it is sinfully good. I can safely say this place matches Meng Kee's standards. No need for us PJ-ians to travel all the way to KL or Shah Alam to have great char siew anymore! My taste buds might not be that refined but the char siew here seems to be less sweet compared to Meng Kee's version. Better or worse? It's your choice.

I'm no expert on Hakka Mee but I enjoyed it too. Think of it as dry noodles (konlo, like wantan mee) without any dark soya sauce. Noodles were pretty crunchy and the shredded pork topping blended in well.

Since the char siew was sooooooooo good, I packed back a portion for two back home. And I called for the bill. Which came to RM19.80. Which might or might not be pricey for you folks, depending on how you see it. The way I see it...

3 x portions of char siew = RM15 (RM5 per portion)
1 x Hakka Mee = RM3.50
1 x drink (leong cha) = RM1.30

So how big is a portion for two?

Big?

Yes this big!

I personally felt that they could have given more for RM5, but then again it's subjective. My tummy was filled though so I can't say they skimped on the portions. Final verdict? 9/10. It is that good. Don't believe me? Go try it for yourself. =P

This restaurant is actually located at Sunway Mas Commercial Centre. There's a map in KY's post. Also the restaurant is near My Kitchen. Pretty easy to locate but be forewarned, the area consists of mostly one way streets.

Oh and by the way, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! May 2008 bring us all more reasons to celebrate!

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR