With Nicholas away at a youth camp in another state, we decided to go back to Ipoh for a weekend break.
We want to eat our favorite foods and relax at Dad’s house.
The air and water there is so much cooler and the place quieter near the beautiful blue hills which is forever covered with white mists. Dad’s house in Ipoh is now a holiday sanctuary for us. I’m glad we do not have to travel far to get away from a maddening place like Kuala Lumpur.
Such trips are very therapeutic for us, especially for me. It’s like a balm that soothes my homesick soul. For my husband, it’s like recharging his worn out batteries. And for our daughter, she can get away from the computer for a few days.
A trip home is never complete without a meal of yong tau foo at Big Tree Foot in Pasir Pinji. We had assam laksa, curry laksa, fried stuffs with fish paste, rojak and of course the cooling yellow jelly called wan tau long. Prices here are very reasonable. For around RM24, our stomachs were filled to the maximum.
We also ate at Restaurant Luk Wei Koi at Clare Street. This is my other favorite place. The crowd here is lesser than those eating shops at Leech Street where you have to fight for a place to eat. We had popiah, kai see hor fun, hor hee, caramel egg custard and a greenish colored drink called pung tai woon. The prices here are more expensive, after all, this place is very “luo chew pai” or in English, an old eating place.
An old uncle sells ice kacang and cendol in a corner stall just behind the shop that once belonged to my third aunt. It was located directly opposite Restaurant Luk Wei Koi. We will never miss these deserts for anything.
Apart from eating in town, we went to 188 Hugh Low Street and my former school for some pictures.
We could not stay longer than we wanted to because we have to rush back to Kuala Lumpur for the Himpunan Hijau or Green Rally at Dataran Merdeka.
Anyway, this trip home had done us a lot of good….spiritually and gastronomically. Really looking forward to the next trip home.
Hey, the Popiah looks great…. Clean cut, dry, ideal cut size for chopstick to pick up ! Most Popiah nowadays are messy with liquid stuffs oozing out and funny sizes. Is 188 Hugh Low street that famous Nam Fong curry mee with Siew yuk ??
Hi John,
The popiah from this stall is actually so-so only. There is another better one at the Ipoh Garden Food Court but you have to wait for ages. They also have a branch near Big Tree Foot in Pasir Pinji, again, you also have to wait for ages.They are that good.
No, the famous curry noodle is not from 188 HLS Nam Foong Coffee Shop. It was Chuen Fong which was originally located opposite 188 HLS but have now moved down a few doors along the same street.
My dad’s coffee shop used to serve tau foo far, the best in Ipoh during that time (circa 1945 to 1971).
It is a great reference for us who yearns to return to Ipoh, the town of the best looking girls and the most delicious food. Unfortunate it is not possible to do it on a whim. My next trip to Ipoh would be a planned itinerary of where and what to eat. An official Ipohgal published guide to good food in Ipoh & its prices would be appreciated for those of us that no longer lives in Iooh, but yearn for its food. Thanks in advance.
Hi IpohBornKid,
I knew how much you loved Ipoh and missed it too! However, like you too, I could not travel back on a whim despite KL being so near to Ipoh. Hubby have to work daily and the children have to go to school. So, it was only during school holidays that I could go home for a few days.
It is really cheap to eat at Big Tree Foot. Each pieces of yong tau foo only costs sixty cents and the noodles, a dollar a bowl. The yellow jelly is priced at RM2 a bowl. But the rojak is a bit expensive at RM5 for a small plate. Additional prawn crakers is RM1 per piece (KL price).
The noodles at Luk Wei Koi is RM4.50 per bowl (same as KL) while the popiah is RM1.40 per piece (also KL price). The egg custard is RM2.80 per plate. Cendol is RM1.80 while ais kacang RM2.80 per bowl.
For more informations on Ipoh’s famous food and their pricing, go to “Motormouth” at the right hand side-bar under food blog. He is doing a good job with Ipoh’s eating places.
I just updated the Sam Tet Alumni site with the 1966 school magazine on-line.
In the advertisement section, you will find advertisment of some of the bigger shops in HLS. How many you can remember?
http://sam-tet-alumni.com