Restoran Siaw Kah Kampung Ayam Sup Pedas

The title above is the actual name of the restaurant. That's bad grammar in both English and Malay. Perhaps its a direct translation from Mandarin ?

This place actually appearred on Ho Chak some years ago. That may explain the slightly higher pricing. However their competitor, Ah Hee Hot Soup (located in the block behind their restaurant) also appeared on Ho Chak last month. That could mean that Ah Hee's prices are going up too?

Now we've been coming to this place for many years and we're pretty familiar with their fare. Here's some of our favorites:-
1. The hot pepper soup (of course)
You can have the hot soup with chicken, pork, mixed pork and chicken and also with various pork offal (intestines, stomach, ears etc). We like it with the pork and offal. The soup here is really pungent from the pepper and ginger. The addition of  celery leaves (yes, the leaves and not the stalks - also known as daun sup or daun saderi) adds another level of flavour. This is our benchmark for hot soup in Kajang. Great for a cold rainy day.
Verdict : Excellent
2. Fa diu kai (Chinese wine chicken in claypot)
Another must have at this restaurant. The chicken is coated in a layer of thick sweetish soy sauce. The Chinese wine is not apparent in the taste but gives the dish a very nice aroma.
Verdict : Excellent
3. Oil Steamed Tilapia
A supremely simple dish that is done very well here. The fresh tilapia is steamed and then topped with a simple oil and soy sauce.
Verdict : Excellent
4. Stir fried cabbage with dried prawns and chilli padi
Another simple dish done very well. This is a great choice for a vegetable dish here.
5. Braised pork belly with preserved vegetable
This was recommended by boss. The texture suggested it had been braised for a suitably long time. However taste wise, I suggested that my mother-in-law's version of this dish was better. That brought a smile to her face (and earned me some brownie points too, I'm sure). I'll be getting a larger portion the next time she cooks this dish !

Other dishes worth trying here are the sei tai tin wong (four vegetables in sambal), otak-otak (either steamed or fried and the usual fresh greens. This is certainly our recommended place for hot pepper soup in Kajang. It may even be a contender for a place on our Top 10 restaurants list, although their limited menu holds them down.

Location : No. 278, Jalan Berjaya 8, Taman Berjaya, Sungai Chua, Kajang

Tian Xian Seafood Restaurant (CLOSED)

UPDATE AS AT JANUARY 2014 - CLOSED
Gone but not forgotten.
 
One disadvantage for our team is that none of us reads Chinese. So we tend to miss out on places reported in the Chinese press. And if the newspaper and magazine reports pasted on the walls are anything to go by, then Tian Xian has received it's fair share of publicity in the Chinese print press. We on the other hand have Uncle Goh, an eminent Kajang foodie (and a friend of our Dad actually) to thank for pointing us in the direction of Tian Xian. The restaurant has been open for more than a year now but this was our first visit.

We were informed that the see tau poh (lady boss) here used to work at the legendary but now defunct Tai Wah Restaurant. And a few of the latter's signature dishes have been recreated here. The chef is the see tau poh's brother and he's an award winning Chinese chef in his own right too. Here's what we had:-

We were recommended the fish in a claypot. It turned out to be fried red garoupa pieces which were then braised in a claypot with taufoo, green beans and, lettuce and mushrooms. This would have made an excellent one-dish meal and the tasty gravy goes very well with plain rice. Excellent dish but a tad expensive at RM52.

Uncle Goh had recommended the roti babi (fried minced pork in bread). This was a signature dish of Tai Wah and it's pretty hard to find these days – Yut Kee in KL being one of the few places you can find this dish nowadays. The version here took us back 30 years to the Tai Wah days – it's that good. Highly recommended.

Using the same tasty minced pork filling, but with a crispy fried outer layer was the 'Vietnamese spring roll'. It came topped with some mayonnaise and ebiko (fish roe) which was not quite necessary. The rolls were good with the accompanying sweet chilli sauce.

For our vegetable dish, we chose the unusual combination of pumpkin and bitter gourd. Thin slices of these were stir-fried with abalone mushroom and wolfberries. The pumpkin and bitter gourd remained nice and crunchy. Well executed and worthy of a recommendation.

The see tau poh advised that they have retained some other signature dishes from the Tai Wah days – a 'cold dish', spring rolls, fried rice, noodles etc. That's reason enough for another visit in the near future. We can't wait.

Location : No 82 Jalan 1 / 2, Seksyen 1, Bandar Teknologi, 43000 Kajang, Selangor
Contact : 012-2728889


 

Bukit Mewah Restaurant

We just realized after we published our Top 10 Best Restaurants list that we have not posted a review of this place. That's a mortal sin for a place that we frequent on a pretty regular basis in Kajang. Our apologies for our tardiness, but better late than never. Since we've tried most of their dishes over the years, we'll stick to their specialties and also our favorites.

Their signature dish, and one for which they were featured on the Ho Chak TV show, is the lotus leaf wrapped fried tilapia fish. A deep fried tilapia fish is smothered in a hot spicy sauce with lots of onions and wrapped in a lotus leaf. The lotus leaf imparts a wonderful aroma to the dish. 

A definite 'must-try' here. Make sure you squeeze the calamansi lime on the fish before eating for an added tangy taste.

The lotus root fried in a batter with century egg is pretty good here, although we have had it a little soggy once. The century egg adds a salty and tasty dimension to the plain tasting lotus root. Cripsy on the outside and crunchy and juicy inside, it's a dish we would recommend here.

The pai kuat (pork ribs) here comes in various popular varieties such as Guinness, marmite, cheese or plain fried. They allow you to choose 2 varieties of your choice to be served on a single dish. The Guinness and cheese varieties are worth a mention.

Another signature dish is the fried special taufoo (soy bean block) topped with a minced meat sauce on a sizzling hot plate. It's just a jazzed up taufoo dish but done quite well.

Vegetable dishes are generally well executed here and these include the baby French beans with garlic and the sei tai tin wong or four beans in a spicy sambal.

Standards have dropped a little of late (new chef?) but the place is still pretty crowded, especially on weekends.

Location : Taman Restu, Off Jalan Semenyih, Kajang