The best Loh Mee in town at Restoran Y, Balakong (CLOSED)

UPDATE AS AT JUNE 2014 - CLOSED
 Gone but not forgotten.

Once in a while, you come across a hawker stall with food that's good enough to make you take a 15 minute drive just to taste the fare. Such is the case with the Loh Mee stall at Restoran Y in Balakong.

 Located just behind the AEON (Jusco) Cheras Selatan, the corner coffee shop has many hawker stalls selling the usual stuff like wan tan noodles, curry mee, chap fan, Western food (which is popular) etc. From our first visit here, we were attracted by the sign reading "Ulu Yam Loh Mee".

For those of you who are not aware, Ulu Yam is to Loh Mee what Kajang is to Satay.

The Ulu Yam Loh Mee

The loh mee uses a hand made noodle which we understand from the stall operator, is sourced from Ulu Yam directly. The noodle has a nice texture and consistency which sets it apart from the usual machine made variety. The other tell-tale sign is the irregular size of the noodles, the result of being hand made. The gravy is thick and tasty with slices of pork, prawn and vegetable. You can also choose to add some "XO" wine to enhance the taste of the noodles but it will cost you RM2 more. The noodles are good with or without the XO wine.

The Spare Rib Noodle with Yam

Another good choice here is the Spare Rib Noodles with Yam. The spare ribs are cooked with the yam slices until both are soft and tender. The ribs practically falls off the bone whilst the yam will melt in your mouth. The thick gravy is good to the last drop and best enjoyed with a nice dollop of their pretty good sambal.

If you are ever at AEON Cheras Selatan and looking for something good to eat, take a walk outside to this place and I'm sure you won't regret it. Merry Christmas everyone and happy eating.

Location : Corner coffee shop behind AEON Cheras Selatan, Balakong.

Tian Xia Mei Si Yuan, Balakong

Here's a place that a friend (IB Tiong) recommended aeons ago. I'd been there once before but did not have my camera in hand. Recently, we visited again and here's what we had:-

Their signature dish (you'll find this on ALL the tables here). Braised pig 'hand' (foreleg actually). Sweet with a hint of spice - sticky and with sinful amounts of fat - Excellent! Eat it whilst it's hot or the fat will coagulate. Possibly the best in South Klang Valley.

Steamed black tilapia in hot spicy (cheong cheng) sauce. Very good.

 A signature vegetable dish - a rather unusual combination of bean sprouts, carrots and bitter gourd. Everything remains crunchy and nice. Recommended.

A simple steamed taufoo topped with minced meat and dried prawns. Good.

This is a place that tends to get very crowded on weekends with crowds waiting for tables. A little patience will get you a table soon enough as patrons tend not to linger - it's an eat and run type of place! And the food arrives on the table surprisingly fast.

Location : Situated within the temple premises of the huge Xing An Temple across the highway from Jusco Cheras Selatan - it's pretty easy to locate.