Practically a century of do-it-yourself hakka tai bu mee & genuine dumplings at Pudu

Hakka mee, often known as tai bu mee, is a consultant dish among the many Hakka group in Malaysia. As somebody with Hakka Tai Bu heritage, I’m very ashamed to confess that I’ve by no means tried tai bu mee earlier than. It was by likelihood that I got here throughout Chun Kei Tai Bu Noodle Restaurant at Pudu whereas searching for lunch choices close to the practice station.

Apparently, this eatery is well-known amongst locals throughout generations; it holds childhood reminiscences for a lot of. Established in 1931, Chun Kei Tai Bu Noodle Restaurant boasts a powerful 93-year legacy— it’s even older than Malaysia! It’s wonderful to assume that this place has witnessed the independence of the nation. In keeping with the homeowners, the enterprise has now been handed all the way down to the 4th era.

A lot of the patrons are retired uncles and aunties, giving it a really down-to-earth vibe. It felt like an ideal spot for some genuine native flavours. My abdomen was already rumbling!

What I attempted at Chun Kei Tai Bu Noodle Restaurant

The noodles are available 3 varieties: kolo (white sauce), soup, and black sauce. Notably, the soup model makes use of silver needle noodles, that are solely obtainable on Fridays and Saturdays. With that possibility off the desk, I used to be left with solely 2 selections and I made a decision to go for the signature Kolo Hakka Tai Bu Noodle (RM9).

The mattress of noodles was topped with a beneficiant blob of minced meat, adorned with some char siew, greens, and spring onions. The noodles considerably resembled the one in wanton mee, however these have been barely thicker.

The noodles didn’t end up as chewy as anticipated, primarily based on social media critiques, however they have been cooked to perfection, that includes simply the proper texture for this dish. The saltiness of minced meat added a touch of flavour to the in any other case bland noodles— each parts complemented one another tremendous effectively. Having both of those alone would style slightly lacklustre. The noodles have been gratifying however fell barely wanting being wonderful.

Subsequent, I moved on to the char siew. It was made with lean meat however wasn’t as dry as I had anticipated, and was infused with a delicate sweetness from the seasoning. I often discover it arduous to devour char siew made with pure lean meat, as is usually present in this sort of noodle dish, however I completed the one right here.

Kei Suk Wantan Mee: Savour the legacy of over 60 years with tender char siew in RM9 wantan mee

Subsequent on the menu was the Black Hakka Tai Bu Noodle (RM9), accompanied by the identical sides and toppings because the kolo possibility. It had the same style to the white model, however with a darker color. The darkish sauce added a contact of saltiness to the noodles, in contrast to the earlier model which tasted considerably bland.

Each of the noodles got here with a bowl of soup consisting of three wantons. The soup was exceptionally refreshing, and consuming it with the noodles made the meal much less heavy. It have to be stated that the wantons have been completely sized; I might simply slurp them up in a single go. Their delicate, skinny pores and skin soaked up the sunshine broth whereas encasing flavourful meat filling, making a harmonious mix of flavour that danced on my style buds.

Primarily based on the workers’s suggestions, I made a decision so as to add on a chunk of Dumpling, which price me RM2.50. The portion was pleasant; it was neither too massive to appear intimidating nor too small to go away me unhappy.

To be trustworthy, I used to be anticipating a filling of minced meat blended with greens. Nonetheless, I used to be pleasantly shocked with my first chunk; there was a complete prawn inside! The succulent and candy prawn elevated the flavour profile of the entire dish. Belief me, it’s so good!

Closing ideas

My first expertise with tai bu mee was positively nice. There’s truly nothing notably fancy concerning the noodles, however there are some particulars that amazed me. For instance, the portion of each dish, the char siew that wasn’t too dry, and the luscious prawn within the dumpling.

It was fairly a worthwhile expertise, and its location is exceptionally handy. It solely took me 4 minutes to stroll from Pudu LRT station. Having stated that, I wouldn’t  specifically  make a visit down for the noodles. I’d solely go to once more if I occur to be within the space, however it nonetheless gained’t be my best choice. 

Anticipated injury: RM9 – RM12 per pax

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