Old Town White Coffee

After writing Kedai Kopi Sin Yoon Loong where the original white coffee came from, I am very tempted to write about the Old Town White Coffee franchise which is springing up everywhere in Malaysia.

As I said, the franchise came from a shop called Nam Heong Old Town White Coffee, which is located directly opposite of Kedai Kopi Sin Yoon Loong. The shop owner of Nam Heong has an enterprising son, who saw the potential of a coffee shop with cozy environment and wifi connectivity as a place for people to meet and socialize like Starbuck coffee and set up the first branch in Petaling Street.

Before the franchise boomed, I went to its first and only branch in Petaling Street by chance when I brought my Japanese friends to KL Chinatown. The fresh new look of a kopitiam created quite an impression in me. Next, I brought my good friend Azam there. He was so impressed with the idea of the shop that he actually asked how to set up a branch on franchise. Had he embarked on his idea, he could have set up the first branch of Old Town White Coffee on franchise.

Well, there are already 141 outlets of Old Town White Coffee throughout Malaysia right now. If I run out of idea on where to go to meet a friend, Old Town White Coffee is always at the back of my mind.

The branch that I frequent most is the one in Jaya Jusco, Permas Jaya.The reason being is none other than the fact that I always pass by the place on my way home.

Actually, to be fair, its white coffee is quite original in taste except that its brew is a bit too sweet compared with Sin Yoon Loong's original brew. Besides that, its Ipoh chicken hor fun is quite authentic too, except that the sweetness of the soup tastes a bit like flavoured (with seasoning). Its half boiled eggs taste good too. So is its curry chicken with nasi kunyit (glutinous rice flavoured and coloured by turmeric).

Its half boiled eggs are labeled as half boiled Omega eggs on its menu. Some chicken farms nowadays feed their hens with a special diets to produce eggs with enhanced amounts of omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 eggs have three to six times the amount of omega-3 fatty acids than regular eggs. You know, the omega-3 fatty acids that is supposed to make your kids more brainy! The egg yolk is mildly orange in colour, but not starkly orange like Japanese egg yolk.

Half boiled eggs with soya sauce and lots of pepper powder has always been my favourite. I figured out that if you want to enjoy the good taste of half boiled eggs, there is really no point in swallowing the entire bowl of eggs in its entirety down your throat in one go. You might as well eat it with its tiny table spoon scoop by scoop so that you get a fresh taste of the egg in your mouth at every scoop.

3 years ago, my good friend Kai Fong wanted to set up a coffee shop in Batu Pahat. Well, his in-laws used to run an apparel business in Batu Pahat that employed house wives to sew shirts and pants. With cheaper labour cost in China and Vietnam, they were not able to compete and had to close down their operation. So, my good friend Kai Fong had to embarked on starting up a new business for his in-laws.

Thanks to him, at that point of time, we went to so many coffee shops and tasted so much coffee in his home that I almost died of caffein intoxication one night. In his madness to standardize the taste of coffee in his shop, he wanted me and Kok Mun to taste coffee from different beans, brewed with 6, 6½, 7, 7½, 8, 8½ scoops of powder respectively. When I got home at 12 mid night one day, my heart was palpitating and the blood vessels of my eyes were gorged red. I had to drink 1 litre of water and waited 2 hours before I could finally sleep. One of the shops with good interior decor, which he copied faithfully, was Old Town White Coffee

The picture above was taken in an Old Town White Coffee branch in Ipoh Garden East that we visited in 2006. The two pictures below was taken in another branch in Green Town, Ipoh. By the way, if you have not been back to Ipoh for quite a while, Green Town is an upmarket area in Ipoh nowadays with pubs and discos.

Anyway, I have been to countless Old Town White Coffee outlets. The best outlet that I have been to is the one in Bangsar South. The branch was near Azam's hospital and he took me there a couple of time. The outlet is spacious and airy. The decor is chic with a combination of Chinatown and colonial atmosphere and yet modern. I even took Kok Mun and Kai Fong to take a look at the Bangsar South branch. I told Kai Fong that if his coffee shop is like the Old Town White Coffee branch in Bangsar South, I will patronize his coffee shop everyday.

At the point of writing this blog entry, one search on the internet shows that I am not alone in saying the Bangsar South branch is the best Old Town White Coffee outlet.

Thoughts.com : Old Town White Coffee In Bangsar South

ger's blog : Old Town White Coffee @ Bangsar South

Hot Screensaver : Old Town White Coffee

Kedai Kopi Sin Yoon Loong

I am back in Ipoh for my sister's wedding over the new year holiday. Kok Mun asked me to deliver a portable hard disk that Siew Chin bought through him. Siew Chin called me up yesterday and she decided to meet me in Sin Yoon Loong, the original coffee shop that sells Ipoh white coffee.

The shop is not difficult to find as it is located just next to the well-known 20-storey flat in Ipoh old town.

Kedai Kopi Sin Yoon Loong is a corner shop at the end of a junction. The shop interior has been kept as original. The white tile on the wall reminds you Chinatown in the 60s and 70s.

Although the place looked quiet from outside, it was crowded once I got in. I was there first. then came Chia, Siew Chin, Cai Ong, Kuan Kew and Seet Ching.

Of course, I ordered a cup of white coffee. By the way, Ipoh "white" coffee is a popular coffee drink which originated in Ipoh, Malaysia. The coffee beans are roasted with palm-oil margarine, and the resulting coffee is served with condensed milk.Traditionally, Malaysian style "black" coffee roast is produced by roasting the beans with sugar and margarine. "White" coffee, on the other hand, is produced with only margarine and without any sugar, resulting in a less dark roast.

The shop is also famous for its cake and dessert. But apparently, most people in the shop ordered Mee Goreng and Mee Kuah from the Indian store outside the shop.

Unlike most mee goreng I have eaten before that is a bit wet with ketchup, this mee goreng is really dry. I must say the mee goreng is one of the best I have eaten. Chia ordered Mee Kuah and Siew Chin ordered a small plate of Indian rojak.

The business of the Indian store in front of the shop was really good. The coffee shop and the Indian store seem to exist in a symbiotic relationship. I just wonder why the Indian store does not move into the shop. The afternoon was passed with jokes and stories about friends, mostly regarding Kok Mun.

In case you think that the Old Town White Coffee franchise that is springing up all over Malaysia comes from Sin Yoon Loong, I would just like to point out that there are many shops selling white coffee in this area of Ipoh old town. The Old Town White Coffee actually comes from the shop directly opposite Sin Yoon Loong, which is Nam Heong Old Town White Coffee.

The shop owner of Nam Heong White Coffee has an enterprsing son who see the potential of a coffee chain like Starbuck Coffee that offers a good place to socialize with wifi connectivity at a lower cost. However, people in Ipoh know that the very origin of white coffee is Kedai Kopi Sin Yoon Loong.

Um~! I ordered another cup of white coffee.

delicious, Bangsar, KL

delicious is a fusion restaurant popular with young trendy upper middle class people in Bangsar, KL. The restaurant is located in the Bangsar Village II, right in the smack in the Telawi area of Bangsar amids pubs and disco full with young party-goers in the evening. It opens daily until 1 am. The restaurant has a website at :- http://www.delicious.com.my/main.htm

The restaurant has that "chic" and "cool" feel, where mostly young and trendy people eat and socialize. At one side of the restaurant, there a lots of bird cages that has been made into lamp shades hung on tree branches at ceiling level.

At the other side, there is a huge dining area. The restaurant is usually crowded with people during lunch time. It is a popular place for young professionals working in Bangsar area.

I have been to delicious a couple of time. Last sunday evening, I happened to be in Bangsar at around 11pm after dinner. With nothing much to do, me and my friend dropped by for some snack and desserts.

Delicious has a good array of cakes and pies. Nice to look at and nice to eat too.



Cheesecakes too! Mango cheesecake and strawberry cheesecake!

Flourless orange cake with pure cream! Flourless? Aren't all cakes made of flour?

Peach frangipane with vanilla ice cream and marmalade bread & butter pudding.

I ordered flourless orange cake with pure cream and a mug of black coffee.

The orange cake tasted like an ordinary orange cake but I felt cheated though. The orange cake is made of flour.

My friend ordered a peach frangipane with vanilla icecream and honey mint tea. The tea came with a small pot of honey. Good for the throat I guess.

Besides desserts and western dishes, the restaurant offers interesting oriental dishes too. One of the dish I have eaten here before was and interesting dish called Braised Duck with Laichee. In addition, their Thai green curry and sambal udang are not too bad too.

The pomelo and cherry tomato salad wrapped in banana leave was interesting. The Thai green chicken curry looked good but tasted only average. Why is there a need to use banana leave if the food is served on a plate?

Sambal udang served on a banana flower petal was interesting. Good presentation! Nowadays, you eat with your eye too! Serunding on top of white rice was also interesting idea too.

To be fair, the dishes in this restaurant looks great but the taste I would said is just slightly above average.

Taiwan House, Ampang Point, KL

I must have missed Taiwanese food so much that I went into this Taiwan House restaurant in Ampang Point barely one week after returning from Taiwan. Actually, to be frank, it was just coincidental. I just happened to be in Ampang Point and I got hungry after shopping for some new pants and shirts. This shop in Ampang Point is always full with people. Business is good compared with the Korean noodle shop next door.

I ordered the beef noodle that Taiwan is well-known as a yard stick of comparison. Well! The noodle was quite OK, but not so much meat as in Taiwan. The noodle in Taiwan were handmade and white in colour without alkaline treatment. The noodle here is yellow with alkaline treatment.

My friend ordered a bowl of fish ball tang hoon soup. Tang hoon is extremely low in calories. Ideal for people who are conscious of their figure.

We ordered some stuffed fish ball as well. Stuffed fish ball is actually a Hock Chew (Fuzhou) delicacy. The fish balls are stuffed with either minced meat or prawn. Taiwan is well-known for its stuffed fish balls as well, also a Hock Chew tradition. I do not really like stuffed fish ball. The meat in the centre spoils the crunchiness of the fish balls. Neither does the minced meat or prawn taste exceptionally good. In this case, the fish balls were garnished with fried garlic and spring onion! The garlic smell was too strong for such a mild tasting food.

The spring onion pancake was something interesting. No egg inside, just plain flour pancake with spring onion and oil. 2 pieces was good enough for me.

Drink is just simple cola. Overall, the food in the Taiwan House joint is just average. It really make me ponder why their business is so good. As Kok Mun often like to put it, "It must be their fortune!"

Hot Star Chicken Chop, Shilin Night Market, Taipei

This was the item that Kok Mun asked me to try out on his behalf on my trip to Taipei. He was not able to tried it on his trip earlier this year because of the long queue. People waited for half an hour just to buy this chicken chop.

I have been warned not to go to Shilin night market in weekend.So, I went there on thursday evening. Even that, we were lucky to join the queue with only 5 persons in front of me before a large group of mainland Chinese tourists suddenly made the queue 50 meter long.

The queue was long because the store insists on cooking the chicken chop upon receiving your order and serving you the chicken chop sizzling hot. For 50 Taiwanese dollar (equivalent to about RM5 or S$2.20), this big piece of chicken chop really worth your money.

The chicken chop is fried and flavoured with pepper salt. Unlike chicken chop here, which is essentially a big piece of chicken thigh, the entire piece of Hot Star chicken chio is made of chicken breast meat. It tastes good, but I would say not exceptional to the extent that worth half an hour wait.

On a cold and windy winter evening, a piece of hot chicken chop like this certainly warmed me up. As for drink, I wanted to try out the famous Taiwanese jade white bitter gourd juice.

The jade white bitter gourd juice tasted a little bitter, but left your mouth with a tinge of bitter sweet after taste.

On my visit to Tamshui Fishermen Wharf on Saturday, I found out that Hot Star chicken chop is sold there too. There was no long queue there. I was issued a number upon payment. When the chicken chop was ready, they called out the number and I collected the chicken chop sizzling hot from them.

Perhaps due to the cold and windy weather, there weren't many people in Tamshui Fishermen Wharf on that day. Most of the visitors were Malaysian tourists. I was told that this place is crowded with people in summer.