CHAWAN ROAD CHAR KUEH TIAW: HIDDEN EATS

Char Kueh Tiaw, also known as stir-fried flat rice noodles, is a very popular dish here in Malaysia. It became a favourite for many, and so residents living in the different states of Malaysia has created their own style of cooking this popular dish. In fact, this dish is so popular that it made it to the Oxford English Dictionary word list just few months ago. 

Today we will be adventuring to a famous but hidden spot in Kuching which specialises in this dish, and also to show u how it’s made here in Sarawak.

 This stall sells char kueh tiaw just outside their house at the porch almost every night with customers starting to fill up the tables from early evening. It’s hidden along Chawan Road, with not much of a proper signboard to indicate where they are. However, there is a small arrow with lights just along the main road outside where they are. 

Along the porch are a few tables and chairs for customers to dine, and next to the tables and chairs is their work station where all the stir-frying happens. This stall uses charcoal to cook their kueh tiaw too. They offer different types of char kueh tiaw besides the normal one such as salted egg yolk char kueh tiaw, bitter gourd char kueh tiaw and the special version of it. Today we ordered the salted egg yolk char kueh tiaw.

Each portion of char kueh tiaw is served on brown wax paper on top of a metal plate. I would say the portion is just alright as a tummy filler, but if you’re a big eater, you definitely wouldn’t get full from 1 serving. 

By the looks of it, you could tell the kueh tiaw was charred perfectly and gave out a nice charcoal aroma when served. This one had bits of salted egg, beansprouts, prawns and chives. The salted egg yolk gave a nice moist coating to the whole dish, whilst giving a slight creamy texture. It definitely had a good burnt charred taste to it that lasts in your mouth for a couple of hours. It was not too salty from the salted egg yolks either and the crunchy beansprouts add a nice balance in texture to the whole dish.

Besides char kueh tiaw, this stall also specialises in their bbq chicken wings, even with gula apong flavour, which is caramelized palm sugar. They also have their signature char siu rice with a poached egg on top and vegetables. Their bbq chicken wings and pork belly are definitely hot items on the menu as well.

This stall opens around 6pm in the evening till around 10pm but if you want to be safe, be sure to arrive there before 9.30pm because they’re most likely to be sold out around 9pm on most days.

Chawan Road Char Kueh Tiaw
No. 333,
Jalan Upper Chawan,
93300 Kuching, Sarawak.

If you still don't know where it is, it's just after the Choice World shop lot opposite Vivacity, and is located next to the carwash.

Opens everyday except weekends and public holidays.

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BIG COCONUT WESTERN: VALUE FOR MONEY MEALS

We always try to find the best meals whenever we're choosing where and what to eat. Not forgetting, best meals that come with a cheap price. Often, it's hard to get the best of both worlds, but today The Makan Post is bringing to you a decent cafe offering value for money meals. To make it more interesting, this cafe serves western delicacies.

Big Coconut Western is located in Hui Sing in an open air food court named Good Taste Kopitiam. You defnitely wouldn't miss it as you can see a huge coconut booth where they are. They have their own section in that food court in which they serve western delicacies of all sorts from chicken chops, fish and chips to pastas and pizzas. 

Here, portion is definitely a thumbs up point. This is the mix grill platter, consisting of 2 chicken thigh cuts, a smoked duck drumstick, lamb chop as well as sausages.

Sides such as generous mushroom and black pepper sauce, coleslaw and fries were given with it. These fries were spot on, and with such a reasonable price, it never did came to our expectation that these thick cut fries were served instead of the economic frozen shoe-string and crinkle cut fries you find at your local supermarket. The fries were seasoned well too.

The lamb was tender and juicy, which you can tell was marinated very well. That was my favourite of all on the platter. The chicken chop was crispy on its skin side and was also really juicy and flavourful. The smoked duck was just alright as I found its flesh a bit on the tougher side, and was not so much of a fall-of-the-bone quality. Sausages used were frankfurters, the usual ones found in supermarkets. The sauce that came with it was really delicious and was a great compliment with everything on the platter. All for just RM35, about a 3 pax portion, if you're a heavy eater.

We also had their mushroom soup, which was more of a creamy and rich like consistency.

However, we thought it lacked mushroom flavour and consisted more of artificial thickeners and cream. But with RM5, we think it's still a good deal for a 2 pax portion mushroom soup.

They also had mixed lamb and chicken chop set, smoked duck pasta, carbonara pasta and many more.

This place also caters to the lunch crowd, a very big one, due to its cheap lunch sets.

For RM7, customers get a slice of chicken chop with mushroom and black pepper sauce on the side, garlic rice, coleslaw and single portion of mushroom soup. The garlic rice was fragrant and it was also fried, giving it a nicer aroma. 

Here's what's on the fried fish set which was RM9.

It had the same sides as well, but customers get to choose between Peri-peri sauce or cream sauce to go with their fish. The fish was battered and not breaded, which is definitely one of the most important thing for a fried fish fillet in western cuisine. It was crispy and light. 

Pizzas are now available on the menu as well. 12 inch pizzas ranging from only less than RM20.

If you haven't been to Big Coconut, we would highly recommend you to give it a try. Definitely can't be compared to the top notch fine dining eateries for a typical western cuisine, but it is really great for it's reasonable price. 

Big Coconut Western opens from lunch around 12pm till about 12am-1am.

Big Coconut Western
572, 569, 
Lorong Taman Hui Sing 3, 
Taman Hui Sing, 
93350 Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia

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SERAPI VIRGIN COCONUT SHAKE: DRINKS AND SHAKES

Just as we were talking about trends in some of our previous episodes be it desserts or food, here comes another hot item made out of just a few simple ingredients. This time, it’s a drink, the famous coconut shake, so popular that many would queue up even till 45 mins to an hour just for a cup of it.

This drink originated from Klebang, a store next to the Caltex Petrol Station located at Jalan Klebang Besar, Melaka. It got them such a great response that many other stores decided to sell the same thing and was brought over to many other states and cities around Malaysia, eventually Kuching.

Today, The Makan Post decided to try one of the famous coconut shake stalls in Kuching which is Serapi Virgin Coconut Shake. It’s perfect for those who are planning to drive a bit out of town, planning to go for a hike, nature activities and so on as this place is located pretty far away from the city around Jalan Matang.

The whole shop was decorated with old coconuts and had a very nice nature-like ambience with bamboos, tree stumps and rattans. Rattan baskets with coconuts in them were placed on each table and a marker was also provided for customers to leave their writings and doodles as memories.

Apart from the famous coconut shake, this shop also sells mango shake and ice cream with syrup soda. They are pretty known for their mango shake as well. Besides the fancy drinks, cookies, cakes, snacks and pickled fruit are also sold at the counter.

We ordered the special coconut shake and mango shake, which was just an additional ice cream in it apart from the normal shake without.

The coconut shake was rich and had a really thick consistency. It tasted more of coconut milk but it was still refreshing. It also had bits of ice inside so it gave a really nice texture overall and wasn’t too sweet either.

The mango shake on the other hand tasted quite artificial, like it wasn’t made with fresh mango fruit. The taste of artificial mango syrup was overpowering and made the whole drink too sweet. The coconut shake is definitely a better option to choose than this.

Overall, we thought that the shakes offered here was just alright, as we have tasted better ones before. However, it would be a nice treat to enjoy with the relaxing ambience on your way back from all the hiking and exercising on a hot weather.

Now it’s your turn to give this place a try.

Serapi Virgin Coconut Shake opens everyday from 8am to 8pm.


Serapi Virgin Coconut Shake
No 25 Kpg Temenggong
Jalan Matang
93050 Kuching,
Sarawak.

THE EATING GARAGE: CAFE EPISODES

Another food trend here in Kuching is roti teluq bakaq meleleh, which originates from Peninsular Malaysia. It’s basically grilled or toasted bread, smothered in seasonings and topped with plenty of mayo, ketchup, chilli sauce and sometimes cheese. Its name translates to melting egg toast, so u would expect to see lots of sauces all over it with a piece of egg on top. Today we adventure to a café that offers this roti teluq bakaq meleleh, along with other food in their menu.

The Eating Garage Kuching is located right in the city area and offers local Kuching food opening from day till night. The hold café is decorated with hipster stickers and paintings on the wall. Food such as laksa, kolo mee, mi goreng, stir fried dishes and not to forget the famous roti teluq bakaq meleleh are sold here.

Here is what they offered on their menu.

 Today, we decided to order a few other dishes as well besides the roti teluq.

We ordered the basic roti teluq which was just the plain grilled bread with egg and a bunch of seasonings and sauces on top. It came as a piece of grilled bread with a fried egg, topped with baked beans and seasoning sauce, finished with mayo and thousand island dressing. The overall taste and flavours came from the dressings and seasonings on top, the bread and egg itself was just simple and plain, but overall it was a good combination and worked well.

We also tried the kueh tiaw goreng kerang which was the fried kueh tiaw with clams. It was spicy and sweet which was the total opposite of the usual stir fried kueh tiaw u normally find outside in hawker stalls, with the usual salty savoury taste. Its sweet flavour came from sweet soy sauce and it had a bit of rojak paste flavour to it. Apart from the spiciness it had, it was further served with cut chillies on top. This one is definitely for the spicy lovers.

One of the stir fried dishes we tried was the butter chicken. They were very generous with the gravy and nestum flakes on top. The gravy was thick, savoury and had a slight sweetness to it. It was very fragrant with a milky taste to it along with the butter. The curry leaves were fried well so its essence was released well too.

The Eating Garage Kuching is a good place to try if you’re looking for a variety of local Kuching food under one roof and also the famous roti teluq bakaq meleleh at the same time.

The Eating Garage opens daily from 8am to 1am.

The Eating Garage

Lots 17 & 18, Ground floor, Block G,

Taman Sri Sarawak Mall,

Jalan Borneo,

93100 Kuching, Malaysia.

This is Jolynn signing off this week's episode on The Makan Post. Stay tuned for more.

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The Makan Post brings to you weekly food adventures, so be sure to catch us every week for new episodes and dont forget to subscribe to us. Just click on the Follow button below. Also, check out our instagram page @themakanpost. Cheers.

themakanpost@gmail.com