I’m a big fan of pork, so you can imagine my excitement when I found out that effective from 9 January, 2007, Old China Cafe was turning non-halal. A number of new dishes had been introduced, all of which contained pork. From babi pong teh (pork belly and pork rump stewed in brown paste sauce with shallots, garlic, mushrooms and potatoes) to sek bak (sliced stewed pork in dark sauce of aromatic spices and malay herbs) to honeyed pork ribs…all glorious sounding pork dishes. The timing is appropriate though, to welcome the Year of the Pig. (Note: Said pig may not be too excited about all the fuss about pork. Oink.)

I’ve always loved Portuguese Devil Curry, a wickedly hot (hence, its name) chicken curry cooked with potatoes, dried chillies, fresh chillies, mustard seeds, vinegar, mustard powder, ginger, garlic and onions. My friend, Molly, once came to my house and gave me a demonstration (how cool is that!) on how to cook this extremely spicy curry, after which we adjourned to the patio to enjoy a lovely eurasian dinner. It’s been a while since I cooked it and it’s been too long since I enjoyed a good devil curry. So when I saw Siew Yoke (roasted pork) Devil Curry listed on the menu, I could hear it calling out my name. Siew Yoke is quite an unusual ingredient in a devil curry, but we’re progressive girls (*smile*) and we’re always game to try something new. However, at RM22.80 a dish, we thought that the portion was rather small and was barely enough for the three of us. Our verdict? The distinctive taste of siew yoke was a little too powerful for the curry and didn’t quite blend in. In addition, the curry wasn’t spicy enough. It ought to be called Devil (L licence-paid off the instructor) Curry instead.

The other pork dish we ordered was Babi Masak Asam (pork cooked in tamarind gravy). We loved the thick, gooey gravy made of bean paste, chillies and daun limau purut (kaffir lime leaves). At RM12.80, it was definitely worth every cent.

We’ve narrowed down our favourite dishes at Old China Cafe to two so far. In addition to Babi Masak Asam, we also like the ayam pong teh, a slightly sweet dish of chicken and bean paste in a black sauce. We didn’t order the ayam pong teh this time as we wanted to concentrate on the new dishes. We finished the meal with a serving of kangkung belacan, which despite sounding extremely ordinary, tasted extraordinary.

Bouncing Barbie and I had sago gula melaka (sago pudding with palm sugar and coconut milk) for dessert while Pretty Pui ordered the bubur pulut hitam (black glutinous rice porridge). The sago gula melaka is DIY, and we liberally loaded up on the dark syrup and coconut milk. Eat first, suffer later! Pretty Pui liked the bubur pulut hitam, but said that it was not as good as the pulut hitam which she had tried in Hong Kong several years back. I thought it lacked enough glutinous rice and santan.

While we ate, the same old chinese music was playing in the background. As always, I was transported back to the olden days in my imaginary world of babas and nyonyas, stained glass, wrapped feet and slim cigarettes.

My maternal grandmother passed away half my lifetime ago. During my school holidays when I was in primary school, it was the norm for me to travel south from Penang to PJ where my grandma used to live. Grandma Yeoh was a cynical woman who had a fast-forward education on life at a young age when her husband, an architect and a painter, passed away, leaving her to tend to 5 growing children. She’d put on a gruff exterior, perhaps not knowing how to show her affection towards me, but her actions reflected her kindness. I’d faithfully follow her to the market everyday where she’d buy only the freshest ingredients for the day’s meal and chat with the various stall owners, from the vegetable seller to the man chopping up the pork. Sundays were spent in reverence as she attended the Lutheran church in PJ. Usually, after a hard day’s work of cooking and cleaning and sharing the latest gossip with the neighbour, she’d sit down on her rickety old chair in front of her black and white TV to catch the latest offering on RTM. I, on the other hand, would creep into the storeroom to hunt for treasures stored away in musty old boxes. It was in that barely-lit storeroom that I found my first inspiration to dabble in art; my late grandfather had a wealth of books on art that gave me my foundation in a lifelong love affair.Everyday, Grandma Yeoh would dress up in her crisp cotton kebaya top and her batik sarung held up by an intricate silver belt. She cooked, cleaned, shopped and rested in those outfits. Meals were always prepared on the charcoal stove at the back of her house. Food like tau yu bak, babi pongteh and other straits chinese food were commonly served in her household.

Eating nyonya food brings me back to the past and my friends will attest to the fact that I behave a little strangely in nyonya restaurants where in my imagination, I have travelled back in time.

All this reverie because of Old China Cafe. 🙂

Back to the present, Old China Cafe is an old guild hall of the Selangor & Federal Territory Laundry Association. Walking through its wooden doors, I feel a sense of belonging in this dimly lit place, the same chinese music playing in the background. According to its website, “the two large mirrors that face each other are traditional feng shui mirrors that Chinese believe would perpetually reflect the good luck when the first rays of the morning sun light up the interior”.

This is the first of a 2-part series. Today, it’s all about the one-dish meal. This restaurant is located on the fringe of Petaling Street and like its sister, Precious Old China, it seems to appeal more to the expatriate and tourist crowd. As a result, the waiters normally confirm the degree of spiciness one can tolerate in a meal. I recommend going spicy all the way.

Bouncing Barbie was keen on eating rice, so she ordered the nyonya fried rice. Barbie and Pretty Pui both agreed that it was a little bland (perhaps due to the fact that Barbie didn’t want garlic in her meal) despite asking for an extra spicy version of this dish. The rice is fried with mixed vegetables and belacan and is served with a piece of chicken, grated cucumbers and papadum.

Pretty Pui was immediately attracted to the nasi lemak. Unlike normal nasi lemak, the rice in this dish is coloured with bunga telang (blue sweetpea flowers). This dish is served with chicken curry, crunchy fried ikan bilis (anchovies), kangkung (water convolvulus) and slices of cucumber.

I’ve always liked the curry laksa in Old China Cafe. The aroma of lemongrass is prevalent in this curry, rich with santan (coconut milk). This noodle dish has several prawns, taufu pok (fried tofu), sliced fish cakes, shredded cucumber and half an egg.

If you’re dining here, be prepared to spend some time drinking in the ambience and waiting for your food as service can be a little slow. Nevertheless, it is a nice place to spend a lazy afternoon with old friends, dead or alive. 😛

Part 2 will cover several new dishes introduced in Old China Cafe. Stay tuned!

Old China Cafe

11, Jalan Balai Polis,50000 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03-20725915

My office is located near Petaling Street, and is a short walk away from one of my favourite restaurants, Old China Cafe. It’s not so much the food that appeals to me, but the feeling that I get when I push open the swinging wooden doors and find myself in the dark mirrored room with old chinese music playing in the background and a rickety old table fan in the far corner of the room. Perhaps it will be the subject of a future restaurant review.

But for now, my review is on its sister restaurant, Precious Old China. Located in Central Market KL, it seems to target the tourists rather than locals. But since I am no expert on property markets and locations, I shall keep my two cents worth to myself. BUT if one thinks of restaurants in Central Market as overpriced tourist traps, then he will regret his decision for not giving Precious Old China a chance to prove itself.

We decided to go to Precious Old China last Saturday night. Precious Old China serves predominantly Nyonya (Straits Chinese) food. And at times like this, I claim my “chinese heritage” by saying that this type of cuisine is the stuff my grandma used to cook.

For starters, we decided on the Ju Hu Char and Pie Tee (top hats). Both these dishes have the same type of base, i.e. shredded sengkuang and dried shrimps. The Ju Hu Char has an added ingredient, i.e. dried cuttlefish. The Ju Hu Char was served with lettuce, where one can make cute little popiahs by wrapping the ingredients, and sambal belacan, in the lettuce. I thought it was great, but Gard and Olav found the smell of either the cuttlefish or the sambal a little overpowering. Something about the smell of a barn….? The top hats were also DIY and the outer layer was nice and crunchy.

For our main course, we ordered Kari Kapitan (Chicken), Beef Rendang and Sweet and Sour Fish (Olav’s special request). The Kari Kapitan was rich and creamy, the beef rendang was tender and not too pedas, and the sweet and sour fish was up to Olav’s expectations. 🙂 Yummy bario rice, naturally coloured with blue sweetpea flowers and cooked in santan (coconut milk), was served together with the dishes.

I love the decor at Precious Old China. Uncoordinated antique furnishings, glass chandeliers and huge vases add an opulent touch to the restaurant.

Further information can be found on the website: www.oldchina.com.my.

After that very satisfying meal, we proceeded to SevenEightNine at the Ascott (see earlier review) and got ourselves drunk on cocktails.

Precious Old China

Restaurant & Bar, Lot 2, Mezzanine Floor, Central Market, Kuala Lumpur.

Reservation: 03-22737372Fax: 03-22745687