This is going to be a packed weekend. Kenneth, Lynn and decided, pretty last minute, to do an Ipoh daytrip to visit my beloved friend, Nai Shin who is back from Singapore. Then I agreed to go to Gunung Jerai, Kedah with a hiking group that Kenneth and Lynn know on Sunday and then I have a potluck party with the Oregon girls, Yan Nee, CV, Li Li and Jie Hui. Whew!
Nai Shin is my friend from MMU of six years. We have this great friendship in which we almost never keep in touch but whenever we meet up, things are just like yesterday. It is as if we had never been apart. I love these sort of friends.
It was also packaged to be a great food trip so that I can visit all those food places that Nai Shin used to bring me too. And what has now become my favourite Ipoh food haunts every time I am in town.
We started our drive from Penang at 6am ++ as your truly majorly overslept making us late. Kenneth had to opt out because the poor dude had to work. Arrived at Ipoh at about 8.00am where with superb directions from Nai Shin (I got lost twice!) I managed to pick her up and our food adventures began!
We started the day with dim sum at Kampung Simee in Ipoh. Nai Shin brought me there five years back. I was a tad bit disappointed. Followed by what was claimed as the best egg tarts in Ipoh. The "Choy Kee" egg tarts hidden inside the Simee market. Thanks to Nai Shin who resourcefully ask some Ah Pek by the street.
We then proceeded on to old Ipoh town for my favourite Ipoh curry mee at the Xin Quan Fang coffee shop.
Xin Quan Fang curry mee
Then Ipoh old town white coffee and toast bread at Sin Yong Loong. We decided to skip Nam Heong, home to the Old Town White Coffee brand since we went there the last Ipoh trip.
Nai Shin and me
White coffee and toast bread
The toast is really, really thin and crispy. With kaya and sadly, as Nai Shin grouses, margerine instead of butter. The kaya was a tad bit too sweet.
We then took a tour to all the "tongs" since Lynn has never been to any before. "Tongs" are pretty much just temples inside a cave.
Lynn and I decided to take a pretty challenging and sometimes scary walk up to the top of the cave. It was very steep and at one point complete pitch dark. The floor was also made of wood and not very stable. We did inch our way gingerly across quite a bit.
We ended the trip at Indulgence (http://www.indulgencerestaurant.com/) for lunch. I first read about Indulgence four years ago. It caught my attention that time because the owner was a Cambridge educated mathematician turned self taught chef. Something I aspire to be! It used to occupied two side-by-side shophouses in Taman Canning. Now it has moved to a luxurious bungalow along Jalan Raja DiHilir. Sadly, the food prices are very steep, a bit too steep, in my opinion for Ipoh standards. I mean RM26 for dessert? Really? I can get a main meal for RM26 in Penang. Call me a stingy Penangite... whatever. Wanna stay at their hotel? Be prepared to fork out RM620 for a suite and RM420 for a standard.
Atoi, a Thai duck salad with cilantro, radiocchio, honey cashews served very imaginatively in a young coconut shell with coconut juice in shot glasses sprinkled with chilli flakes
Poached trout with sundried tomatoes
Pasta with scallops and beef bacon tossed with crab roe
The most satisfying thing I had that afternoon. Which was the dessert, mocha chocolate pudding with berry sauce. Simply delicious!
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