Cowan Street Ayam Tauge & Koitiao @ Ipoh

Cowan Street Ayam Tauge‘s famous bean sprouts chicken is hailed to be the best in Ipoh and it has probably been blogged to death. But surprisingly many people are still not aware of this shop and they continue to patronize Onn Kee and Lou Wong.
Just to be clear I have nothing against them because I quite liked Lou Wong in my last visit. Maybe they are not the best in the eyes of the locals and ‘Nga Choy Kai’ aficionados but at least you could count on them to be open for most of the time.

The reason I say that is because the business hour of Cowan Street Ayam Tauge is quite erratic. In fact, it is highly advised to call the boss ‘Ah Meng’ to check whether they are open before venturing here (we did that). And if you are thinking of eating here soon, I have some bad news for you.
Before I left the restaurant he told me that they are going to be closed from October until 2014’s Chinese New Year because he’s going overseas. So, plan quickly. That being said, both the ‘Nga Choy Kai’ and ‘Hor Fun’ here do live up to their reputation. If you haven’t eaten here before, there’s simply no reason not to.

Ordering is quick and simple. Just tell the number of portions and say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to the side dishes such as the gizzards and chicken feet when asked. Although it was a relatively busy night and we anticipated a long wait, our food came surprisingly fast.

I don’t know how they do it but the skillfully poached chicken is unbelievably tender – even the lean breast meat that I usually dread having was nice and juicy. There’s only one thing I didn’t really agree on which is the sauce drizzled over the chicken. Personally, I feel it’s quite oily and too ‘tasty’ (too much soy sauce) for my palate.

These stewed chicken feet are melt-in-your-mouth soft and could be sucked right off the bones. No biting required.

Overall, this is a great place for delicious ‘Nga Choy Kai’ and like I mentioned earlier, it’d a good idea to call ahead – especially for those coming from outstation.

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