Hj Wahid mee rebus is one of the JB local favourites. The Hj Wahid brand of mee rebus is now sold in many shops and stalls throughout Johor, and even in Putrajaya by members of the family. Zainal Place's version of Hj Wahid mee rebus is among the best known.
Restaurant name: Zainal Place Address: 89, Jalan Keris, Taman Sri Tebrau, Johor bahru (opposite church and Wisma Tionghua) Map: http://goo.gl/maps/ZKcm GPS: 1.487536,103.770096 Hours: 7:00am to 5:00pm Halal
During lunch, a steady flow of office workers stream into Zainal Place.
Inside, shielded from the sun and heat, the whirling fans keep the clean and neat space cool and comfortable. The service is basic but the crew is friendly and efficient. Though the helpful staff does warn customers of approaching parking attendants, do note that parking enforcement in this area is rather stringent as it is a high density part of JB. A 60 sen coupon for an hour's parking will give us ample time to enjoy our meal with peace of mind :)
Zainal Place serves a variety of Malay dishes like nasi lemak, nasi campur, soto ayam and so on but the mee rebus station looks to be the busiest.
Hj Wahid mee rebus at Zainal Place RM5
I have not tasted the original Hj Wahid mee rebus (unfortunately) but I am impressed with Zainal's edition.
The gravy is thick like a gooey syrup smothering the noodles yet it is not starchy.
When I tossed the yellow noodles, I could feel the weight of the sticky gravy clinging to the strands - really.
In the mouth, the gravy tastes mainly peanutty, savoury and very slightly spicy and sweet. The aroma of peanut and spices was slight.
The staff adds a dash of vinegar and kicap (dark soy sauce) to the mee rebus before serving. This is a Hj Wahid mee rebus trademark that you will find in all Hj Wahid stalls.
The staff showed me the gravy, scooping it up and letting it dribble down to let me see it's syrupy texture.
Another feature of Hj Wahid mee rebus is the crispy deep fried toppings.
The staff sprinkles these crispy crackly bits generously over the mee rebus. As these toppings run out fast, freshly fried bits are replenished throughout the day.
If I could wish, it would be perfect for me if there were some of those old style, small fried shrimp toppings in the mee rebus :)
Unlike in Singapore, Hj Waid mee rebus is not served with red sambal chili. But, when I asked for red sambal, the bemused friendly staff gave me this sambal hitam which is meant for mee soto :) It's quite power (as we say here) and a reasonable stand in, in my humble opinion :P
For RM9:00, your mee rebus will come with one of these lamb shank bones complete with a straw to suck out the marrow. I will certainly be back for this.
Date visited: 24 Oct 2013
Hj Wahid mee rebus is one of the JB local favourites. The Hj Wahid brand of mee rebus is now sold in many shops and stalls throughout Johor, and even in Putrajaya by members of the family. Zainal Place's version of Hj Wahid mee rebus is among the best known.
Restaurant name: Zainal Place Address: 89, Jalan Keris, Taman Sri Tebrau, Johor bahru (opposite church and Wisma Tionghua) Map: http://goo.gl/maps/ZKcm GPS: 1.487536,103.770096 Hours: 7:00am to 5:00pm Halal
During lunch, a steady flow of office workers stream into Zainal Place.
Inside, shielded from the sun and heat, the whirling fans keep the clean and neat space cool and comfortable. The service is basic but the crew is friendly and efficient. Though the helpful staff does warn customers of approaching parking attendants, do note that parking enforcement in this area is rather stringent as it is a high density part of JB. A 60 sen coupon for an hour's parking will give us ample time to enjoy our meal with peace of mind :)
Zainal Place serves a variety of Malay dishes like nasi lemak, nasi campur, soto ayam and so on but the mee rebus station looks to be the busiest.
Hj Wahid mee rebus at Zainal Place RM5
I have not tasted the original Hj Wahid mee rebus (unfortunately) but I am impressed with Zainal's edition.
The gravy is thick like a gooey syrup smothering the noodles yet it is not starchy.
When I tossed the yellow noodles, I could feel the weight of the sticky gravy clinging to the strands - really.
In the mouth, the gravy tastes mainly peanutty, savoury and very slightly spicy and sweet. The aroma of peanut and spices was slight.
The staff adds a dash of vinegar and kicap (dark soy sauce) to the mee rebus before serving. This is a Hj Wahid mee rebus trademark that you will find in all Hj Wahid stalls.
The staff showed me the gravy, scooping it up and letting it dribble down to let me see it's syrupy texture.
Another feature of Hj Wahid mee rebus is the crispy deep fried toppings.
The staff sprinkles these crispy crackly bits generously over the mee rebus. As these toppings run out fast, freshly fried bits are replenished throughout the day.
If I could wish, it would be perfect for me if there were some of those old style, small fried shrimp toppings in the mee rebus :)
Unlike in Singapore, Hj Waid mee rebus is not served with red sambal chili. But, when I asked for red sambal, the bemused friendly staff gave me this sambal hitam which is meant for mee soto :) It's quite power (as we say here) and a reasonable stand in, in my humble opinion :P
For RM9:00, your mee rebus will come with one of these lamb shank bones complete with a straw to suck out the marrow. I will certainly be back for this.
I asked Johor Yummy members what to eat at the old Taman Sri Tebrau Hawker Centre and the guo tie 锅贴 (or pan fried dumpling) stall came up a few times. So, I made my way to stall #26 at the dingy old food centre, my interest piqued because this is the only guo tie stall that I have heard of so far in Johor Bahru.
The boss and auntie workers were friendly, though unaccustomed to awkward attention from a stranger togging a clunky DSLR camera :P
This was my order of a small plate ofguo tie. Notice that one side of the guo tie dumplings is golden brown while the other is not browned. This is actually one of the characteristics of guo tie, one side is fried and the other is "steamed".
Outside, the fried golden brown skin was stiff but not hard and it was not oily. The "steamed" side was tender but not soft. It was a nice contrast of textures.
Inside, the minced meat and gu chai were moist, naturally sweet and savoury. The skin was slightly crisp, gummy and chewy to the bite. The skin was quite thin, yet strong enough to keep the hot oil from entering the dumpling.
This was the boiled version - puffy because of the hot air and minced meat juices trapped inside the dumpling. Break the seal and the hot savoury broth-like juices oozes out and runs down the corner of your mouth, if you are not careful :P
The moist minced pork and gu chai vegetable inside.
For many people, guo tiemust be eaten with pickled ginger and vinegar dipping sauce, although I am quite happy just to savour the minced pork's natural flavours.
Everything here is handmade fresh at the stall. The boss and the aunties were actually rather too modest about their work, dismissing it as "nothing much... 没有什么". Let's see :)
The boss kneading the dough from scratch i.e. flour.
Making the shells one by one.
Each dumpling is stuffed with pork or prawn mince and hand folded one at a time.
Putting the freshly made dumplings into the shallow pan of hot oil.
Guo tie sizzling in the pan of oil.
Let the dumplings cook inside the pan of hot oil and water for a while.
Draining away the excess oil and water. Notice the fried and steamed sides.
The plate of freshly fried golden brown guo tie ready and on it's way to the customer.
The condiment tray - there were chili sauce, vinegar, light soy sauce and pickled ginger.
Prices are prominently displayed. Besides pork fillings, there is also the prawn version. Stall #26 also sells frozen versions for takeaway. For people whose comfort food is guo tie but have difficulty getting good quality frozen dumplings, this stall is a life saver.
Restaurant name: Makanan Guo Tie Shanghai Address: Stall 26, Taman Sri Tebrau Hawker Centre, Jalan Keris, Taman Sri Tebrau, Johor Bahru Map: http://goo.gl/maps/E0X3Q GPS: 1.487056,103.768063 Hours: 5:30pm to 10:00pm Non Halal
Date visited: 7 Aug 2013
I asked Johor Yummy members what to eat at the old Taman Sri Tebrau Hawker Centre and the guo tie 锅贴 (or pan fried dumpling) stall came up a few times. So, I made my way to stall #26 at the dingy old food centre, my interest piqued because this is the only guo tie stall that I have heard of so far in Johor Bahru.
The boss and auntie workers were friendly, though unaccustomed to awkward attention from a stranger togging a clunky DSLR camera :P
This was my order of a small plate ofguo tie. Notice that one side of the guo tie dumplings is golden brown while the other is not browned. This is actually one of the characteristics of guo tie, one side is fried and the other is "steamed".
Outside, the fried golden brown skin was stiff but not hard and it was not oily. The "steamed" side was tender but not soft. It was a nice contrast of textures.
Inside, the minced meat and gu chai were moist, naturally sweet and savoury. The skin was slightly crisp, gummy and chewy to the bite. The skin was quite thin, yet strong enough to keep the hot oil from entering the dumpling.
This was the boiled version - puffy because of the hot air and minced meat juices trapped inside the dumpling. Break the seal and the hot savoury broth-like juices oozes out and runs down the corner of your mouth, if you are not careful :P
The moist minced pork and gu chai vegetable inside.
For many people, guo tiemust be eaten with pickled ginger and vinegar dipping sauce, although I am quite happy just to savour the minced pork's natural flavours.
Everything here is handmade fresh at the stall. The boss and the aunties were actually rather too modest about their work, dismissing it as "nothing much... 没有什么". Let's see :)
The boss kneading the dough from scratch i.e. flour.
Making the shells one by one.
Each dumpling is stuffed with pork or prawn mince and hand folded one at a time.
Putting the freshly made dumplings into the shallow pan of hot oil.
Guo tie sizzling in the pan of oil.
Let the dumplings cook inside the pan of hot oil and water for a while.
Draining away the excess oil and water. Notice the fried and steamed sides.
The plate of freshly fried golden brown guo tie ready and on it's way to the customer.
The condiment tray - there were chili sauce, vinegar, light soy sauce and pickled ginger.
Prices are prominently displayed. Besides pork fillings, there is also the prawn version. Stall #26 also sells frozen versions for takeaway. For people whose comfort food is guo tie but have difficulty getting good quality frozen dumplings, this stall is a life saver.
Restaurant name: Makanan Guo Tie Shanghai Address: Stall 26, Taman Sri Tebrau Hawker Centre, Jalan Keris, Taman Sri Tebrau, Johor Bahru Map: http://goo.gl/maps/E0X3Q GPS: 1.487056,103.768063 Hours: 5:30pm to 10:00pm Non Halal
Today, I stumbled upon 168 Penang prawn mee stall. I've been here before - Tai Soon kopitiam in Taman Sri Tebaru. Noticed that it is always busy. Saw this stall mentioned before in passing by a reader on my Facebook Page.
I stepped forward to take a few sniffs of the pot of lor (prawn broth). The aroma of savoury prawniness was clearly present.
Took a peek at the prawns - pretty impressive - thick and long like a man's thumb.
I decided then to bet the day's calories and cholesterol on this stall. It paid off rather handsomely, I would say :)
Mr. Lee who is from Butterworth (Penang) has been running this stall at Tai Soon kopitiam with his son for 12 years. Before that, Mr. Lee's stall was at Lien Hoe Complex for 8 years. Twenty years of experience selling Penang prawn mee!
Ah... steaming hot Penang lor mee.. can you feel the sticky, gooey, savoury, prawny gravy? The lor or gravy was simply superb. It was robustly umami. This picture makes me crave for it again :P
I asked for the medium sized bowl and was a little surprised that it costs RM7.50. I later asked Mr. Lee about it and he explained that the medium sized bowls come with live prawns which are expensive. The margin is low and he has to rely on volume to sustain his business. (The RM5.50 small bowls come with small thumbnail size prawns.)
Ah... the Penang prawn noodles.
The RM7.50 bowl comes with three of these good size prawns.
The full bodied prawn broth, not thicken like the lor, but it was equally robust in flavour. Superb.
I like enjoying savoury broths with bee hoon as they do the best job of soaking up the flavours.
The homemade chili paste - mildly spicy with a tangy note. I didn't really need this as I was focusing on the savoury prawn broth. This stall doesn't serve chili powder but I didn't miss it either.
The pot of lor mee gravy, nearly empty.
Vinegar lovers, do remember to ask for this vinegar to go with your lor mee.
Run out of pork? No problem. Get some char siew from the neighbour's stall and carry on business as usual :)
By 1:00pm the stall was running out of prawn broth as well and it was time to call it a day. Mr. Lee told me that it has been like this every day and especially so during weekends when they are sold out by around 12:30pm. So, be early folks if you are going for 168 Penang prawn noodles.
Restaurant name: 168 Penang Prawn Noodles Stall in Tai Soon kopitiam Address: Junction of Jalan Badik 1 and Jalan Badik, Taman Sri Tebrau, Johor Bahru Map: http://goo.gl/maps/oNafD GPS: 1.486233,103.768782 Hours: 7:30am to sold out (usually 1:00pm) daily Non Halal
Date visited: 6 Aug 2013
I am a big fan of Penang prawn mee and lor mee.
Today, I stumbled upon 168 Penang prawn mee stall. I've been here before - Tai Soon kopitiam in Taman Sri Tebaru. Noticed that it is always busy. Saw this stall mentioned before in passing by a reader on my Facebook Page.
I stepped forward to take a few sniffs of the pot of lor (prawn broth). The aroma of savoury prawniness was clearly present.
Took a peek at the prawns - pretty impressive - thick and long like a man's thumb.
I decided then to bet the day's calories and cholesterol on this stall. It paid off rather handsomely, I would say :)
Mr. Lee who is from Butterworth (Penang) has been running this stall at Tai Soon kopitiam with his son for 12 years. Before that, Mr. Lee's stall was at Lien Hoe Complex for 8 years. Twenty years of experience selling Penang prawn mee!
Ah... steaming hot Penang lor mee.. can you feel the sticky, gooey, savoury, prawny gravy? The lor or gravy was simply superb. It was robustly umami. This picture makes me crave for it again :P
I asked for the medium sized bowl and was a little surprised that it costs RM7.50. I later asked Mr. Lee about it and he explained that the medium sized bowls come with live prawns which are expensive. The margin is low and he has to rely on volume to sustain his business. (The RM5.50 small bowls come with small thumbnail size prawns.)
Ah... the Penang prawn noodles.
The RM7.50 bowl comes with three of these good size prawns.
The full bodied prawn broth, not thicken like the lor, but it was equally robust in flavour. Superb.
I like enjoying savoury broths with bee hoon as they do the best job of soaking up the flavours.
The homemade chili paste - mildly spicy with a tangy note. I didn't really need this as I was focusing on the savoury prawn broth. This stall doesn't serve chili powder but I didn't miss it either.
The pot of lor mee gravy, nearly empty.
Vinegar lovers, do remember to ask for this vinegar to go with your lor mee.
Run out of pork? No problem. Get some char siew from the neighbour's stall and carry on business as usual :)
By 1:00pm the stall was running out of prawn broth as well and it was time to call it a day. Mr. Lee told me that it has been like this every day and especially so during weekends when they are sold out by around 12:30pm. So, be early folks if you are going for 168 Penang prawn noodles.
Restaurant name: 168 Penang Prawn Noodles Stall in Tai Soon kopitiam Address: Junction of Jalan Badik 1 and Jalan Badik, Taman Sri Tebrau, Johor Bahru Map: http://goo.gl/maps/oNafD GPS: 1.486233,103.768782 Hours: 7:30am to sold out (usually 1:00pm) daily Non Halal
