The latest crowd-drawing foodie spot on the Orchard shopping belt is Eat Alley, a 150-seater casual eatery that brings the best of KL street food straight to your tables. Here, founder Sebastian Low (who also brought us the Papparich chain) rounds up his favourite street hawker jaunts that stem from nostalgic memories of what he ate during his childhood and shares them with fellow Singaporean foodies.
The stylish food court headlines with seven stalls, some of which are generational hawkers serving up heirloom recipes: Fatty OUG, Kedai Kopi Dan Makanan Hong Lai, Kam Heong Braised Duck, Koon Kee Wantan Mee, Siong Huat Bah Kut Teh, Soong Kee Beef Noodle, and Uncle Beh Pork Noodle. Prices are kept affordable and accessible with plates averaging under the $10 mark with a few exceptions of signatures.
And Low is quite the stickler for authenticity as he assures that standards here are as close to as what home tastes like. He shares that, prior to the grand opening, he handpicked his cooks and flew them to the source to impart the necessary skills and knowledge. Here are our top picks.
Hailing from Petaling Street, Koon Kee’s wanton mee ($10.80) should not be missed. Think bouncy handmade noodles coated in luscious dark soy sauce with a sprinkle of crispy lard. It also stars the caramelised char siew: choose either the shoulder or belly cut, depending on how unctuous you like your meats. Other accompaniments of plump meat dumplings, braised chicken feet, and jewels of braised mushrooms complete the world-class plate.
Another drool-worthy plate harks from Kampung Nasi Lemak. Once a travelling roadside hawker before settling down in Overseas Union Garden (OUG), Owner Fatty now personally helms the stall to dish out his famous Malaysian-style Nasi Lemak Kukus (traditional coconut rice cooked in wooden steamers). The works ($8.80) include the rich and fluffy flavoured rice, juicy aromatic ayam rempah, and the usual suspects. For extra indulgence, there are add-ons of sambal cockles, sambal cuttlefish and beef rendang.
Hong Lai Hokkien Mee’s 50-year-old recipe is already an Eat Alley crowd favourite – touting 30-minute-long queues over the weekend. Each robust plate ($9.80) bears the fruit of tossing noodles and dark soy sauce in extremely high heat, giving its signature caramel-like flavour. Though, it is the moonlight hor fun that stole the show. The silky strands of wok-kissed rice noodles come along with a handful of pork, prawns and vegetables. The cracked egg atop accentuates the velvety sensation, making it far more irresistible than the stall's signature Hokkien mee.
Straight out of Klang, Siong Huat Bak Kut Teh serves both wet and dry versions ($10.80). Don’t expect a light broth; your personal clay pots are instead filled with a viscous gravy-like soup that is both rich and savoury. For sharper and punchier flavours, go with the dry. Each rib arrives tender and slathered in the sweet yet spicy dark soy sauce.
Enough said, gather the troops cause Kuala Lumpur is definitely in the house.
