MEI SIN KOPITIAM IN IMBI KUALA LUMPUR

My go to Kopitiam in Kuala Lumpur is Win Heng Seng Kopitiam located prominently at the beginning of Jalan Imbi.

It is a favourite with locals and tourists alike as it sits just behind hotels like Marriot, Westin and Ritz Carlton Hotel.

I have blogged about it here.

If you walk down the length of Imbi road towards the other end going toward Berjaya Mall, you will soon see Overseas Restaurant on the other side of the road.

Before reaching Overseas on the right, turn left into the offshoot road and you will see Soo Kee restaurant which is one of my go to favourites for simple stir fried dishes like Black Bean Beef Hor Fun, pork liver with scallions, big head prawn noodles etc.

Sin Mei Kopitiam

Once you see Soo Kee, you will also see on the left right next to Soo Kee an old school Coffeeshop called Sin Mei Kopitiam.

Compared to Win Heng Seng, it is relatively quieter and you can find seats easily.

Being situated on an offshoot road (unlike Win Heng Seng which is at a prominent junction and right behind the hotels), it suffers from being somewhat hidden and a little forlorn looking, like being frozen in time (which it probably is).

My makan kakis (“food warriors”) and I went on a Sunday morning and discovered these delights:

Nasi Lemak

Tucked into the leftmost corner of this Coffeeshop is the nasi lemak stall. I say stall but it really is just two tables set up without even a stall, but with prominent signboards and photographs displaying their offering. I wonder if this stall is new?

Even stranger is that they have 2 large steamers selling siew mai and other dim sum offerings, together with offering nasi lemak. It’s like a duet with Eminem and Susan Boyle.

I was shown curry chicken for the nasi lemak and the fiery colours looked really attractive. One of their dishes was petai which is this strong smelling beans which is a bit of an acquired taste.

But I played safe and ordered their curry squid and fried chicken with other condiments. I made a mental note that on my next visit, I should definitely try their curry chicken.

Wow – jackpot!

Look at those colors ! Vibrant, clean and enticing!

Nice smelling rice, credible chilli (still a little sweet for my liking) and the condiments were nice as well.

The fried chicken tasted good as well.

But it was the squid that was the hit. Still crunchy with a nice bite, the accompanying chilli rempah it was cooked in was delicious.

I suspect this will be my go to Nasi Lemak when I come to KL in the future.

Kai Si Hor Fun

Another hit with my fellow food coma cult leaders, the hor fun was gloriously drenched in the tasty black sauce, and was cooked al dente, if not slightly soft to the touch which worked well.

The accompanying chicken slices were soft and tasty.

Surprisingly good despite its rather forlorn looking stall.

Like dating an uptight matronly school teacher wearing horn rimmed glasses, but when you pick her on a Saturday night, you discover ……..

Curry Mee

I remembered the curry mee being fragrant and pleasing when I tried it before and ordered it. This time, I added yong tau foo pieces.

I felt the Yong tau foo additions diluted the allure of the fragrant curry smell that hit me the last time. Note to self, the next time have the Yong tau foo dishes on the side or with curry stock in a separate bowl.

Still strongly recommended.

Wanton Mee

I ordered curry Wanton Kolo mee and also a side dish of braised chicken feet and mushroom dish.

All of us really liked the plate of curry chicken and potato that came with the noodle and the noodle was quite decent as well (although I felt it was slightly undercooked and too firm).

The wantons though were drowned and I almost initiated CPR. I hesitate to say this (because I liked the frail old lady server who was really nice bless her heart) but the wantons were a floating mess.

The chicken feet and mushrooms were decent.

Ban Mee

Have decided not to show a picture or you will be cursed.

We joined hands and said a prayer around it. During which it tried to levitate.

Avoid unless you particularly like tepid anchovy dish water soup.

Char Siew

At the end of our meal, we noticed some hanging char siew from a stall selling chicken and roast meats that were pulling a face and teasing us.

So despite being as full as donkeys bollocks, we ordered a tasting portion.

It was ok without the ultra sweet sauce that they drenched it with. Worthy of a tasting portion but I would advise u get them to leave out the sauce or have it as a side for dipping.

Coffee

All of us thought the coffee was uncommonly good and deserved a mention.

So drink coffee there.

Address:
Mei Sin Eating Shop 美新茶餐室
N0. 16, Jalan Melati,
Medan Imbi,
Off Jalan Imbi,
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Opening Hours: 7AM – 3PM closed on Tuesdays

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