Jalan Ipoh is packed with great restaurants—some hard to find. We are here to dish out some of these hidden-gem dining experiences at this lovely neighbourhood. One of them is this no name restaurant located towards the end of Taman Bamboo with no address nor postal code (scroll down for map).
According to the lady owner who runs this place, the restaurant has been nicknamed by its regulars as:
1) 榕树下 “under the Banyan Tree”; as evident from these large and extensive growing trees located right in front of the restaurant.
2) 风山水起 “the water went with the wind”; named after this man made water feature/cave?
3) 龙门客栈 “Dragon Gate Inn”. Just like the 1992 Hong Kong wuxia film, this no name restaurant is a meeting place for brigands run by brigands?
We are no brigands but just a bunch of curious epicureans who vow to visit this restaurant after hearing some rave reviews from KampungBoy’s sister.
It is actually a residential property with a very sizable yard space. The yard space is fully utilised to house a make shift kitchen and some tables for dining purposes. The one page hand written menu depicts a fast, no frills food service.
It was an unique experience dining in an easy and laid-back open air atmosphere right in front of someone’s yard! That was my Korean friend by the way.
Fried Yee Mee (RM 6). Topped with lots of Zhu-Ya-Char (lards), the braised yee mee will definitely make a health freak or weight watcher frown.
Fried Pek Ger (chinese rice cake, RM 6). The texture is very much similiar to Shanghainese Nian Gao and Korean’s tteokboki but the cooking method is almost akin to the hokkien style of stir frying. Stir fried to perfection, these rice cakes were chewy (in a nice way) and never leave a flour-ly after taste. We rate it higher than Tawakal Hospital hokkien mee stall and Jalan Ipoh hokkien mee stall.
Pan Mee (Flat Noodles in Soup, RM 4.50). This reminds me of mum’s cooking so much. The clear broth was was made with dried anchovy stock, and the noodles were hand-torned. Just like how my mum would prepare her pan mee.
Deep Fried Sui Kow (dumplings, RM 1 each). It was so good that we had a second servings! There’s nothing like thin, crispy skin filled with crunchy waterchesnut and bouncy prawn paste.
California Roll (RM 5 each). Yes, we found great hand rolls at the most unexpected of places! The hand roll was filled to the brim with freshly fried soft shell crab; so delicious! The lady owner, Joanne runs a Japanese restaurant prior to this. Thus it is not surprising to see hand rolls and sushis here.
Unagi Sushi (RM 25). It was nothing to shout about though. We’ll stick to the California Hand Roll next time!
It was great fun to have discovered such a hidden gem, thanks to Kampungboy’s sister. Getting here could be a little challeging if you are not familiar with Jalan Ipoh and its surroundings. GTC Bridal Gallery along Jalan Ipoh is probably the best land mark. U-turn to the opposite side of the road, turn in to Jalan Cenderuh and you will pass by a crossing bridge with river underneath. Go straight until the road is getting smaller (where only one car can pass through) and you’ll be greeted by a open space with huge banyan trees.
V12, Bamboo Garden,
Batu 4, Jalan Ipoh,
51200 Kuala Lumpur
(Joanne’s cousin brother’s address, her place was another 1 minute drive from here)
Tel: 03-62511535/012-3133238
Opens daily from 830 am to 430 pm, except Monday
I think I’ve been there once! Thanks for sharing, will go makan again!
[Reply]
kampungboycitygal Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 5:02 pm
wow seems like a lot of ppl know already. i’m quite late
[Reply]
Like It! Reply:
April 3rd, 2012 at 9:50 am
Direction wise, there is a minor correction.
If coming from South – KL downtown areas (eg. Sentul, Chow Kit, etc) toward Jalan Ipoh, make a LEFT turn at the traffic light onto Jalan Cenderuh.
If coming from North – Kepong/Jinjiang/Selayang/etc toward Jalan Ipoh, just make a RIGHT turn at the traffic light (NOT U-turn as described above) onto Jalan Cenderuh.
GO further in passing B (as indicated on the Map)and a small park on the left hand side (Bamboo Garden park).
Don’t stop at the first food stall on the right hand side.
Continue driving further (about 1-2 minutes) until you see the Banyan tree as describe below (with picture).
The destination is on the right hand side few feet after passing the tree.
Give it a try!…:)
[Reply]
Like It Reply:
November 14th, 2012 at 5:27 am
The restaurant has been relocated to:
Google Map Location: 3.192236,101.682619
Google Map Link: http://maps.google.com.my/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=3.192236%2c+101.682619&aq=&sll=3.193082%2c101.682061&sspn=0.003187%2c0.005622&vpsrc=6&g=3.192268%2c101.682624&ie=UTF8&ll=3.192472%2c101.682302&spn=0.001593%2c0.002811&t=m&z=19&iwloc=A
Grand Opening on 08/11/2012
Huge parking area and larger dining space, even better when it is raining outside, besides a Chinese Temple located under the Duke Highway (Duta-Ulu Kelang Expressway) flyover….see the link above….
Call 018-3198267/012-3133238 for more info.
See you guys soon…:)
Unique!
[Reply]
kampungboycitygal Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 5:02 pm
yes indeed
[Reply]
totally agreed with you. The place is quite secluded in the sense that you never expected there’s an house whereby they served the best Fried Pan Mee in Hokkien Style, plenty of fried pork skin and their Loh Mee. Remember to order individual bowls rather than Medium. Be it 2 or 3 person, they served more or less the same portion.
i realised that the price have hike up a lot as compared to those days where there were not many customers.
[Reply]
kampungboycitygal Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 5:02 pm
wow thanks for your recommendation! will try the fried pan mee next time
[Reply]
this does indeed looks like a great find!
[Reply]
kampungboycitygal Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 5:01 pm
yes. nice n cooling place too
[Reply]
yup i tried it b4 ..
it was been quite some time and their food is really delicious.
not so many ppl know abt the place
[Reply]
kampungboycitygal Reply:
February 23rd, 2012 at 5:01 pm
wow ur also jalan ipoh kaki huh?
[Reply]
so this is the place that my client has been trying to tell me about. interesting! will be sure to check this out when i head in to ipoh for a project in april.
[Reply]
Those California rolls look enticing. The ambiance is unique and cosy – surrounded by plants (from your photos). Passed Jalan Ipoh many times before and never knew what I missed. Thanks for sharing ;D Will try it next time.
[Reply]
Love the random combination of dai chow noodles and sushi! Thanks for sharing – my dad has been forever searching for a tasty and authentic hokkien ‘peh ker’ dish in klang valley, seems that it’s pretty hard to find. Will give this a try one day!
[Reply]
Hey nice stuff u got here…
[Reply]
Nice Restaurant, delicious food, will go there eat the food soon!
[Reply]
The restaurant is gonna close on 1/11/2012.
31/10/2012 is the last day. Please drop by if you have a chance.
The new restaurant Grand Opening on 08/11/2012 and will be located at:
Google Map Location: 3.192236,101.682619
Google Map Link: http://maps.google.com.my/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=3.192236%2c+101.682619&aq=&sll=3.193082%2c101.682061&sspn=0.003187%2c0.005622&vpsrc=6&g=3.192268%2c101.682624&ie=UTF8&ll=3.192472%2c101.682302&spn=0.001593%2c0.002811&t=m&z=19&iwloc=A
[Reply]