Ka Ka Ba Kut Teh @ Jalan Kepong, KL

My affair with this BKT place started almost concurrently with my affair with Jenn.. Whoopss!!! My relationship with Jenn :P Before going out with her, I didn't know what, when and where to eat... and even whom to eat with. Everyday just same ol stuff... mixed rice or also fondly known as economy rice. Don't get me wrong, I know how to appreciate good food. It's just I have no one to eat with. Truth to be told, I can go shopping alone, watching movie alone, on holiday alone... but I could never, never eat alone. The sight of those couples and families having meals together happily was sometimes too much to take. My family was in Pahang, my siblings were not those stay-at-home type. So I'd rather ta pao economy rice and eat back home.

Fast forward to March 2004... 19th March 2004 to be exact when Jenn was officially mine (ALL MINE!), she started to introduce me to a whole new world out there. I never realised that there were so many nice restaurants and eateries out there. Before that, my world was only confined to work, study and eat at nearby work/house area. Since she was staying with her aunt in Kepong Manjalara at that time, naturally she introduced me to good food around Kepong area... starting with this!

If you think mamak food is the only stuff that is available during wee hours in the morning, you are wrong! This BKT place opened until 2-3am!!! My sister who loved this place once told me that she went there at 3++am after clubbing just to eat their BKT. 5 years ago, the place was located just next to the main road of Jalan Kepong in wooden hut. But they were enjoying brisk business from dinner to supper time. One lane of Jalan Kepong was always parked with patrons who came to enjoy the dish. Then they moved into shoplot directly behind their original spot to make way for development. Still, cars were seen parking on the main road! The shop is just opposite Carrefour Kepong and the bright red sign is very hard to miss.

I haven't gone there for quite a long time. One night the opporutnity came when my youngest sister asked me out to dinner and I suggested this place. The first thing that you would probably notice is the huge crowd that never seem to cease (dinner time). The moment they cleared the table, another group of people would sit down immediately. On the outside, and inside! Words of reminder.. it can get pretty hot and stuffy inside so it is very hard to find empty table outside.

This is because part of the front entrance is used to prepare the bah kut teh... the presence of fans didn't help to cool down the interior.

Once taken your seat, you can proceed to the cook area... and be greeted with the sight of several pots of other dishes beside bah kut teh... braised chicken feet, braised pork, vinegar pork trotter, etc.

The sight the braised pork caught my attention this time.

Since I don't normally eat the pork's spare parts... I only asked for pork ribs and lean meat together with golden needle mushroom. FYI, they are very generous on the meat and mushroom... normally I share one portion with Jenn but that night, I asked for 2 portion as my cousin Gerald joined us. The broth was strong with herbal taste and flavourful and the meat was cooked until tender. Just the way I liked it :)

My sister asked for one portion of fu chuk and it tasted just as good with the silky smooth fu chuk.

Braised pork was another hit with us... cooked for a long time, the meat was very tender and quite spicy as they cooked it together with dried chilly.

A glass of chrysanthemum tea to cool down the heat!

Leo's verdict - those who follow my blog would have read that there are two places that I normally eat bah kut teh... one in Sri Setia and the other one is this place! While the former's BKT soup had less herbal taste, it made up with the sweetness from the pork bone. The latter's soup however, carries stronger herbal taste. If you ask my opinion, I like both... different way of preparation. I am still trying to locate one hidden BKT place in Klang that has the strongest herbal soup of all... the whole pot was literally full of herbal packets inside... gimme some time to locate it and I shall share with you all one day.

I notice that when it comes to bah kut teh, it's normally love-it-or-hate-it kind of experience. Some people like the strong taste of herbal, some don't... some like it peppery.. some like it light and easy. For me, this is the best BKT nearest to my house :) oh yes, I almost forget to mention that the fried fritters or yaw char koay is freshly made and chrunchy.