Last night, I knew I had to be ready by 9.00am this morning to join Jeannie and my mother-in-law (Jeannie’s mother for breakfast). I just did not realise how fast “this morning” would come; not that it being a Saturday; time would slow down, at least a little bit.
We were ready in a bit (which also means a short while).
Jeannie’s mum’s home was a strong stone’s throw away IN USJ6. Picked her up and headed to court 2 (Goodyear Court 2) to buy the “famous” (apparently, I am not in the right circles of friends. They all know that this is famous, except me) Ipoh style Chee Cheong Fun for mum’s and dad’s dinner tonight.
You would think that being a Saturday morning, Taipan (USJ10) (1)city centre would be in a lull, since banks and other businesses would be closed. Heck no! Just as busy.
I knew what I wanted for breakfast so we to the other “king” (on my birthday, dinner was at Burger “King”) – New Nan”king” coffee shop. I wanted taipo mee and black coffee. This was the only place that had taipo mee, and it is really good here.
I dropped Jeannie and her mum off at the coffee shop after ronda-ing (2) 1 round for a car park spot. I managed to get a spot at the fruit shop.
The first to arrive were our drinks. Jeannie ordered a Kopi kecil (hot coffee, small), Mum Ong ordered a hot tea and mine – yes, Kopi-o peng / ais (Black coffee, ice) (3) I think the popular crime buster tv show, “Hawaii 5-O” of the 1980s and 1990s got the idea for it’s name from “Kopi-o” . Notice the similarities?
The three of us ordered Tai Poh (as in type – o. Maybe, its name is derived from Taipan, since we are in USJ Taipan?) mee. I wrote an article, “Breakfast At Taipan’s New Nanking” (4), featuring the Cheang Brothers and their Tai Poh mee stall.
Their offering is simple, yet delicious and usually is sold out quite quickly. With rising costs, they still have maintained the quality and quantity of their product. However, there is a slight increase of RM0.50 (US$0.11) sen (pronounced as “seen” by some radio newscasters on a business channel) in price.
When you look at the meal, you will most likely realise the steps taken to prepare the meal on each plate for every meal. The brothers are systematic even when it comes to the preparation of the meal, before it is served. Hence, the same high standards can be expected everytime you visit this stall.
The noodles are flat, about a quarter of the width of another type of flat noodles known as “kway teow”, but is pale yellow in colour, whereas kway teow is white. A typical serving of tai poh mee is noodles, a few pieces of char siew (5), minced pork, some green vegetables, a small bowl of soup with two pieces of sheet bean curd and a little container of the chili.
The hot chili that comes with the noodles when eaten it on its own, is spicy chili padi hot (6). However, when poured over the noodles and mixed well, it offers a nice blend with the noodles and meat. You will not experience the over-powering hotness as you would if eaten asing (Malay for “on its own”).
The meal is delicious, and the portion served is just nice without having to be uncomfortably kenyang (Bahasa Malaysia for “full”). All the while, sipping on my kopi-o peng; enjoying my breakfast, as did Jeannie and Mum Ong. This is one of Mum’ Ong’s favourite stalls. I can see why. The Cheang brothers are pleasant, thus making you want to come again.
Mum Ong spotted the man selling Tau Fu Fah (8), across the street from New Nanking. This seller usually parks his van in the same spot every morning to sell fresh soya milk and Tau Fu Fah. She decided that she wanted to buy some Tau Fu Fah to go. Jeannie walked across the street with Mum, and I followed a few steps behind.
The streets around New Nanking were busy on a Saturday morning. Here are pictures of the surrounding area. Most of the retail shops were open, as on all Saturdays. The banks and non-retail offices were closed.
After the tau fu fah purchase; we headed home, where the rest of the day waited for us to attend to. I was going on my daily 10km walk. Jeannie was going to take Mum Ong to the plant nursery. She wanted to get some additional plants for her garden.
Once in a while, we need to give our “daily routine” a “jolt” like going out for breakfast…doing something out of the ordinary, even if it is for a few minutes. This shakes us out of our “auto-pilot mode” and adds a bit of excitement. The moment forward…
NOTES:
1. This is one of the major business and shopping hubs of the bustling city of Subang Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia.
2. “Ronda” is the Bahasa Malaysia word for “patrol”. “-ing” is the E$nglish addition to give the word a bit of flavour.😉
3. The other alternative is “Kopi-o kosong” or black coffee, no sugar; in English.
4. https://leatherpotato.com/2024/05/09/breakfast-at-taipans-new-nanking/ (May 9th, 2024).
5. Char siu literally means “fork roasted” (siu being burn/roast and cha being fork, both noun and verb) after the traditional cooking method for the dish: long strips of seasoned boneless pork are skewered with long forks and placed in a covered oven or over a fire. Wikipedia
6. Chili padi is a smaller but more potent version of regular chili.
7. a pau is Malaysian Steamed Bun with a choice of Traditional Fillings. Dim sum is a Chinese dish of small steamed or fried savoury dumplings containing various fillings.
8. Tau Fu Fah is basically a Chinese dessert made with scoops of white soybean pudding, delicately placed on top of each other. It is smooth and soft in texture.