I thoroughly believe that an essential ingredient of good food -- any good food -- is love. Love of eating, love of ingredients, love of the act of cooking itself, the cook's love of the dish he or she is creating, or for whomever he or she is preparing it for ... indifference simply does not translate well in the kitchen.
If my theory holds true, then what we have above is one big pot o' love. It's beef, cooked long and low with a secret mix of seasonings (I suspect star anise is included), and it figures prominently in the simple noodles turned out at a mere sliver of a shop on Jalan Tun Tau Cheng Lock.
Shin Kee claims to be a "Beef Noodles Specialist" (just barely visible on the right side of the sign). To me, when it comes to food, specialization implies not only a limited menu but also a markedly high level of skill developed over time, with practice. After tasting the product I believe this lady has earned the right to claim the "specialist" title.
Shin Kee's menu is short and sweet: fresh beef noodles (xian niurou mian), beef ball noodles (niurou wan mian), and beef mix noodles (niu zarou mian). A small bowl for 4 ringit, a big bowl for 5. We avoided the latter (I hadn't yet had my innard epiphany) and ordered the first, with yellow mee noodles (guaytiaow and mi xin rice noodles are other possibilities).
The prep is simple: noodles are boiled and tipped into bowl,
sliced beef likewise gets a bubbling water bath before being laid atop noodles,
and meat balls are added before the entirety is anointed with broth, a spoonful from that beefy pot o' love, sliced scallion, and a bit of chili sauce.
The broth is dense with miniscule meat shreds and the balls evince a good texture -- bouncy but not so rubbery as to be teeth-repellant. And they really, really taste like beef. The sliced beef, reminiscent of what you might get in a bowl of Vietnamese pho bo tai, is not overcooked, though I think that next time I'd ask for it served a smidge redder. The goo from the pot and the chili paste are what really make this a bowl of rich and spicy, greasy meaty goodness. After sucking up solids and slurping a fair amount of broth we're left with a chocolate-brown liquid at the bottom of the bowl.
While slurping and sucking we noticed that the folks at the neighboring table -- at most of the neighboring tables, in fact -- were taking their noodles dry, with nary a ball nor a slice but plenty of nubbins from the pot o'. This obviously required investigation, so I waddled my way back to the prep station at the front of the shop and asked for -- with sign language -- a bowl of guaytiaow noodles dry, topped with nothing but love from the pot.
It was worth stuffing down lunch number two to discover this mound of of lusciousness that I will return to Shin Kee again -- and again and again -- for. Two fingers of broth at the bottom of the noodle bowl, along with an additional bowl of it on the side, facilitate a thorough mix of ingredients: pot stuff, chili paste, and soft, chewy rice noodles that seem to absorb the very essence of the meat mince. While Shin Kee's beef slices and balls are tasty, the mix in the pot is really the masterpiece in this gallery, so why not put it up front and center?
Shin Kee Beef Noodles Specialist, on Jalan Tun Tau Cheng Lock, about a half block from the entrance to Petaling Street and across from the Rubber Trade Association of Selangor building (look for the red sign). Open 10:30am to 3:30pm.
Hi Robyn, popped by from GH's noodlepie and after seeing your link on Harvard Online's article.
Good to see you blogging about Malaysian food, something close to my heart. I'll pop by later when I have more time and check out your other posts.
I've tried the aforesaid, but I'll stick to my all-time favourite beef noodle at Lai Fong (or was it Nam Fong) which is just opposite to Shin Kee. It's the pre-war corner coffee shop in front of the Hong Leong Finance (along the main road as you walk towards Kota Raya Complex). Let me know once you've tried it and you can do a beef noodle face-off showdown between Shin Kee, Nam Fong and the venereal beef noodles behind Kota Raya along the curved road of Jalan Silang (name I forget at this moment - but I think it's Soong Kee) near what was then known as the D&C Bank.
Posted by: FatMan Seoul | 2005.11.17 at 11:36
I echo what FatMan Seoul just said - it's Lai Fong. Don't forget Ngau Kee at Tingkat Tong Shin too.
Posted by: Shiewie | 2005.11.17 at 14:43
FatMan and Shiewie -- noted. Will check out Lai Fong and other asap!
Posted by: Robyn | 2005.11.17 at 14:54
beef noodle my favourite! i'll wait for the verdicts before i go marching there!
Posted by: rokh | 2005.11.17 at 18:31
WOW!!Just stumbled upon yr blog in my search for places to eat in KL.I've lived in KL all my life and have completely forgotten about this beef noodle place.In fact, you seem to know more nice places to eat than me.....how utterly disgraceful of me.Anyways,keep it up!!!it's a really refreshing take on food in kl.....
Posted by: Jean | 2005.11.18 at 02:23
Hi Robyn,
Just returned to Toronto after spendindg 3 gastronomic weeks in KL.I ate almost all my favourite things including in all the beef noodle places mentioned by Fatman Seoul! Yeah Baby!Whilst Kl beef noodles are excellent, I also like the Vietnamese Pho which are truly good and are widely available here in Toronto.
I also went to Ipoh for some of their classics like Ipoh Kuay Teow, Pork Satay, Popiah and my fav, Curry Mee
Posted by: Patrick Wong | 2005.11.18 at 06:47
Jean -- sounds like a case of taking for granted what you've known all your life. And it's worth noting that most of my info on where to snarf has coming from Malaysian friends. Were I to attempt this blind, I think I'd be too overwhelmed by choice (local recommendations are always best anyway, no matter where one finds oneself hungry).
Patrick -- tell tell the truth I'm not much of a pho-natic. I know its Vietnam's national dish and all but I always found more pleasure in other noodle bowls while I was in Saigon.
So, care to share other spots you hit whilst in KL? And in Ipoh? I'm all ears (er, eyes) ... and I feel a road trip coming on.
Posted by: Robyn | 2005.11.18 at 10:00
Personally, I NEVER miss out on my "must-eat when in Ipoh" - lai liew har (mantis prawns) at the Ipoh Garden Food Court.
Nobody does it like they do - they mash the fragrant mantis prawn flesh (radically different in taste and texture from your standard prawns) into bite-size cutlets and deep fry them in batter. ABSOLUTELY HEAVENLY!!!
Patrick, pork satay, popiah and curry noodles at Birch Road (downtown) I presume? Followed by Ipoh hor fun and beansprouts at night?
Time to redeem my air miles.
Posted by: FatMan Seoul | 2005.11.18 at 15:16
Robyn,Had a excellent bowl of pork noodles at the "New Lay Sin" coffee shop in Brickfields.(This shop is just a few doors from the Sri Paandi banana leaf place).This pork noodle is one of the best I have tasted.In the same coffee shop is an Indian (Sri Lankan I was told)banana leaf stall that serves the best fried fish.
Fatman,No need to redeem airmiles.It was a pleasant 2 hour drive to Ipoh.The curry mee was in I believe Hugh Low Street( I am not sure what they call it now) next to the police station.Also had a cup of the best Ipoh 'white' coffee in another outlet downtown.You can forget about Starbucks!
Posted by: Patrick Wong | 2005.11.18 at 23:17
Lai Foong's beef noodles somehow just won't agree with my stomach. But Ngau Kee and Shin Kee, especially the latter, are my favourites. I could down two bowls anytime, with chilli, of course! Yummm...
Posted by: bayi | 2005.11.20 at 09:00
Fatman Seoul, your first comment. You mean Nam Heong? The shop, which is now a chain, famous for its chicken rice? It used to serve very good beef soup but I have not tried it lately. I wonder if they still have it. But I heard t its acquisition by a third party to expansion into a chain has made it lose its quality, both chicken and beef dishes alike.
Posted by: bayi | 2005.11.20 at 14:46
Bayi, nope not Nam Heong of chicken rice fame but Lai Fong which is famous for their beef noodles laced with salted vege and pork lard (opposite Hong Leong Finance, corner coffee shop along main road towards Kota Raya).
Patrick, forgot I blogged about Ipoh food some time back, including white coffee. Refer here if you're interested in what I had that day:
http://fatman-seoul.blogspot.com/2004/08/ipoh-food.html
Posted by: FatMan Seoul | 2005.11.22 at 19:44
This is a food lover's blog; a reference and reasearch point before visiting KL / Malaysia / Singapore in future ;-)
Posted by: glutzygien | 2006.08.16 at 04:37
hello people. i was looking through and WOW was i surprised. That's my mom! and the guy in green, my younger brother. Thanks for the support yo! and that pot o'love is really my personal favourite
Posted by: CalvinKoon | 2008.01.07 at 06:26