Saturday 18 June 2016

Anthony Bourdain's Favourite Sarawak Laksa!

If there's only one thing Sarawak is famous for, I would say that it's Sarawak Laksa. And one of the very renowned places for Sarawak Laksa in Kuching is Choon Hui Cafe, right beside the Grand Continental Hotel along Jalan Ban Hock.

Choon Hui Cafe
Choon Hui Cafe
The world-famous celebrity chef, Anthony Bourdain even made it a point to include Sarawak Laksa from this particular eatery into the wish list for his food market in New York City after his visit to the town last year. The shop was brimming with patrons when I was eating there the other day, which was quite a common sight considering how highly acclaimed their Sarawak Laksa is.

Finding a vacant parking place is always a pain. The patrons will normally just park their vehicles by the roadside.
Crowded as usual
There were two noodle stalls: one was for the renowned Sarawak Laksa while another one was for Kolo Mee (click on the link if you wonder what Kolo Mee is). 

Kolo Mee and Sarawak Laksa stalls

Sarawak Laksa in the making
The Laksa menu had 3 options to choose from, namely, small portion (Rm 6), big portion (Rm 8) and 'special' (Rm10). I opted for the big portion one and this was what I got for my order...

Choon Hui Sarawak Laksa
It came with three succulent shrimp, Sambal (a spicy condiment) and lime. The highlight of the dish was actually its thick, tangy, aromatic coconut milk-based broth.
 
Rice vermicelli is used as noodles element in Sarawak Laksa 
This was the Kolo Mee from the aforementioned stall. It's not the best Kolo Mee I have come across, but it's still pretty palatable and worth trying out.
 
Kolo Mee
There's actually another small stall located at the entrance from the other side that sold very nice Kuching Popiah. Popiah is a Hokkien vernacular term which is known as spring roll in English. It is usually prepared on the spot so you can see how it's made. The main filling for Popiah is stir-fried savoury turnip. Shrimp paste, crushed peanuts and lettuce are complementary ingredients. 

Ingredients for the making of Kuching Popiah

Rm 5 for one roll
Here's a close-up of the inside of the wrap...

Tantalizing eh?

1 comment:

  1. Many say it is not so nice anymore, Chong Choon is nicer. To each his own, I guess. Been so long since I dropped by here, used to have meetings before I retired, stayed at the hotel next door and I would walk over and have all three - laksa, kolo mee and popiah, all nice! Must make the most of the opportunity.

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