Restoren Pan Heong @ Medan Batu Caves, KL

I wanna go back soon :( ....

Batu Caves...
... an interestingly hilly area with beautiful limestone caves and that famous Indian temple that has a giant gold statue of Lord Murugan and the famed 272 steps.

It is also an area that is fairly well known for traffic jams and since I hardly ever venture there, essentially it is pretty much a complete mystery to me.

I had always wanted to try the famous Pan Heong restaurant there though (map at the end of post - please don't ask me for directions :P)... and was overjoyed when my colleagues brought me there for lunch one day:
Outside the restaurant...
Luckily we arrived JUST moments before the regular lunch crowd, but even then, the restaurant was already packed:
(Still, we were lucky that we didn't have to stand around to wait for a table)
Inside...
- To balance out the meal, we ordered the Stir fried Veggies with Garlic (about RM 6)
Greens are good for you...
Nutritionally, these are an essential order (fibre and vitamins, 2 things you need a lot of on a daily basis) but taste-wise the slightly "old" stalks of were at the most, forgettable.

- Moving on the the main fare, first up, the Mee Goreng Mamak (Mamak style fried noodles) (about RM 10, small size):
My dinner...
The noodles were tasty and had some wok hei (wok fried fragrance), which gave it an added kick. The only thing that held it back for me was that the slices of pork were ever so slightly tough.

- The Pei Tahn Sau Yuk Chuk (Century Egg and Sliced Pork Porridge) (about RM 12, small size) is another one of their specialties:
A lighter option...
While I appreciated that the porridge texture was fairly thick (without being too thick) yet smooth, overall the taste was just ok to me.
(Didn't like that the pieces of dried oyster inside were a little hard)

- Of course, being the babitarian that I am, I insisted we ordered the Kau Yuk Mai Fun (Braised pork rice noodles) (about RM 12, small size)
Plate of SIN :D...
I was in porky heaven - the moist noodle strands were soaked with savoury goodness (maybe a bit too soft for some though), and matched well with the slices of slightly sweet but savoury pork.
:D :D :D
Closer, closer... NOM.
To be completely fair, the meat could have been a bit more tender... and it really is ridiculously unhealthy due to how oily the noodles were (in no small part due to the melted fats from the pork, I'm sure).
(Warning: Make sure you eat the noodles while they are fresh/hot, or it may get a bit yucky)

Still, I definitely enjoyed it, and would not think twice about ordering it again if I ever manage to venture to that part of town again.

Due to my over-excitement on finally trying out this much blogged about restaurant, we completely over-ordered that day. :)
(My bad)

... There were only 3 of us, but all this food could have comfortably fed 5 people instead.
(Somehow, we managed to finish almost all of it though... or I did anyway. *blush*)

So, it's: Simple coffeeshop setting, yummy local Chinese rice, noodle and a la carte dishes at decent prices BUT it's a popular place so be prepared to wait for a table and parking can also be a pain....

Summary Information:;
Pan Heong @ Medan Batu Caves

Opening Hours: (approx) 8am to 3pm
Phone: 03-6187 7430
Address: No. 2, Jalan Medan Batu Caves 2, Medan Batu Caves, 68100 Bt Caves, Kuala Lumpur.

NOT HALAL

MAP:

View Larger Map


OTHER REVIEWS:
- A Whiff Of Lemongrass
- Cumi Dan Ciki
- kuan hoong dot com
- Precious Pea
- Caring is not only sharing
- KY Eats



TAGS: Food, Blog, Weblog, Malaysia, Restaurant Review, Coffeeshop, Batu Caves, Restoran Pan Heong, PJ, Petaling Jaya, Chinese, Cheap Eats, KL, Kuala Lumpur