A closer look at the Seafood Noodles.
Our guest foodie checks out a recently awarded Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant.
Many people know that I love a good bowl of seafood noodles. Recently, I’ve been hearing a lot about Hai Kah Lang Seafood Noodle in Cheras, Kuala Lumpur, that made me want to take a look for myself. So, after my Sunday futsal session, we decided to head over and check it out to see what the fuss was all about.
We reached just before 1pm and right off the bat, parking was a bit of a challenge which was to be expected in this part of Cheras. As for the restaurant itself, it was jam-packed with a pretty long queue of people waiting right outside. I would have given up at this point if not for the fact that I had already spent 45 minutes driving there.
Mixed Seafood Noodles came with prawn, squid, fish fillet, lala and flower crab.
Thankfully, Hai Kah Lang has this all sorted out with a numbering and per-order system. We picked out what we wanted while still waiting in line.
However, even with this optimisation system, from the time we arrived until when we actually got the food still took a good 45 minutes. If patience isn’t one of your virtues, don’t bother coming here.
The menu at Hai Kah Lang is quite extensive. There’s a wide variety of fish available as well as other types of seafood to choose from to go with your choice of noodles or porridge.
Leopard Coral Grouper noodles.
There’s also additional seafood add-ons priced per 100g – customisation possibilities are endless.
If you want a fuss-free approach, they also offer a few “default” dishes to pick from and this was what we had.
I ordered the popular Mixed Seafood Noodles (RM25.90) that came with prawns, squid, fish fillet, lala (clams) and flower crab.
After choosing your seafood, the restaurant cooks prepare your customised bowl of noodles at Hai Kah Lang.
My wife Jean went for the Leopard Coral Grouper belly (RM26.90) for a more fish-focused meal. We added a plate of fish lips (RM12.90) dish as an appetiser.
The seafood was certainly fresh. I thought the squid was done just right; bouncy and the texture was not overly chewy. The fish was delicious, prawns sweet and the flower crab – probably a bit too much of a hassle – made the whole dish look so pretty. The Leopard Coral Grouper belly was a delight as well, although a fillet version would be better if you’re the kind who don’t like to deal with fish bones.
We also really enjoyed the boiled fish lips that came with plenty of parsley and a spicy sauce – a great way to whet the appetite.
Map to Hai Kah Lang Seafood Noodle, Kuala Lumpur.
Overall though, while the seafood was great, I thought the soup base was somewhat lacking. It did have a natural sweetness from the seafood, but perhaps I’ve been spoilt by the meat and bone-infused soup at B & Best in Kelana Jaya (and their sambal)!
Still, Hai Kah Lang should certainly be one of your top picks if you’re looking for seafood noodles. Just don’t go there during super peak periods like during the weekends.
KY Teoh has been trying to influence your food cravings since 2005. He was NTV7 Foodie Blogger 2014, R.A.GE Food Fight Judge 2015 and Versus 1001 Rasa Baba’s Guest Judge 2018. Read more about his food jaunts at KYspeaks.com
Opinions expressed here are the writer’s own and the meal was at his own expense.
