Restoran ShuangXi Lou (SHL)

92 Jalan Chui Yin

28700 Bentong

Coordinates: 3.522422, 101.907463

We’re back in Bentong for Brendan’s final session of treatments with Shīfu. Bright and early, we walked across the street from our budget hotel to a restaurant famous for its ¹Dim Sum.

¹small bite-sized portions of food served in small steamer baskets or on small plates consisting of various types of steamed buns such as cha siu bao (a steamed bun filled with barbecue pork), dumplings and rice noodle rolls, which contain a range of ingredients, including beef, chicken, pork, prawns, and vegetarian options

My brother in law Vincent brought us here once and we were amazed by how cheap each morsel or serving cost, unlike its brethren Dim Sum restaurants in Kuala Lumpur which runs riot on pricing.

along Jalan Chui Yin

another old structure

very busy morning

only Chinese tea here

We ordered a round of seven servings:

round one

looks amazing

And then added another six serving for round two!

round two!

half the price we usually pay

time to put the camera away!

If you’ve ever been to the various Dim Sum shops along Jalan Ipoh you will know that breakfast at any one of this establishment can be a costly affair. So if you’re every in Bentong in the morning, please give Restoran SHL a try. Just imagine that you’re in Jalan Ipoh but when you pay it will cost you half the usual price, and then some (get it?)

Joe Wong Bak Kut Teh

No. 1 & 3, Jalan Segambut Tepi

51200 Kuala Lumpur

Coordinates: 3.145029, 101.711230

We’re back!

After a prolonged absence of six months since we last came here we were glad to be back, and eagerly anticipated our reunion with the wholesome pot of herbal goodness.

Although we have a particular penchant for ¹Bak Kut Teh (BKT for short) and still do, we developed a particular liking to the Herbal Chicken Soup served here as well.

¹a Chinese soup that literally means "meat bone tea", and at its simplest, consists of meaty pork ribs simmered in a complex broth of herbs and spices (including star anise, cinnamon, cloves, dang gui, fennel seeds and garlic) for hours. Additional ingredients may include offal, varieties of mushroom, choy sum, and pieces of dried tofu or fried tofu puffs. Additional Chinese herbs may include yu zhu (玉竹, rhizome of Solomon's Seal) and ju zhi (buckthorn fruit), which give the soup a sweeter, slightly stronger flavour. Light and dark soy sauce are also added to the soup during cooking and garnished with chopped coriander or green onions and a sprinkling of fried shallots, and usually eaten with rice.

Sharing a mutual premise with the God of Prosperity Temple here in Segambut it is pretty tricky to locate if you are not properly guided by GPS.

simple and unassuming

thick rich soy sauce

garnishings

The proprietress recognized us and quickly ushered us to our table where we promptly ordered a bowl of Bak Kut Teh and Herbal Chicken Soup with a side order of ²Youtiao, ³Tau Pok in BKT Broth and Fried Lettuce.

²known in Malaysia as you char kway or you char kuey; made with flour, vegetable oil, yeast, sugar, salt, and water into a kneaded dough then deep fried until golden brown and puffy

³Deep-Fat Fried Tofu

you char kueh

half a chicken...

in absolutely lovely herbal soup

black gold a.k.a. BKT

another shot of our new-found love

tau pok

fried lettuce

one final hot of our new-found love

Words cannot describe the sight and aroma that greets you when the bowls of herbal heaven are served. The smell teases your nostrils, and your senses are immediately pricked. Do give Joe Wong a try, and do not be put off by its simple and unassuming settings because as they say: still waters run deep!

Pantai Morib

Morib

42700 Banting

Coordinates: 2.748488, 101.443302

Today is Hari Raya Aidilfitri or Eid al-Fitr (feast of breaking the fast) is an important religious holiday celebrated by Muslims worldwide that marks the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting.

In Kuala Lumpur the few days leading up to Hari Raya Aidilfitri marks the mass exodus of almost the entire population to their respective hometowns, regardless of race or religion.

Driving in and around Kuala Lumpur is an absolute pleasure with very light traffic peppering the various roads, freeways and highways?

With nowhere to go and nothing to do we decided on a leisurely drive to the nearest beach we know, Pantai Morib or Morib Beach located some seventy kilometres away. Due to the very light traffic a trip to Morib would normally take a couple of hours, but we arrived within the hour.

a warning about adultery at the base?

newly added ornaments

low tide stretches 1-2km out to the Straits of Malacca

quiet seaside front

even this vendor had little business

not exactly what I'm used to, but a beach nonetheless

the little square at the front of the beach

From Wikipedia: Morib Beach is a quiet seaside tourist attraction. It was one of the first landing points on the west coast for the British and Indian Army liberation forces during end of World War II in 1945. A stone marker to commemorate the British Indian army’s landing at this beach during the Second World War can be found.

commemorative stone marker

a solitary piece of history

Apart from the entry in Wikipedia, nothing else can be found in terms of literature on the place.

After a thorough inspection of the place, we adjourned to a hawker stall nearby to enjoy some refreshing coconut water.

hits the spot

care for some?

Thus ends our day at Pantai Morib, and we drove back in relative peace and calm made possible by Hari Raya Aidilfitri.

Shīfu

Lorong Bentong Makmur 25

Taman Bentong Makmur

28700 Bentong

Coordinates: 3.518023, 101.922779

Today is the day of reckoning. Both Brendan and Cat had an appointment with Shīfu to check on the progress of their respective ailments.

Brendan came last month suffering from a sprained ankle, while Cat complained of back pains. Both were given the full treatment consisting of the usual massage to clear the ‘blocked’ blood vessels (the best we could translate from Shīfu’s explanation) and the very painful pin pricks in the affected areas to drain the ‘bad blood’.

This time around Cat was spared the pin pricks, and got away with just a body  massage. The same could not be said about Brendan, who endured even more pin pricks. The following cringe-worthy photos will tell the tale:

it has begun

holes have been pricked

pointing to the offending 'bad blood' here...

and here

Shīfu amused by Brendan's cringing

undeterred nonethless

all done here

still some more 'bad blood' here

further examination

almost done

All drained of ‘bad blood’ Brendan was told to come for one final treatment in four weeks’ time.

Kedai Makanan & Mee Aik Kee (益记饭档面餐)

Gerai MDB (along an unknown road)

28700 Bentong

Coordinates: 3.521933, 101.906984

Barely a month has passed and we’re back in Bentong for a follow-up visit with Shīfu early tomorrow morning. I took half a day’s leave and we left for Bentong in the evening. After a quiet two hour drive we arrived in Bentong close to 7:00pm and immediately checked into Hotel Kristal, our favourite budget hotel in the heart of town.

As was the case the last time we were in Bentong, our dinner was spent at Aik Kee.

we're back!

it was a quiet Friday evening

And as was the case the late time we were here we ordered the ¹Yam Ring with Kung Pao Squid and Fried Kailan (Chinese broccoli) but to change things up a bit instead of the Chicken in Thai Sauce we opted for the Kung Pao Chicken, and added a Steamed Fish for good measure.

¹a spicy stir-fry Chinese styled dish made with chicken, peanuts, vegetables, and chili peppers

steamed fish

fried kailan

kung pao chicken

yam ring with kung pao squid

bon appetit!

As always we enjoyed our meal immensely, plus its proximity to a running brook made the entire evening enjoyable and relaxing. It was as though Brendan and Cat were in the eye of a storm, the storm being the treatment they will endure at the hands of Shīfu tomorrow morning!