This ship has sailed.....Restoran Chong Yuan

I've never really considered my blog a foodie blog....you've got lots of good ones for those.  My blog is just to share my food experiences, so I'm going to 'go off the deep end' and share one now of a place (Restoran Chong Yuan @ Pandan Indah) that's no longer in business. 

What??  Yes, you've heard right....I'm going to write about a place that has closed down already! >.<  Well, why not?  I was planning to blog about this place until it closed shop suddenly.  I still have some of the pics + it can serve as a remembrance (of the good food I used to have here).  Now you see why my blog is not quite a foodie blog coz it's supposed to recommend good eats....not feature one that has closed down already....kekeke! :D :D

This place is nothing fancy, just a non air-conditioned "tai chow" place in my neighbourhood which my family and I have eaten countless times, sometimes twice a week.  "Tai chow", literally translated as "big fry", is actually a place where one can order a number of stir-fried dishes to eat with rice (so it's a meal that's closest to what a Chinese family would eat at home).  

The food is simple, cheap and good.  It also happens to be the best non air-conditioned tai chow place (in terms of price and taste) in my housing area!  You can easily get vegetables, tofu and egg dishes for RM8 - RM12, meat dishes from RM10 - RM15 and fish/seafood dishes from RM20 and up.  So, you can get a decent meal for about RM15 per person depending on what you order.

So, here are some of our favourite (and usual) dishes we had over a period of time that I happen to have pictures of.  Let's start with the pork dishes.....

Sweet Sour Pork (certainly ranks among some of the best tasting sweet sour pork I've had).

"Pai Kwat Wong" (which means pork ribs but don't know why it's called such since there are no ribs or bones but are actually small tender pork chops in a sweetish sauce).

Claypot Pork Ribs with Yam (in fact, any dish they do in a claypot is awesome)

"Hakka Char Yoke" (Braised Pork Belly with Wood Ear Fungus)

"Hakka Wu Tau Khau Yoke" (Steamed Pork Belly with Yam)

Now, for some fish and seafood dishes....

Fish Slices with Ginger and Spring Onions

Sweet Sour Fish (just as good as the pork version and they do it with chicken too)

"Sang Kan Yuen" (these are like fish paste wrapped in some kind of pork fat netting and deep fried till crispy...absolutely spot on)

We don't eat whole fish as much coz my family doesn't like to deal with fish bones + it's also more expensive at RM25 and above.  I've tried steamed, fried & assam style but couldn't find any photos of those to show. They also do a fantastic hot plate assam seafood with prawns, squid, ladies fingers, brinjal and tomatoes.

But this one we've eaten many times even though it costs RM30, some kind of Claypot Seafood Curry.

It comes with minced pork, squid, large prawns and salted fish cooked with dried chillies and chili padi in a concoction of milk (not santan) and spices.

I've not seen this anywhere else...it's so good....I'm so gonna miss this one! T_T

And here are some of the more simple, homey dishes......

"Loh Hon Chai" (their version of mixed vegetables with "tau kan" or bean curd blocks)

Stir-Fry Kangkung Belacan (water convolvulus or water spinach in shrimp paste)

Tofu Hot Plate with Minced Pork and Egg

Minced Pork Omelette

They also do all sorts of fried noodles here...Fried Hokkien Mee, Cantonese-style "Ying Yong", Duck Noodles, Braised Yee Mee, Singapore Fried Beehoon and more.  But looks like I only have one pic in my archive...Moonlight Kway Teow.

But, sadly, this ship has sailed! :'(  You can't sample these dishes anymore! *Sobs*.....and here's why.......

#Sob Story:

This place is owned and run by a husband and wife team.  The husband, who is the main chef, suffered a ruptured appendix just prior to Chinese New Year (my neighbours, who are their regular customers, told me). No wonder I kept waiting for it to re-open after Chinese New Year and it didn't (I thought they took a long deserved vacation).  I guess they made the decision to give up the business since (I heard) the rental costs like RM7k a month and they won't be able to sustain the rent during the husband's down time (plus his other chef went on to greener pastures).  Passing by the place recently, I see it under renovation...to be made into an air-conditioned restaurant by some new owner (hopefully, the food will be good).  Maybe, some day in the future, when the husband is all well, they will find another lot here and open up their tai chow place again (*fingers crossed*)!  Till (or if) we meet again.....and that's a big "IF"...I shall mourn your loss! T_T