Ah Koong Restaurant @ Pudu

Ah Koong Restaurant @ Pudu (which started in Johor Bahru in 1987) has been our go to place when we feel like eating fish ball noodles.  You can read my previous review here.

Besides their three outlets in Johor and one in Subang Jaya, they've since expanded into shopping malls with their pork-free AK Noodles House brand in 1 Utama, Tropicana City Mall, Evolve Concept Mall, Main Place and Damansara City Mall (its 10th branch).

But we continue to eat at its first outlet in Pudu for the simple reason that it's not pork-free...hey! ;)  As usual, I always come here for their Fish Ball Noodles (soup version) @ RM8 that comes with fresh and fried fish balls, pork ball, fried "fu chuk" (bean curd sheets), seaweed, lettuce and some fish paste bits floating in clear soup.

If you don't like the soupy version, there's always the Fish Ball Noodles (dry version) also @ RM8.  My family's noodle of choice is usually the wantan mee.

The dry version comes with a separate bowl of soup.

If I choose the dry version, I like mine with "loh shi fun" (aka rat noodles).  Did you notice that little thingy in the middle?  That's one reason why we prefer to eat at this branch...the noodles get tossed in black sauce and lard oil (and the occasional pork lard crisp)! ;)

That's also the reason why the noodles at this branch taste better than AK Noodles House, my spouse said.  I, on the other hand, have never eaten at AK Noodles House and I don't intend to.

In one of my visits, I decided to stray from my usual order and went with Grouper Kuey Teow @ RM15 filled with fish slices, Chinese mushrooms, seaweed, lettuce and "yin sai" (Chinese coriander).

I loved that it came with lots of yin sai and fried garlic bits.  The clear soup was subtle and pretty delicious :)

I noticed that the prices for the fish noodles range from RM12 - RM31.80 but, unfortunately, the grouper I had was a bit fishy and not all that fresh.  I think I better stick with the fish ball noodles in future.

Besides fish and fish ball noodles, they also offer various types of yong tau foo and some of our favourites include the Stuffed Eggplant @ RM1.60/pc and Fried "Fu Chuk" (bean curd sheets) also @ RM1.60/pc.  Their stuffed items are made fresh daily using a combination of wolf herring (ikan parang) and yellowtail.

Another must-order here is their Crispy Fish Cake @ RM5.50/pc which is certainly not cheap looking at the size of the round piece of fish cake.  Their fried fish cake (and fish balls) are supposedly made with the freshest local wolf herring with no added preservatives.  I love their fish cake for its firm and bouncy texture with a light crisp on the outside.

But the best is yet to come....their Fried "Tau Pok" (bean curd puffs) @ RM2.50/pc.  These been curd puffs have been turned inside out and stuffed with a filling made with a mixture of minced pork, fish and yin sai. And that's another reason why we don't patronise AK Noodles House for the mere reason that they're pork-free, so you can't get this there.

The way the bean curd puff is turned inside out before frying makes them super crispy (much like what phonghongbakes once made).  I absolutely love the abundance of yin sai they put in the filling, so this is purely for those in the "yin sai fan club", of course.

They have a few chilli condiments here.  The usual would be the bird's eye chillies with soy that's available for your scooping pleasure on the table.  The chilli sauce on the left comes with yong tau foo while the bottom corner one, a fresh and tangy sambal, is served with the fish noodles.  There's also a cooked sambal for the curry noodles and spicy wan tan mee version.

I always have their Iced White Coffee @ RM3.50 even though (I was told) they come from one of those pre-packaged coffee.  Who cares if it's an instant version...it still beats the crap out of a lot of other white coffees I've drunk before.  My only wish is if it was a tad less sweet.

Recently they introduced this Braised Pork with Soup @ RM10.50 that comes with some braised pork pieces, braised egg and a soup with some fish balls.  I once packed this for my mom but she told me not to buy it for her again as it wasn't nice, so I guess I won't be trying it for myself then.

I also packed some yong tau foo for her and they came neatly packed in a paper box like this.....how nice!

My Personal Opinion

Still a very decent option if you want fish ball noodles with a side order of pork (that's not available at their other branches of AK Noodle House)...kikiki! :D

Your best bet would be to stick to the fish ball noodles and yong tau foo, especially the fried (inverted) tau pok and fish cake, and nothing else really.

Ah Koong Eating House
No 172 Jalan Changkat Tambi Dollah
Off Jalan Pudu
55100 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-2143 3477