New Soon Soon Lai @ Taman Shamelin Perkasa

I was first alerted to this coffee shop, New Soon Soon Lai @ Taman Shamelin Perkasa, when we drove past and noticed the banner promoting Uncle Soon Fried Rice.  I've first heard about the ever popular Uncle Soon's Fried Rice presence in many coffee shops (mostly in PJ) since they were in Subang Square but most of their stalls are located far away from me...and it's not likely that I'd go all the way somewhere far just to eat a plate of fried rice.

So I was pretty pleased ecstatic to find that Uncle Soon (not sure if the name has anything to do with the shop's name) has finally opened a stall near me.  I now have the opportunity to try this much talked about fried rice.  They do a few varieties of fried rice and you can choose whether you want it with char siew, prawns, squid, la la or the simplest version with just egg (prices range from RM8 - RM12 depending on the protein you choose).

My first pick was the Fried Rice with Char Siew simply because it's my favourite "form" of fried rice as char siew provides a more fragrant, savoury note to the fried rice (even better than lap cheong can in my opinion)...and this one definitely did not disappoint.  The first thing that hit me when the plate of fried rice landed on the table was that I could actually smell the wok hei...and that is the very thing a good plate of fried rice needs.  Some have even compared this to Uncle Roger's fried rice...lol.  Since I've not tried Uncle Roger's (high-priced) fried rice (not sure if I want to try such a gimmicky fried rice), I reserve my judgement.

The Fried Rice with Squid featured tiny baby squids used in the fried rice and not a sizeable piece of sotong cut into smaller pieces like the ones we'd often eat.  As squid is usually bland (and these were probably the frozen kind) it didn't offer much taste to the fried rice.  Still, if I want a seafood option, I'd choose squid over prawns or la la.

Then, there's also the option of prawns or la la (of course, both will not add much taste to the fried rice with smallish morsels of prawn and la la or, you can get it in its most basic form, with just egg).  The rice is fried with nicely separated grains even though I witnessed them cooking a fresh pot of rice and scooping it into a tong during one of dine-in meals there.  So who says fried rice can only be cooked well with overnight rice...lol.

If there's one thing that's common in all plates of fried rice is the fried egg (with oozy egg yolk most of the time) which comes as default.  You'll also find a drizzle of sauce over the egg that's not just plain soy sauce (it has a slightly thicker consistency so I'm thinking it's possibly a housemade concoction of thick and thin soy mixed with a bit of oil or maybe it's kicap manis).  Do take note that this brand of fried rice will not be similarly executed in terms of wok hei and taste in all its branches as the fryers are obviously different.

The black char siew rice (from the Brother Fatty Black Char Siew stall) that my son enjoyed is another popular choice here.  It's obviously called black char siew for a reason judging from the well caramelised, almost blackened exterior.  So, I got into the action too and got myself the black char siew with roast chicken combo.

Good portions though the thick-cut char siew I got weren't as caramelised but still tender, just not melt-in-the-mouth tender.  It didn't taste as sweet probably because it was mixed with the roast chicken's soy sauce underneath.  Overall, just an edible char siew and chicken rice.  They're very popular for their sand ginger chicken rice (which came highly recommended) but I don't like sand ginger (I'll tell you why in another post).

The Fish Ball Noodles was recommended by the same person who recommended me the sand ginger chicken rice...and being a lover of fish ball mee, I had to try of course.  I had the soup version first and found the soup base a tad too light and it also wasn't quite the fish ball mee I was expecting.  This one didn't have any fish cake slices or flying saucers (aka fish skin wantans), somethings I would have preferred in my bowl of fish ball noodles.

Then the person who recommended it to me say I should have gotten the dry version (and specifically with lai fun)...and so I did on my next visit.  The dry noodles came topped with minced pork for a lot more flavour.

The thing I did enjoy though with my earlier bowl of fish ball mee were the fish balls themselves.  From the oddly shapped fish balls, it's obvious they're housemade (probably even handmade) fish balls.  They're denser with a more chewy bite and not the overly bouncy type of commercially produced fish balls.  While my allegiance lies elsewhere, I still consider this a darn good bowl of fish ball noodles because of the fish balls.

I also found the same Kai See (Prawn & Shredded Chicken) Hor Fun (the same brand that's found in many coffee shops everywhere in Klang Valley).  It even made it all the way to the city of kai see hor fun, Ipoh...lol.  The one here tasted much better (in terms of the flavour of the soup) than the one in my taman in Thong Kee.  So, even though it's the same brand, not all will taste the same just like Uncle Soon Fried Rice.

When a stall advertises its curry mee as Mom-in-Law Curry Mee (or Mom's curry mee), it always gives me the impression that it has to be something good since it's cooked by the generation before me..lol.  My late mother-in-law is actually very good at making a good curry.  I can remember how special her salted fish and pineapple curry was.  This curry mee, unfortunately, was a disappointment as it failed big time as the curry was just too thin and too light-flavoured.

When this Aglio Olio Spaghetti arrived, served with two minced pork patties (moo ping lookalikes), we were wondering where the heck is the chilli flakes....but take a bite and it had the most heat my son has tasted in an aglio olio.  They must have used cili padi in the mix (lol...Malaysianised aglio olio for our palette).

Whenever I see Prawn Mee offered in coffee shops, I'm always tempted to order as they're in short supply.  The reason is probably the work involved in peeling prawns and making the prawn stock.  This stall is run by two elderly ladies (I don't see any foreign helper) and I thought the prawn broth was pretty decent.  The prawns given (there were 4) were also sizeable though the texture was a bit too soft...not mushy as in not fresh but soft as in overcooked/overboiled I think.  The other negative would be the fried onions which are store-bought.

Another popular stall here is the Pork Noodles which certainly was of satisfactory standard.  I had yee mee with an extra add-on egg that was cooked perfectly with a runny yolk that was intact which I can scoop into a spoon and into my mouth.  I don't like the yolk pecah and interfering with the integrity of the broth...hehe.

My son has also tried the Char Kway Teow which he found very forgettable (you can pretty much guess from the looks already).  Haiya, no lap cheong in the mix (heck I can't even see the cockles) means it won't tickle my tastebuds.

I also found Steve's Nasi Lemak that has relocated here from my neighbourhood coffee shop.  This is a Chinese-style nasi lemak but their sambal is good.  I was disappointed to find them gone from my taman but luckily we got reunited here.  I was overly greedy (for not having it for a while) and got two proteins, their popular wild boar curry and sotong sambal (it was too much and the sotong sambal not quite up to standard).  It also comes with curried potatoes and a dry hai mai (dried prawns) sambal (both was good and spicy).

I found myself enjoying the Pan-Fried Dumplings too (not the most pretty looking I've to say) with a minced pork (and a bit of chives) filling that was accompanied by a rather spicy but pleasant tasting chilli/chilli oil/ginger dip.

There used to be a stall here selling Fried Carrot Cake which my son says it's one of the best he has eaten. The difference with this one is that instead of frying it in a square piece, they cut it up into cubes before frying.  This resulted in very crispy cubes of carrot cake.  I can see why my son loved this as he loves all things crispy.  I prefer it the usual way, in a much larger piece, so that the sides won't be overly crispy.  Still, I thought it was a good carrot cake (not sure why it closed) as the white carrot flavour was very distinct without too much flour in the mix.

My Personal Opinion

You can get decent food from this coffee shop which offers a variety of food at standard hawker affordable prices mostly in the range from RM9 - RM12 which makes it a desirable venue for all the office workers and housing residents in the vicinity.

Even though we find it jam-packed with people (especially during breakfast and lunch hours), competition is stiff due to the many choices available (some stalls have since shuttered) but the standouts for me (from what I've tasted so far) were definitely Uncle Soon's fried rice, fish ball noodles (the dry version) and kai see hor fun but the rest weren't too shabby either other than the char kway teow and curry mee.

This coffee shop has now become a regular haunt for us as we eat here frequently, at least once a week. There's something for everyone here...my husband goes for the kai see hor fun, my son likes the aglio olio spaghetti while I prefer the fish ball noodles.....but it goes without saying that we all unanimously enjoy Uncle Soon's fried rice! ^_~

Restoran New Soon Soon Lai 

18-20 Lorong 4/91

Taman Shamelin Perkasa

56100 Kuala Lumpur