7-Chai @ Pandan Perdana

I've noticed this 7-Chai @ Pandan Perdana for quite a while now whenever I'm in Pandan Perdana for marketing or breakfast and looking around for parking space.  Looking for a parking spot here is quite a challenge in the mornings (not only on weekends) as 7-Chai is situated within walking distance of a morning wet market nearby.

However, they have two dedicated parking bays that belong to them (as in they rent them from MPAJ), so you might score one if you're lucky enough (we've been lucky twice in all our visits here).  The signboard says Mee Ipoh Hor Fun, so they obviously specialise in Ipoh kai see hor fun.

And at the top of my list to try was a bowl of Ipoh Kai See Hor Fun @ RM7.50 (small, RM8.50 for big) and I chose to have it plain which comes with just shredded chicken and some smallish prawn.  First impression when it arrived, the layer of orangey prawn oil was a good sign.

First things first, a sip of the broth and I was assured of a good chicken broth with prawn essence flavour fully extracted from frying and boiling prawn heads + shells and chicken carcasses.  The broth of this one may not hit the heights of the excellent one we had at Guang Ji Ho Fun but still very commendable as top-notch quality. ^o^

Next, I got myself the Ipoh Shredded Chieken + Prawn Hor Fun @ RM8 (small, RM9 for big) which had all the prerequisites that a bowl of Ipoh kai see hor fun should have...shredded chicken, prawns, prawn wontons, Chinese chives and freshly fried inhouse made shallots.

Of course a good Ipoh kai see hor fun should come with the type of hor fun (flat rice noodles) that Ipoh has come to be synonymous with...and they indeed hit the mark with its slippery-smooth mouthfeel perhaps only not as thin.

Do note that the noodles is of a good portion size even for small.  If I were to nitpick, I wish they would give more soup in proportion to the noodles.  So my husband asked me to just order big (as that would mean it'll come in a bigger bowl with more soup...yay) and pass him the noodles (which I did on my next visit).

During our first visit here, my husband went for the Curry Noodle @ RM9.70 (small, RM11.70 for big).  It came with not too many ingredients, just (poached) chicken, tofu puffs, fresh cockles (so few that you can count!) and beansprouts.

I was loving the looks of the layer of chilli oil and the spoonful of thick curry on top.  The curry broth looked the part, thick and delicious.  I tasted a spoonful of the curry and thought it was quite good...although it didn't quite meet my husband's high standards of what an excellent curry should be.

Encouraged by the looks of the curry mee, I decided to get a bowl all for myself on another visit...but then mine came looking like this (it was like night and day)! >.<  Looks rather different, doesn't it?  Where's that lovely curry oil?  Eh, how come got fried shallots in a curry?  Looked like it was hurriedly prepared too (perhaps by a worker not tasked to do the job?).  On hindsight, the place was super busy that day with orders taking up to 45 minutes to be served (takeaway orders were turned away too when the lady boss informed that it'd take up to one hour!).

The broth looked thin....and tasted that way too.  The curry had a thinner gravy but it wasn't watery.  Even though it lacked the creaminess and sweetness that I want, the flavours were there (if it looked like the one in our earlier visit), so I think it's still an average tasting curry mee and should please those who don't mind a thinner curry.

Since the curry mee didn't leave a good impression on my husband, there was only one option left for him, the Dry Shredded Chicken Noodle @ RM8.50 (big, RM7.50 for small).  You don't normally see kai see hor fun served this way.  I've only encountered it once before in Mei Sin Kopitiam in Imbi (though I still preferred their soup version...you can check out choiyen's recent post on that).  Just looking at the perfectly fried minced garlic (of the one here) makes my mouth water.

Of course, when both my husband and son ordered the dry style, they thought they'd be getting noodles tossed in a pretty dry black sauce (like wantan mee).  They weren't expecting an almost broth-like sauce so they were skeptical at first but after tasting it, they both exclaimed that it was rather good.

My son chose to have his with prawn wantons @ RM10.70 (big, RM8.70 for small).  The prawn wantons were certainly decent but I preferred another where a whole prawn is wrapped in wonton skin (not chopped up like the one here + a little too crunchy in texture).

I can see why they both liked it when I tried it myself.  The sauce was robust in flavours...made even better with the very generous topping of fried garlic bits which I think contributed significantly to why the noodles were so tasty.  I had mine with smooth chicken @ RM8 (small, RM9 for big).

It might look like a lot of sauce but once you mix it with the noodles, they soak up the sauce and it won't look like it's a lot anymore.  That said, I personally preferred to have it in its original form...in soup....the way a Ipoh Kai See Hor Fun should be enjoyed. :P

As you would have guessed, if there's kai si hor fun, there's bound to be poached chicken on the menu.  I got the Poached Chicken (Thigh Portion) @ RM6.50 (1-pax portion, RM13 for 2-pax) to share.

The chicken is wat (smooth) and tender (but not as wat as my favourite one from Guang Ji Ho Fun) with a more than decent tasting soy sauce + oil combination (again not as tasty as the sauce from Guang Ji Ho Fun).

A word of caution though, some days the chicken can be a little underdone near the thigh joint bone (which is usually the case, even with fried chicken leg, as that's the thickest part of the chicken), otherwise it's all good.  If you're squirmish about that, just dunk it into your soup to cook it a little bit more.

I only found out that they have Poached Kampung Chicken (Thigh Portion) @ RM8 here on my last visit coz we so happen was seated towards the back of the shop (near to their food prep counter) that I finally saw two different yellow-coloured chickens hanging..lol.

The lady boss specifically referred to it as ma lai kai and asked if I wanted that.  As you can see, the skin is very fatty (as it's common with kampung chicken), the meat tougher but with more flavour.  Both my husband and I still prefer the normal poached chicken as it's much more tender and wat but we know there are fans of more flavourful meat that can only be found in kampung chicken.

If there's poached chicken, of course there's also Poached Chicken Rice @ RM8 (small, RM9 for big) to be had (which I would get sometimes as a takeaway for my lunch later).  The rice had good flavours but can be a little oily.

Three kinds of dipping sauces are provided...a fresh chilli sauce, a blended ginger paste and chopped bird's eye chillies with soy.  The fresh chilli paste was tangy, not spicy but not the best...it was a little too watery for my liking.  The blended ginger paste with finely chopped scallions was fresh, lightly oily and on point tastewise.  The ginger dip is only provided if you're having poached chicken (with or without rice).

There are only two side orders here, one is the prawn wantons and the other was the Blanched Beansprouts @ RM5.50 (small, RM11 for big) which was rather ordinary.  I thought the soy sauce got diluted a bit once the beansprouts were mixed in to provide the required saltiness although they were plump and crunchy.

Deserving mention is the friendly and super efficient lady boss who is a one-man (or, should I say, a one-woman) show.  You don't see me do this often but I must give credit where credit is due as this is a rare trait indeed for an owner of a food business that's doing well as we've all encountered our fair share of unfriendly and arrogant owners (of famous shops...even the one at Guang Ji Ho Fun).  She manages the queue (by checking and ensuring all her waiting customers have taken a number), takes the orders (even those who call for takeaways) and handles payment...and, throughout the process, she constantly communicates with her customers and apologises for the food delays and waiting period for a table.

My Personal Opinion

I'm over the moon that I've finally found a very good kai si hor fun near me...perhaps not as good as the excellent one in Guang Ji Ho Fun) but certainly a worthy adversary.  My only regret is that I didn't find them sooner as they've been around since the pandemic (circa middle of 2020).

It's now my regular haunt for kai si hor fun for 3 reasons (besides tasting awesome):

1.  It's location is convenient and near to me, first and foremost.

2.  They've a dry-style (not commonly offered elsewhere) which my family absolutely enjoys.

3.  The service and mannerisms of the communicative lady boss which makes waiting tolerable.

That said, it's the kai si hor fun (both soup and dry versions) and poached chicken (with rice or on its own) that warrants your attention here.  Best to skip the curry noodles.

7-Chai Ipoh Hor Fun

33 Jalan Perdana 4/1

Pandan Perdana

55300 Kuala Lumpur

Tel: 03-709 2022