So many stalls to choose from you’ll be spoilt for choice. – Pic courtesy of Hungry Go Where, July 14, 2014.Ipoh folk love their local desserts with a passion. The fact that there is even a street called Tong Sui Kai (Desserts Street) attests to this.
But if you're looking for fancy-schmancy desserts that will burn a hole in your pocket, look elsewhere as these hawker-style desserts are not only drool-worthy, they cost practically next to nothing.
That's probably how I would sum up the local cuisine in this ex-mining town – no frills, home-style cheap eats that warm the cockles of your heart even in this tropical heat.
Here's our take on Ipoh's top three local desserts:
Funny Mountain Taufu Fa
Silky smooth taufu fa – the pride of Ipoh. – Pic courtesy of Hungry Go Where, July 14, 2014.Funny Mountain is synonymous with taufu fa as much as Lou Wong is famous for its chicken rice (nga choi kai).
From its humble origins as a tiny, hole-in-the-wall soya bean stall, this father and son enterprise is now practically an institution that attracts hordes of locals and even more interstate tourists, especially during weekends and holidays.
There are no tables or chairs. You stand, eat or drink, and run.
Funny Mountain is also the only hawker stall that has a "drive-through" service, where one can enjoy their silky smooth taufu fa in the comfort of their air-conditioned cars.
Beeline of cars queuing up for the best taufu fa in town. – Pic courtesy of Hungry Go Where, July 14, 2014.Due to the volume of cars queuing up, there's an unspoken rule – when it's your turn, give your orders immediately (no "hmm...what shall I have today" moments), consume your portion expediently, pay the exact amount and move on. Don't jam up the queue. The whole thing runs like clockwork.
Being a big time taufu fa addict, I can safely say that Funny Mountain's taufu fa is the smoothest I have tasted. Each bowl costs RM1, and one bowl is never enough.
Some humorous trivia here – Funny Mountain has some creative descriptions for their drinks. Soy bean drink mixed with taufu fa is called "white and white", while soy bean drink mixed with cincau is referred to as "Michael Jackson".
Commit to memory this herbal shop for awesome traditional drinks and desserts. – Pic courtesy of Hungry Go Where, July 14, 2014.Gui Ling Tong Crème Caramel
The newest kid on the block – at the foodie street of Jalan Yau Tet Shin – Gui Ling Tong is a small dessert shop that is located right opposite the famous Lou Wong and Onn Kee chicken rice.
In our opinion, the crème caramel made by Gui Ling Tong beats the famous one at Thean Chun hands down. It is incredibly smooth, creamy with that fragrant eggy-ness, and perfectly chilled.
Yummy crème caramel from Gui Ling Tong. – Pic courtesy of Hungry Go Where, July 14, 2014.The best thing is it comes practically swimming in a pool of caramel syrup. It's always a disappointment whenever a crème caramel comes with a miserly portion of caramel syrup, or worse, without any.
Our favourite is the original version. Other popular flavours include macha and tiramisu. In addition to crème caramel, Gui Ling Tong also makes their own gui ling gou (herbal jelly-like dessert) that's served with honey, and other traditional desserts such as boiled sweet hasma and snow fungus.
Gui Ling Tong is owned by a family member of the Onn Kee owners; hence you can have a meal at Onn Kee and order crème caramel served to you at the restaurant itself. Have your cake and eat it, too.
Tuck into the equivalent of a refreshing bowl of icy fruit salad. – Pic courtesy of Hungry Go Where, July 14, 2014.Mixed Fruit Shaved Ice at Tong Sui Kai
As the name suggests, it is a combo of mixed fruits on top of syrup-sweetened shaved ice. The best place to tuck into this quintessential Ipoh treat is at Desserts Street (Tong Sui Kai).
This 300m odd stretch of 50-plus hawker stalls are famously known in the foodie circuit as the best spot in Ipoh to enjoy a wide variety of authentic hawker fare at night.
Because of the many desserts stalls offering similar items, competition is intense. As such, stall operators compete by increasing the quantity of their offerings. Our favourite stalls for this are Stalls 21 and 27.
Stall No. 27 brings considerable progress to my ever-expanding appetite for desserts. – Pic courtesy of Hungry Go Where, July 14, 2014.It is literally a buffet of fruits and ice. You'd find at least six to eight types of fruits piled on top. Depending on season, there's usually jackfruit, watermelon, honey dew, lychee, white dragon fruit, papaya, mangoes, plus jelly and a scoop of ice cream.
Forget about having it all to yourself. This one is meant to be shared – with at least two or three persons.
Desserts Street comes alive from 5pm onwards until midnight. It is probably the last bastion of true-blue roadside hawker stalls – with cheap and good food in a hygiene-compromised environment – that still remains in Ipoh.
Word has it that the local council has been trying to relocate it to a proper food court numerous times but was met with storms of protests from both stall owners and the public. – July 14, 2014.
* If good food is your passion, then HungryGoWhere is your perennial kaki makan. Get access to one of the most comprehensive online Malaysian food guides available, and bring us along everywhere you go by downloading our mobile application, available on iOS and Android.
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