Feast of Sarawak Cuisine @Carpenter Street Cafe, Sunshine Square, Bayan Baru

March seems to be a very busy month for me. Many happenings in Penang as well as Kuala Lumpur that I am literally running between KL-Penang almost every week, sometimes between days from one trip to another. So couldn't update my food blog quite often.

Anyway, since I will be travelling to Hong Kong and Macau the whole of next week, so I better get myself busy by updating some first. Else, it became old news hehehe. Anyway, I was supposed to fly to Kuching on the 25th March for our quarter annually account meeting and was planning to extend my stay until the 28th for my my mum's birthday. Suddenly I got the bad news that the meeting was cancelled due to some technical problem. Huhuhu .... Only God knows how heart-broken I was really, really missing some of my favourite Sarawak food. Then suddenly remembered that Chef Peter (Chairman of Chef Association Malaysia, Penang Chapter) posted about this cafe on Facebook.

Words can't describe my excitement when I saw the signage with the hornbill logo :)

So when I arrived from KL last Monday, my driver Zaki and I went to search for this place at the Sunshine Square, Bayan Baru area. It didn't take us that long to locate this place though Chef Peter road instruction was "behind Sunshine Square". It is actually located at the shop row behind Sunshine Square, and along the same row as Old Town White Coffee Kopitiam and CIMB Bank.

Proud that they have about 80% of the Sarawak food in the menu like including Foo Chow Mee Sua and Kacang Ma.

So the following day I made appointment with Sue Anne, Vincent and May for lunch here and lunch was on me. Hehehe suddenly felt so proud of myself eventhough just "belanja makan kolo mee". I think I owe them this lunch as they were always the one who treat me and I really really want to have the honour. Plus I really want to show them that I am their friend not another of their acquintance.

Anyway, except for Vincent who had been to Sarawak before and love the Foo Chow Kampua Mee, Sue Anne and May never tried Sarawak food before. So of course I prided myself to be the hostess and ordered Kolo Mee (original), Kole Mee (with Char Siew Oil), Tomato Sauce Mee, Kiaw Soup (also known as wanton soup), and Sarawak Laksa washed down with Sarawak 3 layer Teh C Peng Special ( 3 layer milk tea).

3 layer Teh C Peng Special - Tea (top), Evaporated milk (middle) and palm sugar (bottom)

Before (R) and after (L) stirring hehehe - never miss this drink in Kuching.

Tomato Sauce Mee - I had a friend who love this so much.

Sarawak Kolo Mee (original)

Sarawak Kolo Mee(original) is quite similar to the Peninsular Malaysia Hakka Mee except that Sarawak Kolo Mee is springier and saltier. Hakka Mee sellers here tends to add in soya sauce to add some taste and to make it not too dry. Sarawak Kolo Mee on the other hand counter the dryness issue by adding some lard or fried onion oil so as to create some fragrance. Having said that, the similarity was due to the fact that many of the Kolo Mee sellers in Kuching are Hakkas. I met one Sarawakian lady here and she told me, the food in Penang is "over-rated" in terms of tastiness ... Ouch... but having said that, yes, Sarawakians in general don't actually like to flavour their food too much with soy sauce.

Sarawak Kolo Mee (with Char Siew Oil) - in Kuching if we want this version, we just say "Kolo Mee merah"

Sarawak Lor Bak - I find Sarawak one to be a bit drier.

Sarawak Laksa - I am very selective about laksa but Carpenter Street Cafe got my thumbs up!

Glorious Sarawak food ... in Penang. Syiokkssss wo!

Initially I was afraid that the food may turned out not like the one in Sarawak. I had been to few cafes reported to be owned by Sarawak people. Unfortunately, they had changed the menu so much to cater to the local taste that made me dissatisfied. By the way, I wish the waitress or waiter here were friendlier like the Sarawakians. They looked so unwelcoming.

May captured me in "savouring the food to my heart's content" pose... yummm hahaha

My guests for the day ... Vincent, May and Sue Anne posing with all the empty bowls and glasses hahaha

If in Kuching, no way I would pay RM 7.90 for a bowl of Kolo Mee. In fact the maximum price you should pay for a decent bowl of Kolo Mee is between RM 2.50-RM 3.50. Having said that, the most expensive Kolo Mee I had ever eaten was the RM 12.00 Kolo Mee Special in Ten Mile Bazaar last Chinese New Year trip.

Happy to see that Sue Anne and May finished all the Kolo Mee plus Lor Bak, Vincent clear the kiaw soup and I was left to handle the laksa hahahaha. I wish they also sell beef noodle soup. Next time I come here, I will definitely try their kacang ma dishes.

 

Proof of that the RM 7.90 for a bowl of Kolo Mee was worth it hahaha

Money can't buy friendship.

May asked me if Carpenter Street have any significant to Kolo Mee. Hmm to be honest, I don't remember of any famous Kolo Mee shop at Carpenter Street but asked anyone from Kuching, they would definitely know that place. I passed this place to go for my tuition school near Crowne Plaza and took a bus at the Kuching General Post Office. In Kuching, my favourite spot for a Kolo Mee session is at the open air market opposite Electra House. My dad who is a Penangite love the 7th Mile Huat Huat Cafe Kolo Mee and sometimes when he missed Penang Sar Hor Fun, we will go to Jun Jun Cafe (no longer open I think).

So for those who would like try Sarawak food (especially Sarawakians who missed home food)... just head to Bayan Baru and give this cafe a try.

Carpenter Street Cafe – Your 1-stop Authentic Sarawak Food
Add : 54, Jalan Mahsuri (Grd Floor), Bandar Bayan Baru, 11950 Bayan Lepas, Penang.
Tel : 04-6436588, 012-4194178
Business Hours : 11.30-3.00pm, 5.30 to 9pm

Kolo Mee Session @ Open Air Market Foodcourt, Kuching, Sarawak

Before I returned back to Penang on the third day of Chinese New Year, my best friend Emel asked me out for a breakfast session somewhere in Kuching town as well as visiting our senior schoolmate, Anneta Lee's house at Central Park, Rock Road.

To the left is the open-air market foodcourt, the orange building on the right is the Electra House.

On the third day of CNY, most of the Chinese coffee shops were closed however we sort of like trying our luck heading to one of our main "lepak" spots during our high school years .... the Kuching Open Air Market Foodcourt, opposite the Electra House (one of the first shopping malls in Kuching in the 80s). Back in the early 90s, most of my schoolmates were from rural areas in Sarawak and were not from well to do families. So, our main choice when it comes to weekend outings were eating places that offered cheap and nice food. 

Our beloved Open Air Market Foodcourt still standing strong amidst developments and influx of fast-food restaurants.

Sometimes, my schoolmates who were from Serian, Sri Aman or Saratok, will stopped here for a simple breakfast of a bowl of kolo mee flushed down with a glass of fresh soya bean milk before continuing their journey home using the Sarawak Transport Green Bus (the bus terminal was about 5 minutes walk ... now close). The place was (and still is) a main stop for many locals who were busy doing their shopping along India Street, Electra House, Haji Taha Road, Gambier Street or Market Street!

Those days, I would have a special mummy-daughter moments eating a nice plate of rice, vegetable soup, stir-fry kailan or sawi then complete the meal with a bowl of ABC (air batu campur) or Special (a dessert of mix fruits in evaporated milk and grated ice). Unlike now, my youngest sister will dragged my mum to the many fast food chains that are mushrooming in Kuching now ... tsk tsk.

Only one stall opened that day. I usually eat Kolo Mee and Tomato Mee here. Sometimes I had the Chicken Rice next door

Suddenly I felt a bit emotional writing this entry. Many fond memories there flashed through my mind. Life was simple then ... to me the Kuching Open Air Market house among the best non-halal Kuching food ... from kolo mee, to rojak, tomato mee, laksa, siao mai, chicken rice, char siew rice or beef mee.Unfortunately most of the stalls were not open so I could not have my eating spree (... thank God hehehe).

The menu.

Most of the stall owners here are possibly in their 60s or 70s. It was fun to see the 2nd and 3rd generations are taking over the business. Some of the stalls are husband-wife team. Just like the Hock Heng stall, the wife sell noodles whereas the husband's stall next door sells rice.

The Auntie and the son. Still very strong.

Many people asked me what so special about Sarawak Kolo Mee.... it is too simple and it is like the Indo Mie Mee Goreng. Well, for those who love to eat all kinds of dry mee be it  in the form of Kolo Mee, Kampua Mee, Wantan Mee or Hakka Mee from Penang to Sabah, Sarawak mee is springy and combine with Char Siew oil, fried onion, lard and mince meat, to form the Sarawak Kolo Mee it is simply delicious.

Kolo Mee with Char Siew oil.

Without Char Siew oil.

I always eating my Kolo Mee with a bowl of kiaw (wantan) soup.

Normally in Kuching there are 2 kinds of Kolo Mee - with and without Char Siew oil. So if they asked you "mau merah atau tak mau merah" they meant "with or without Char Siew oil". I just wish I could stay longer in Kuching as I really miss Open Air Market foodcourt ABC Special. (Sigh!)