Long ago, when my missus and I were still working, we had home catering for our meals, RM60 a month per head for one meal but there was enough for us for two meals.
When my missus was on morning shift and both of us were not at home, the delivery guy would come and take the empty tiffin carrier on top of the pillar beside the gate and put the one with the food there. That was not a problem except when it rained and the rain water got into the food and we had to throw everything away.
Usually, we would be given the same menu every week so after a month or two, we would get so sick and tired of the food and we would switch to another caterer.
One of them has a coffee shop…
…here now, very near my house. I did go to eat there a couple of times but that was ages ago. Seeing that it was open real early, around 6.00 a.m. and it was still pitch dark around here at the time, I stopped by the other morning but no, they were not ready yet – the guy said that the ingredients had not been delivered yet. That does sound good, doesn’t it? They have fresh ingredients sent every day!
In the end, I went to this one round the corner where I saw a table of old men relaxing and chatting away and another table with a parent and a school girl there for a quick bite before going off to school. I had the pan mee from this stall on the left…
…once so I did not want that again. I did not want the kampua mee from the stall in front either nor did I feel like having the mee sua or the pek ting eyok (eight treasures) so I ordered the kolo mee (RM4.50)…
…and lived to regret it.
It was kampua mee served with the minced meat on top and two fish balls and half of a hardboiled egg, something quite unheard of if you are having kolo mee, the way it should be and some khiew chai (curly vegetable). It did not have that kolo mee taste and there was no char siew plus I was not given the pickled chili in vinegar, just bottled chili sauce.
Having said that, despite the initial disappointment, I thought it tasted very good. It looked like the lady also ran the kampua mee stall in front, RM3.00 a bowl, and if that is what it tastes like, I sure would not mind going back there for it sometime. There was a guy there once and his noodles came with some very delightful dong quai soup like the one here (and that one was not ready for business either that morning) but when we went again, maybe it was a different person running the stall, it was not as nice as what we had before.
The people at the other stall in the above photograph had just arrived when I was about to leave and I went over to have a look at what they were selling. Unfortunately, it was all in Mandarin but from what I could make out, it seemed to be a vegetarian stall. I’ve been wanting to try some of these vegetarian places for a long time now but I’ve not got down to it. Maybe I will do that one of these days…
MING XUAN CORNER (2.312754, 111.846595) is located in the second block of shops on your right if you are turning in from Jalan Pedada at the junction after Delta Mall, heading towards Lorong Taman Seduan 8, somewhere opposite the Bread Sense Bakery outlet there, a little to the left.
...STILL CRAZY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS! 
My very first time to see half hard boiled egg and fish ball in kolo mee. We only have fish balls in seafood kolo mee and not the usual original kolo mee. Pickled chilli goes well with kolo mee and not chilli sauce. Bonus point for not using plastic plates.
I had kolo mee in Kuching with a fish ball…and a shrimp, perhaps a slice of liver too, together with the char siew and minced meat but I can’t remember where now, maybe Lao Ya Keng but that was a long time ago. I did not order the special, just the regular.
living to regret the kolo mee is still better than dying from while regretting it! 😉 i remember my family used to get tiffin meals catered during weekday afternoons for lunch too – everyone was always excited to see what the meal of the day was – sometimes it was good, sometimes it was disappointing, but i guess that was an inevitable part of the experience 😉
Yes, I know that feeling except that here, most of the time, it is disappointing, just eat for want of something to eat. Not anything to look forward to.
When I was a stokist, I ordered tiffin too. RM30 or arM40 for a dinner. 2 meats, 1 veggie plus a soup. 2 to 3 persons portion but we need to cook rice.
Soon, we also bored of the dishes. And my staff was picky so I stopped the tiffin after less than a year.
Lol on the kolo mee. First impression when I saw the photo, What?? That is kolo mee?? Haha.
This is what I always call kampua in disguise!
Yes, maybe you get better food in Kuching but here, the food isn’t very nice, one month..or to the most, two, more than enough. So sick of it already.
That’s quite a rant from you, haha.
No leh? I did say it was nice, just not the way kolo mee should be like.
My sis ordered tiffin too, as she is working full time so she has no time to cook, she has to reheat the food and dishes after they are delivered to her house as they have turned cold by the time it reaches her house.
The same with everybody else, I’m sure. Necessity and convenience, not by choice.
Same as Rose, there are two meats, one veggie and one soup, that time I went to look for my sis, I ate together with her family, there are soy sauce chicken, fried fish fillet, cauliflowers with carrots and a soup. But I am not sure about the price as I did not ask my sis.
Once in a while is fine but when one eats the same things every day, the same menu week after week, even the best dishes will put one off for good.
Wow. That sounds like a great deal. If I could get someone to make me healthy meals every day and deliver them in a tiffin (or other trash-free container) I would love that!
I think that shouldn’t be a problem anywhere in Malaysia. The only problem here is usually the dishes aren’t very nice. I’ve seen the ones in Kuching – theirs looked a whole lot more appetising.