Free of charge…

All throughout my growing up years, I enjoyed the kampua mee at this stall run by a guy called Ah Kow at the Kiaw Siong Coffee Shop along Central Road opposite the Sibu Fire Station, at the corner to the right. Of course, he had passed away quite sometime ago but to this day, his son is carrying on the trade and presently he is here at this coffee shop right behind the Sibu Polyclinic Jalan Oya (now Jalan Brother Albinus).

Just like his father before him and all the other kampua mee sellers in town, his noodles would be served with a bowl of complimentary soup…

…something you will not find when you go for a bowl of kolo mee in Kuching.

I remember how we loved the soup long ago in the old days but somebody did tell my dad then that it would only be nice in the early hours of the day. They would be adding water to the stock made from simmering the pork bones on and on the whole day so by night time, there would not be any taste left and all you would get would be nothing more than plain water with the shallot oil and msg and light soy sauce with a sprinkling of fried shallots (if you’re lucky) and chopped spring onions like what you will get today – at any time of day…

Indeed, more often than not these days, the soup is completely bland, quite tasteless and it sure does not help one bit that they usually serve it in a plastic bowl even when they are using a ceramic plate for the noodles…

They might as well not bother as I, for one, would just leave the soup untouched.

On the other hand, at the Malay shops and stalls, I find that it is a different story altogether. Of course, their kampua mee is lard-free, 100% halal, served with either chicken or beef and with it…

…they will serve you a really nice bowl of sup tulang (beef bone soup)…

…that is so very delicious, definitely good till the last drop.

Elsewhere, they may give you the chicken soup made from boiling the meat that they serve with the noodles…

…and yes, that is very nice too!

Yes, the best things in life are free but if they are going to serve that kind of tasteless soup with their kampua mee even though it is free of charge, they might as well don’t bother.