🐉 Amazing dinner in a Chinese restaurant! Discover 6 traditional dishes! [TASTEEM CONTEST]

It was my first meeting with traditional Chinese cuisine and I must admit that it charmed me with its richness! I was invited for a dinner at "Restoran The Best" by Calvin, its owner. He knew that I love to discover new flavors and decided to prepare for me something special.

I had the opportunity to taste authentic Chinese dishes prepared for me by the best chefs working in the restaurant. When I was going to the restaurant I knew that something special is waiting for me, but I didn't expect that Calvin would prepare for me a real Chinese feast!


"Restoran The Best" is located in Ipoh, a city in Malaysia, which is famous for its excellent Chinese cuisine. Because the owner knows that the kitchen is my passion, he showed me around "the backstage" before we sat down at the table. I had the opportunity to see how the kitchen looks like from behind, learn more about the ingredients and the ways of preparing classic Chinese dishes. It was a priceless lesson.

The dining room is decorated in a very stylish but modest way. Because the owner took our meeting very seriously, we had the opportunity to have dinner in a room which is reserved only for special guests. On its wall proudly hangs a newspaper from over 20 years ago, which celebrates the opening day of "Restoran The Best".


The menu is short, simple and published on very stylish paper. But don't let its design fool you! These simple cards are hiding real treasures!

And now it's time for the main course!
Have a look at dishes which were served by the host of this place!

Coconut soup with scallops served in the coconut shell

Absolutely fantastic form! Frankly speaking, I have never seen such a practical and beautiful 'bowl'. The pulp is not removed from the inside of the shell, so not only it looks phenomenal, it also has excellent taste values.

Only 100 such bowls a day is available.
There is a chicken broth inside, but it is not prepared on the basis of an "ordinary" chicken - it would be too simple! This unique broth is cooked on black chicken! I've heard about it before, but I've never had the opportunity to try it. The meat is not marinated at all, this is just an unusual, natural colour.

The soup is served with seaweed "pasta", scallops and vegetables. Its secret ingredient is a mix of herbs and berries, which cause the soup is antibacterial, improves eyesight and prevents aging!

It has a beautiful brown colour and the taste of the broth is so rich that it is impossible to leave something in the bowl. It is very clean at the same time and you can taste that the cook, who makes the soups in this place has a lot of experience.

Steamed Tilapia served in a spicy sauce.

The fish is steamed in one piece, which makes the meat tender, juicy and it simply melts in the mouth! I tried tilapia before, but I never had the opportunity to eat it that fresh and beautifully served!

It was so fresh that I chose the one that landed on our plate.
The colourful chilli and ginger sauce takes the whole dish to the next level! It is spicy, clean, refreshing and perfectly fits to the taste of the fish. I can say it for sure - that was the best fish I had on the plate. Something wonderful!

The pork belly slowly cooked in fish sauce.

"Mei Cai"this is how the name of the dish is pronounced in Chinese, is a kind of pork stew, which is a real bomb of taste!

Thanks to the fact that it is cooked slowly and long in fish sauce, it is so delicate that you can eat it with a spoon! Literally! I never had the opportunity to try a piece of meat with such a delicate and creamy texture before.

A characteristic addition is Mui Choy, a kind of Chinese cabbage, which in consistency reminds mushrooms or seaweeds. However, it has a slightly mustard taste and that is very surprising. This was the first time I have tried this vegetable and I think it's fits fantastic to pork.

The whole dish doesn't need many spices because its ingredients have their own, intensive flavours. That’s why it is seasoned only with light and dark soy sauce, sugar and sesame oil. You simply have to try this dish and see for yourself what kind of perfection you can bring to preparing "ordinary" pork belly.

Frying ginger pork with vegetables

Again, pork in the main role! This time served with vegetables and seasoned with ginger. Its addition gives the dish a fresh, unique taste and aroma!

The firm and juicy pieces of fried meat were served with carrots, mushrooms and another type of Chinese cabbage "choy sum". It has a very clear taste and fits perfectly with other ingredients of this dish. The name of this type of cabbage in Cantonese means 'the heart of the vegetable'. Now I understand it because you will find a lot of taste inside!

All the elements of this dish created something special on the plate. With the addition of spicy sauce, ordinary pork gained a refreshing character and taste, which I will remember for a very long time.

Homemade fish balls and fishcake

One of Calvin's companies is producing fish paste, which is used to prepare both of these two delicious dishes. I have seen the whole process of making the paste (I will soon publish a short movie about it), so I know that for its preparation they use only the highest quality ingredients, and thanks to this the ready meals have a fantastic taste.

They are different in form and method of preparation, but each of them in taste is stunning. They have a distinct, fresh taste of fish, a delicate texture and they are wonderfully juicy.
The fishcake is prepared by forming from the paste a quite large ball, which is slightly flattened and then fried in deep oil to a golden colour.

The fish balls are cooked in the broth and prepared in this way they are simply amazing! They are so delicate and juicy that they literally explode with taste after biting.
I had the opportunity to eat fish balls several times in Thailand and Malaysia, but none of them were so clear and fresh.

Little, sweet dumplings from potato, pumpkin and yam

"Tang Yuan" is the Chinese name for the dish, which means "a happy ending" or "gathering together".
It is a kind of dessert that is usually served on special occasions. It is not in the regular card, but we had the opportunity to try it.

The cooked vegetables are mixed with rice flour and then shaped into small colored balls, which are shortly boiled. They are served in water and sugar syrup and put on the table in one large bowl. Then each of guest takes a portion for itself.

They are not only look beautiful, but also have a surprising consistency! This is a kind of warm jellies. I've never had the opportunity to try anything like that before and I've been delighted with this dessert! It was a fantastic culmination of the whole dinner.

The visit in "Restoran THE BEST" was special for me! For a first time I had the opportunity to taste traditional Chinese cuisine in a delicious version!

All the dishes were fresh, local and prepared by experienced chefs. I felt it in every bite and I'm very grateful to Calvin for the opportunity to try all these delicacies.

The standard of the restaurant is deserving to be highly appreciated. He personally takes care of deliveries, directs the crew, and at the same time he is a smiling host, who will find a moment to talk to every guest of the place. He impressed me very much with his approach and I strongly respect the way he runs his business.

If you are in Malaysia and come to Ipoh (which is a fantastic place not only for food fans), you should definitely visit this restaurant! You will not only taste the original Chinese cuisine here, but you will also have the opportunity to meet a great man!

Best wishes!
@the.foodini

This post is an entry in a "The Palatable Beauty of Chinese Cuisine" contest organised by @tasteem.

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