Yitcha KawKaw Kopitiam, Damansara Utama

Yitcha KawKaw Kopitiam

[Non-halal] Jom let’s yum cha at Yitcha KawKaw Kopitiam Damansara Utama!

We’re suckers for good kai si hor fun (KSHF) – so we knew we had to try the one here after seeing quite a number of good reviews for Yitchaw KawKaw Kopitiam (including by some Ipoh-mali folks).

Yitchaw KawKaw Kopitiam has a few branches in the Klang Valley, but we decided to check out the one at Damansara Utama – which is strangely becoming a hub for Ipoh-style kopitiams (see: Inside Ipoh, Ipoh Tuck Kee, Kean Seng Kopitiam, Ipoh Famous Ayam Tauge & Koitiau) populating the popular commercial square.

Yitcha KawKaw Kopitiam in Damansara Utama

Despite occupying only one outlet, we were quite fortunate to secure a table close to lunch hour on a Saturday afternoon.

Pro-tip: Yitcha KawKaw is located just opposite the Medan Selera food court. As it can be quite challenging to find parking here – we recommend parking at the multi-storey car park just behind the food court.

At the entrance, you are immediately greeted by a selection of freshly-baked Chinese pastries on display. These include Kampung and Portuguese Egg Tarts, Kaya Puffs, Butter and Kaya Puffs, Siew Bao, and Coconut Tarts. We did try a few of these – more details below.

Kopi KawKaw lives up to its names

As tempting as all these pastries were, we were here mainly for the kai si hor fun and other signature Ipoh dishes.

Before we get to that – we must say that the Kopi here really lives up to its name!

For RM3.20, the Ipoh KawKaw Kopi is really one of the most “gao” (strongest) we’ve tried in recent memory.

The coffee is beautifully pulled as you can see some nice foam on top, but the flavours were really on point – rich and creamy with a very fragrant and potent bittersweet finish.

We also thought that the coffee had a lovely velvety and chocolatey mouthfeel – almost like drinking a good hot chocolate in terms of smoothness.

If you’re not into coffee, Yitcha also serves tea (it’s in the name, after all) and other non-caffeinated drinks.

Good kai si hor fun

Now unto the main attraction.

Price at RM10.90 for a small bowl, the Ipoh-style Shredded Chicken Hor Fun comes in the most simple form (and as the name implies) – flat rice noodles served with shredded chicken and garnished with some scallion, fried shallots and a very tantalising orange prawn oil.

We were a bit disappointed that it did not come with any extra protein such as fresh prawns (e.g. KSHF served at Ipoh Ipoh Kafe and Makan Time) or prawn wontons (e.g. KSHF at Chong Toong Kee in TTDI) – however the broth and noodles more than make up for it.

For one, the flat noodles were really soft and slippery smooth – as you can tell by the picture by how much we struggled to take a “noodle pull” shot. This is really close to some of the best we’ve tried in KL.

Secondly, the broth has a lovely milky colour – which is usually a good indicator of how long it has been cooked and how much chicken was used.

Opposed to the KSHF at Ipoh Ipoh and Chan Thong Kee in Lot 10 Hutong food court which has a more pronounced prawn stock in its broth, we found the soup here to be more balanced and sweeter (which is similar to the one at MJ Wang).

The prawn oil here is not merely for colour – but adds just a touch of prawn umami to the dish.

Hence – the KSHF was not too cloyingly sweet, nor did it leave out throats parched from too much salt.

The CCF was the sleeper hit

https://thokohmakan.com/restoran-mj-wang-petaling-jaya/

As good as the KSHF was, the chee cheong fun (CCF) was the sleeper hit.

The Signature Soy Sauce + Scallion Oil Ipoh Chee Cheong Fun (RM3.90) looked unassumingly simple but it was really good.

Smooth and soft rice noodles? Check.

Cheap and nice? Check.

We’ve yet to try this variation but the simple combo of the fragrant (and good quality) light soy sauce, scallion oil and fried shallots was a beautiful ensemble on our tongues.

Even our mum who doesn’t really like CCF enjoyed this.

Ipoh-style Curry Mee was decent

However, we thought that the Ipoh Authentic Curry Mee (RM11.90) was just decent.

Yitcha KawKaw’s version is served with a good portion of char siew (no siew yoke, sadly), tofu puff, fuchuk, and cabbage.

The curry here has a more prominent spiciness that hits the back of the throat – which is slightly different from the more santan-heavy and creamy curry broth that we prefer.

This may please some folks – but it was just simply not to our preference.

On that note, we thought the Fried Shrimp Wonton (RM6.50 for eight pieces) was also a decent accompaniment.

Kampung Egg Tart vs. Portuguese Egg Tart

We also tried some of the pastries here.

Between the two egg tarts, Ming prefers the Kampung Egg Tart (RM2.50) as it had a good balance between the sweetness and “egg-y” taste.

However, Max did favour the Portuguese Egg Tart (RM3.00) which had a stronger icing sugar sweetness in the custard. However, he did find the caramelisation slightly lacking.

The crust for both was flaky but not particularly outstanding (vs. the very crispy/flaky ones at Foo Hing Dim Sum). While good, these were not the best in town.

Bursting Kaya Puff vs. Kaya Butter Puff

We also had different takes on the two kaya puffs here.

Ming prefers the Bursting Kaya Puff (RM2.70) – which was really bursting with coconut jam encased in a good flaky pastry. But the reason Ming liked this was the fragrant (and generous kaya) that was not too sweet with enough pandan fragrance.

Max and our mum prefer the Kaya Butter Puff (RM2.90). Although it was not bursting with kaya, the butter really added some lovely salty notes to the sweet jam.

Summary

We think Yitcha KawKaw is another worthy addition if you’re looking for a good KSHF in PJ.

We will also come back for the CCF, coffee and pastries.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Yitcha Kawkaw Kopitiam Damansara Utama 壹茶浓浓咖啡店
Address: 78, Jalan SS 21/39, Damansara Utama, 47400 Petaling Jaya, Selangor
Hours: 8am-5pm Daily
Phone: 010-365 3068