It's inevitable: Boat-noodle mania is spreading. Kuay Tiew Reua opened over the weekend at Kuchai Entrepreneurs Park, seeking to offer more of Bangkok's riverside specialities that have become such a smash hit this year in the Klang Valley.
The hook here is that Kuay Tiew Reua serves the full-blown porcine version, with blood-thickened broth & optional crackling, prepared by the Thai wife of the outlet's owner, with some ingredients, condiments & sauces brought in from the Land of Smiles.
Customers can order the noodles with some soup or completely dry (we recommend the former; request as much broth as possible, since the water level can be erratic). Variations comprise glass noodles, kuey teow & mee hoon, RM1.90 per bowl.
Toppings of pork meat & balls prove tender & fresh-tasting, while the noodles combine pleasantly with mildly savoury soup (which won't, however, display revelatory dimensions of depth & complexity). With fine-tuning, this could be even more delicious.
The servings are more substantial than expected for boat noodles. Four or five bowls should suffice for a filling lunch.
Buy a whole bag of Thai-produced crispy pork rind to lend lots of crunch to the noodles, turning the meal into a guilty pleasure.
Kuay Tiew Reua's bowls, fish sauce & some wall ornaments are also of the made-in-Thailand variety. Note: Some folks will unfortunately demand to know whether Kuay Tiew Reua is better than the Empire Damansara beef-specialising pioneer; our key response is that they're different enough to not have to suffer comparisons & that both will have their respective fans.
With the novelty value still relatively high, it seems fairly likely that Kuay Tiew Reua will become a peak-hour, crowded-tables success in the weeks ahead, potentially spurring more boat-noodle eateries to keep launching in KL & Selangor. Be prepared though: Parking can be problematic during the daytime on this Kuchai Maju street.
Kuay Tiew Reua
40G, Jalan Kuchai Maju 9, Kuchai Entrepreneurs Park, Off Jalan Kuchai Lama, Kuala Lumpur
Now open for lunch & dinner everyday. Will be closed on Mondays starting July 21.
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