It had been a long drive from Kuala Lumpur to Ipoh. We were ravenous. After we checked in to Hotel Excelsior Ipoh, we sought out Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken (老黄芽菜鸡沙河粉). We heard much about this restaurant, that it is one of the Best Food in Ipoh.
If you are like me, and did your research before coming to Ipoh, you would know that this is the best known Hainanese Chicken in Malaysia. And you should add this to your itinerary.
Since Ipoh is a small town, we decided to leave the car parked at the hotel, and walk to the restaurant. We got a little lost. Thankfully, the restaurant is so famous that any local seemed to know where it was. So, a little realignment from a friendly local, and we were on our way.
Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken (老黄芽菜鸡沙河粉) – The Overview & Rankings
Name: Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken Rice (老黄芽菜鸡沙河粉)
Cuisine: Asian, Chinese
Meals Served: Lunch, Dinner
Dining Choices: Dine In, Reservations, Takeout
Family Friendly: Yes
Food: 4.0 out of 5.0
Service: 4.0 out of 5.0
Value: 4.0 out of 5.0
Atmosphere: 3.0 out of 5.0
Prices: $$ out of $$$$$
Asia Travel Gems Rating: 4.0 out of 5.0
Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken – The Video
Need visuals to locate the restaurant? Our helpful video shows you the street where Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken is at as well as shots of the kitchen, the available seating outside, and how it looks inside, too.
About Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken
Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken is one of Ipoh’s most popular food places that serves the best bean sprouts and chicken. Bean Sprout Chicken in Cantonese is ‘Nga Choy Gai’. The concept is actually eating Chicken with Bean Sprouts, together with Chicken ice or Hor Fun, which is flat white noodles.
The restaurant’s humble beginnings started when the food was sold from a pushcart. Today, it spans the entire corner unit of a row of shophouses.
Tip: Visit during Off Peak Seasons (we went in January),
and you can get a table easily.
Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken – The Food
As mentioned earlier, the restaurant is famous for the chicken and the bean sprouts. Customers have a choice of eating them with the fragrant chicken rice or hor fun, which is flat white noodles.
The chicken rice is really fragrant. It is cooked in chicken fat, ginger, garlic and spring onions. Plus, it is scented lightly with pandan flavor from natural pandan leaves. The hor fun is, on the other hand, is thin and light. It slides down the throat so easily.
As you can see in the photo below, we chose hor fun over the rice. In retrospect, we should have ordered one bowl of chicken rice and one bowl of hor fun. Just so that we could try both and know the difference.
Tip: Order at least one bowl of Chicken Rice and one bowl of Hor Fun
The Chicken
The chicken was tender and tasted really good! And no wonder. They used fresh free-range chicken that they boiled to tenderness. Then they cut it into thick slices, and dunk it in ice and water. This process created the perfect Pak Cham Gai which means White Cut Chicken.
The chicken is then lathered in superior soy sauce, and sprinkled with pieces of scallion. The combined taste and texture was superb!
The Bean Sprouts
Ipoh has the reputation of having the best bean sprouts in the country. The high quality seedling is produced with high quality and superior minerals in the ground. Added to that, natural spring water from the limestone hills, enriched with minerals, is used to grow the bean sprouts.
As a result, the bean sprouts are thick short and juicy. The fresh bean sprouts are flash-blanched to get rid of any raw taste of uncooked bean sprouts. This method is fast and quick enough to retain the crunchiness of the bean sprouts.
Then they are flavored in chicken fat, sesame oil and soy sauce and other condiments. This is followed by a topping of chopped scallions and red chilies with a light layer of pepper. The result is a delightful and delicious mix of fat, juicy and crunchy bean sprouts.
We truly loved and enjoyed the bean sprouts!
After having a great meal, we took a walk to explore the city, and searched for Mural Art, followed by an enriching and serene visit to Kek Look Tong, a cave temple with an award winning garden.
Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken – Asia Travel Gems Final Word
We give Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken Rice (老黄芽菜鸡沙河粉) a firm 4.0.
They deserved this relatively high rating for serving food of high quality and standards.
But do take note that not all their dishes are of the same. If you order their signature dishes; that are the Chicken, Bean Sprouts, Chicken Rice and Hor Fun, you will be safe and assured of an enjoyable dining experience.
Do take note of our Tip to visit during the off peak seasons. If not, you will have to be very patient, and wait a long time for a table, and to be served.
Other than that, you can be sure to enjoy the food here, and have a memorable meal in Ipoh.
How To Get There?
Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken Rice (老黄芽菜鸡沙河粉) is in the heart of the small town. It is within walking distance from most of the hotels. Use the map below to find out how far this restaurant is from the hotel where you are staying at.
Address of Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken:
Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken Rice (老黄芽菜鸡沙河粉)
49, Jalan Yau Tet Shin,
30000 Ipoh
Tel: +605-254 4199
Operating hours: 10am to midnight
Contact Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken:
Phone Number: +60-5-254-4199
We have come to the end of this article. I hope you enjoyed reading this.
If you have ANY questions about this review, about Best Food In Ipoh – Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken (老黄芽菜鸡沙河粉), ANY at all, please submit your questions as comments below. I will be happy to help you out.
Wishing you and your loved ones safe and happy travels.
Timotheus
Hey everyone, I am Timotheus. When I am not giving lectures, I love traveling and visiting cities and towns all over Asia. It is a thrill for me to find and share awesome places to see, great tasting food to eat, and restful rooms to get a good night’s sleep.
I’ve been to Malaysia once and it’s at the absolute top of my list of places to visit again and again. I love your blog because it helps me get a better idea of how I’ll plan my next trip. This food looks delicious! I think i gained 15 lbs in one week when I was in Georgetown!
I know what you mean, Penelope! I too gained weight after the road trip to Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh and Penang. Georgetown, Penang has so much great food!
Glad you will use my website as a resource for your future trips. I will be updating more posts. Please subscribe to the Best Places To Visit In Asia newsletter for updates. 🙂
The Pak Cham Gai looks so good! The cooking process sounds interesting too. Now I’m hungry lol!
I have never been to Malaysia but it’s certainly on my list of places to explore.
LOL! Glad to hear this made you hungry. The Pak Cham Gai is really so delicious! The fact that they use free range chicken means the meat tasted better.
Do visit Lou Wong when you are in Ipoh, Malaysia. You will not regret it. 🙂
Meantime, please do subscribe to my Best Places To Visit In Asia newsletter for updates. 🙂
I got hungry reading this. It was so descriptive. I enjoyed it very much!
LOL! Glad to know that, Ruth. And thanks!
I love it when the text, photos and videos get people hungry. 🙂
Please do subscribe to my Best Places To Visit In Asia newsletter for updates. 🙂
Hi there
I must say after reading this it makes me want some super bad. I don’t live in that area. But I’m gonna try to make some if I can figure out a recipe somewhere. Really good read. Thank you
Hi AJ! Thanks for dropping by.
Yay! Objective achieved! I love it when people read my reviews about food, and really want some after reading it. haha
Hope you find a good recipe. If not, when you have vacation time, do visit Ipoh, and try some of Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken. Of course, do come back for more updates. Or you can subscribe to my Best Places To Visit In Asia newsletter, too. 🙂
Thanks for posting this and I will keep this in mind if ever going to Ipoh. The food does look wonderful and it seems that you get a lot of food for the money. I really enjoy reading your articles and hope some day, when I retire, I can take that Asian tour to experience all the great places you write about.
You’re welcome, Dena. The food in Malaysia is really good. Ipoh is one of the cities where they are well known for certain dishes, and the Lou Wong Bean Sprout Chicken is one of them. So, don’t miss this when you take that Asian tour. 🙂