Medan Selera Rumah Atap,
Persiaran Raja Muda Musa,
Kawasan 6,
Teluk Gadong,
41100 Klang, Selangor,
Malaysia.
HER day starts as early as 3am, when 66-year-old Tan Siew Kuan cooks and prepares for business at a small stall in Medan Selera Rumah Atap in Persiaran Raja Muda Musa, Klang.
Situated on the right as you enter the food court, Tan’s stall can be identified by the words “Economic Mee” and “Nasi Lemak” written on a white board.
Serving only those two dishes, Tan and her husband, Ng Lian Huat, set up stall by 7am every day.
The entrance of the food court visible from Persiaran Raja Muda Musa.
This hardworking couple see endless streams of customers, especially on weekends and public holidays.
So much so, 70-year-old Ng sometimes gets the orders mixed up. However, customers remain loyal and return again and again because of the tasty food that is reasonably priced.
For only RM2.20, customers get a generous serving of noodles with fried egg on top, a spoonful of sambal and a bowl of vegetable curry.
Customers can choose between the mee hoon or mee cooked in dark soy sauce.
They can also add on curry chicken, which then brings the price to RM4.50.
Even with the increasing food prices and high cost of living, prices at this stall remain unchanged.
The Economic Mee costs RM2.20 without the chicken, and is RM4.50 with the chicken.
“We are not in the business to earn a quick buck,” said Tan, who takes pride in her cooking.
She came up with the recipe when she was 22 years old.
“We were really poor back then and I made a choice to earn a living by selling food. We needed money to live.
“No one taught me to cook and I improved the recipe over the years,” she said while preparing her next order.
No secrets, no special ingredients, just her desire to cook something healthy for her customers to enjoy without great cost to their pockets.
“I don’t believe in adding lots of coconut milk (santan) to my curries as it is not healthy.
The food court attracts crowds in the morning.
“I also use a lot of lemongrass in my cooking, along with big onions,” said the mother of two.
Most parts of the dish are prepared and cooked at home; Tan heats up the vegetable curry and fries the egg at the stall upon order.
As her food runs out fast, she also makes time to make more noodles in between completing orders from her customers.
Since day one, it has always been just her husband and her manning the stall.
Although some customers have suggested that Tan increase her prices a little, she has refused to do so.
Medan Selera Rumah Atap food court is open from 7am to midnight daily.
Tan’s stall operates from 7am until 2pm only.
This is the writer’s personal observation and not an endorsement by StarMetro.
