Lepak Kopitiam, is a Malaysian hawker that’s been operating in Bateman for the last year or so. Heard off many times but never been, I was definitely keen to find out what this little suburban eatery had to offer. Even better, the whole family was here this time so we ordered a pretty comprehensive spread!
For drinks, an all time favourite Teh C.
Served in a classic Kopitiam cup, the froth on top is just right and the taste yummy. The flavour of the tea is slightly mild but no complains. If you are wondering, the “C” in Teh C comes from the use of Carnation Evaporated Milk used in making the beverage!
Belacan Wings
Chicken wings are a guaranteed crowd pleaser. The ones at Lepak Kopitiam, came looking super crispy with a delicious shrimp fragrance. By itself, the wings felt a little too salty from the briny fragrance of the Belacan or Shrimp Paste, but if you dunk the wings into the accompanying Sweet Chilli, it actually was pretty good!
Nasi Lemak
Nasi Lemak makes another appearance on my blog again and I just cannot get enough of this Malaysian staple. Fragrant coconut rice, paired with chicken curry, fiery sambal, crunchy anchovies, cucumber and a hard-boiled egg. Its essentially life in a plate. You get something that has texture, taste, smell and is visually pleasing. How did the one at Lepak Kopitiam, fare? I reckon it everything was pretty good! The rice though was a tad too wet. But once, I had let is rest and release some of its steam, it was just right! Sambal was really tasty too with heaps of anchovies in mine! Would not mind having some Nasi Lemak from Lepak Kopitiam, now!
Singapore Fried Bee Hoon
Described as the “real Singapore” fried bee hoon made my heart chuckle as there seems to be an expectation in Australia that the Singaporean fried bee hoon is fried with curry powder! This one came without and it was pretty decent. Loaded with eggs, Chinese sausages, fish cakes and bean sprouts, this was pretty good!
Malaysian Curry Laksa
Dad ordered the Malaysian Curry Laksa. While I did not try any of it, dad said that it was not too their liking. From the picture the soup looked pretty “lemak” or rich thanks to addition of coconut milk. But dad preferred the topping of Yong Tau Foo rather than the BBQ Pork. So he will be sticking to his usual order the next time!
Char Kuey Teow
Another Malaysian favourite that’s often mentioned but rarely perfected. Few criteria come together to make a good Char Kuey Teow. The wok fried flavours, consistency of the noodles, and seasoning. At Lepak Kopitiam, the noodles were of the right texture but I like my Kuey Teow a bit more fried where you get little clumps of Kuey Teow sticking with the eggs so that in each bite you get that Umami bomb. While that was a matter of preference, it was the wok-fried flavours that were underwhelming and the lacked of balance in the seasoning that made it OK only.
Lepak Kopitiam serves pretty decent hawker fare and was a nice spot especially if you leave nearby! It is safe to say that there is almost no restaurant that has satisfied me 100%. Several places comes close to hitting the excellent 95% mark while most is a case of the good, the bad and the ugly. Lepak Kopitiam was indifferent from this aspect except for the bit where it was really affordable by Australian standards. My Nasi Lemak from Lepak Kopitiam was $10. By comparisons, a Nasi Lemak is easily $14 outside! What I liked that afternoon were the Belacan wings, Nasi Lemak and the Singapore Fried Noodles. The OKs were the Curry Laksa. My dislikes were the Char Kuey Teow and another Claypot Yee Mee that was not pictured above! Would I come back? For the Nasi Lemak and chicken wings? Definitely yes!
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