Many vendors in Ipoh have made chicken rice their specialty. This healthy competition means that the standard stays high!
Don’t know where to begin?
We have other places that you can try! Lou Wong and Ong Kee are not the only ones who serve this iconic Ipoh staple!
Table Of Contents:
- Lou Wong Chicken Rice
- Onn Kee Chicken Rice
- Cowan Street Ayam Tauge & Koitiau Restaurant
- Restaurant Sam Ma Chicken Rice
- Restoran Nasi Ayam Pak Kong
- Koo Zai Village Chicken
- Buntong Chicken Rice
- Yoon Kee Bean Sprouts Chicken
While some shops serve rice to accompany their delicious chicken, others serve hor fun (rice noodles) instead. Or both!
Try both versions while you’re in Ipoh. There are restaurants open from morning till night.
1. Lou Wong Chicken Rice
It’s easy to want to make a beeline straight for this well-known establishment in Ipoh New Town:
Lou Wong’s chicken may be a little oily but that’s normal.
Together with crunchy bean sprouts, chicken rice or horfun, the simple seasoning and fresh garnish is enough to bring out the succulent taste of the chicken!
Pricewise, it can cost ~RM10 for a single portion. The restaurant has seating outside on the street.
Because this place is so popular, expect to wait for a table even if you come here before 6pm. And sometimes, they’re out of chicken by 6pm!
Personally, we don’t think the chicken is worth the queue. So don’t feel like you’re missing out if you choose to skip out on this one.
- Address: 49, Jalan Yau Tet Shin, Taman Jubilee, 30000 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: 11am to 9pm
Remark: Don’t expect top service as the staff is often overwhelmed!
2. Ong Kee Bean Sprouts Chicken Restaurant
Lou Wong’s main rival is almost directly across from them with a similar open-air dining experience! Service is speedy but prices can be high.
Their homemade sauce comes off a little saltier than Lou Wong’s while the chicken, silky smooth hor fun and plump sprouts are just as delightful!
Oh, and they do have pork meatballs that are worth trying! Another delicacy you can try here is chicken feet!
Overall, we do think this chicken rice is good (perhaps better than Lou Wong’s) but it’s also not worth queuing for.
Note: You can ask for kampung chicken if you want a slightly tougher texture.
- Address: 48, Jalan Yau Tet Shin Taman Jubilee 30000, Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: 10am to 9pm
- Contact: +6012-5300888
3. Cowan Street Ayam Tauge & Koitiau Restaurant
Equally famous for their nga choy kai and their notorious penchant for irregular opening hours:
Locals don’t mind queuing up for the chicken by Cowan Street Ayam Tauge & Koitiau Restaurant! And they will start queuing before it opens.
The chicken is consistently good, albeit a little salty. Many consider this the best. And we agree, it’s one of the best!
Their hor fun stands out from other places due to a thick broth that combines the taste of chicken and prawn!
For those who enjoy this delicacy, chicken innards are exceptionally tasty here!
Here’s what to expect at Cowan Street Ayam Tauge & Koitiau Restaurant.
- Address: 44, Jalan Raja Ekram, Kampung Jawa, 31350 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: Thursday to Sunday – 6pm to 12am (Monday to Wednesday – Closed)
- Contact: +6012-520 3322
Remark:
- Already packed at 6pm.
- Call ahead to make sure they are open on the day you want to go!
- They don’t serve rice here
4. Restaurant Sam Ma Chicken Rice
Restaurant Sam Ma opened in ~2016 in Ipoh Garden South. And now, they are thriving!
Customers can buy just quarter chicken or half chicken instead of a whole chicken too. The house chili sauce is the cherry on top for the meal!
And you can upgrade to kampung chicken for an additional fee!
Our first impression of the signature dish was that it was tasty but not exceptional. The chicken is tender and comes with cucumber slices and a lovely helping of blended ginger paste on the side which you don’t get at other chicken rice shops.
You can order the following side dishes to go with your meal:
- Bean sprouts
- Lettuce
- Braised chicken feet
- Meat balls in soup
Customers can buy just a quarter chicken or half chicken instead of a whole chicken. The in-house chili sauce is the cherry on top for the meal!
We still don’t understand why there’s also such a long queue at this shop. At peak times, it can take more than an hour before you get a table. It might be all the takeaway orders because service is very fast once you get a table.
- Address: 3, Jalan S. A. Lingam, Taman Ipoh Selatan, 31400 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: From 11am to 3pm and again at 6pm to 9pm (Closed on Tuesdays & Wednesdays)
- Contact: +6017-756 8562
5. Restoran Nasi Ayam Pak Kong
Along with their poached chicken, roasted chicken and char siew is for sale at Restoran Nasi Ayam Pak Kong too. All are equally yummy so be sure to bring a buddy with you!
Their meat mains pair well with their “oil rice” and side dishes like beansprouts.
Despite this, we will say that the chicken rice here is quite ordinary.
However, Restoran Nasi Ayam Pak Kong is often crowded during lunchtime as it’s not open for breakfast or dinner. Read more about the dining environment and service at Restoran Nasi Ayam Pak Kong.
- Address: 27, Jalan Theatre, Taman Jubilee, 31400 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: 11am to 4pm
- Contact: +6012-588 6618
6. Koo Zai Village Chicken 古仔胡须滑鸡
This is one of the newest eateries that specializes in this dish.
The dining environment is bright, clean, and airy. We love the texture and taste of their ginger flavored rice here.
Chicken is tender – you can order bearded chicken or normal chicken. We got the kampung chicken and it is succulent with some bite to it. They do remove the bones for you which is very unusual.
They do have sides like braised chicken feet, fish balls and pork balls. We’ve tried the latter and they are decent although the soup is a bit salty.
Beansprouts are plump and are in the same sweet soy sauce as the chicken. The sauce is a little too sweet for our liking but overall, the food here is good.
Drinks are even better, and we highly recommend getting their in-house herbal tea and coffee or milk tea.
If you’re dining in a group, there are sets that will make your total bill more affordable.
Queues start for this dinner spot around 6pm, even on weekdays. And even if you go at this time, it can take up to 20 minutes before you get your food. Even when they have many staff. This is because there are a lot of orders for takeaways here.
- Address: 69, Jalan Medan Ipoh 6, Taman Ipoh Timur, 31400 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening hours: 11:30am to 3pm, and again from 5pm to 9pm
- Contact: +6010-801 7882
7. Restaurant Ayam Tauke (文冬口芽菜鸡) / Buntong Chicken Rice
Most tourists have yet to hear of this place and their tender and juicy chickens! The restaurant is at a house in a residential neighborhood.
There are just about 20 tables altogether – some inside and others outside.
They make a unique chili sauce to go with their chicken – thicker than at other chicken rice restaurants. Both rice and hor fun are available although the only rice variation here is white rice.
As well as pork bolls and of course, the quintessential taugeh (bean sprouts)!
Prices are high and you should expect a long wait – sometimes for longer than an hour. We don’t think this is the best we’ve ever tasted. But it’s pretty good.
- Address: 849, Jalan Guntong, Guntong, 30100 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: 5pm to 9pm (Closed on Mondays)
- Contact: +605-255 7469
8. Yoon Kee Bean Sprouts Chicken (润记)
Another place you can get chicken rice (and hor fun) for dinner is Ipoh Stadium! The chicken rice stall only opens in the evening, and they do have Muslim staff here to encourage Muslim customers to try their food too.
The taste of their dishes is a little bland, and the chicken isn’t as sweet as it can be.
Here, we prefer rice over the hor fun since the broth is not very satisfactory (I.e., missing out on prawn heads).
Which is great because there’s a lot of other must-try food here like wanton mee, fish head noodles, rojak, kuay teow, etc! The neighboring stall serves delicious fried tofu!
Best of all, it’s not very accessible to tourists who don’t have their own car! So, the price is still relatively affordable.
- Address: No 23, Medan Selera Stadium Ipoh, 31400 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: Daily except Tuesday & Thursday from 5pm to 11:30pm
- Contact: +6016-440 3160
Remark: You may have to park at the other end of the stadium if it’s too crowded
Read more: 9 Famous Salted Chicken In Ipoh
Getting To These Restaurants
To make things more convenient, you can include a stop to a chicken rice restaurant as part of a flexible Ipoh tour itinerary with RayTheTour, a private tour service.
During your tour, you can ask your local experienced guide which chicken rice restaurant is their go-to!
Book or inquire via WhatsApp.
Further reading:
Conclusion
Ipoh’s famous chicken rice or taugeh chicken rice, should be on every foodie’s list of Ipoh food to try!
Most of these restaurants prepare the chicken in more or less the same way. But some places offer additional delicacies like chicken feet, innards, fishball soup or the like. Others have a different take on their chili sauce!
Besides chicken rice, another favorite is Ipoh white coffee so you might want to check out these places to drink authentic white coffee in Ipoh.
Curry mee is yet another must-try in Ipoh and you can have a look at these places. And here are even more options if you want breakfast in particular.
