Ipoh’s famous chicken rice – otherwise known as Ipoh taugeh chicken rice, should be on every foodie’s list of Ipoh food to try!
Many vendors have made it their specialty as the business is lucrative. This healthy competition means that the standard of chicken rice in Ipoh stays high!
Don’t know where to begin? We have 9 places where you can find the best chicken rice in Ipoh! 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
- Buntong Chicken Rice
- Cowan Street Ayam Tauge & Koitiau Restaurant
- Restaurant Sam Ma Chicken Rice
- Yoon Kee Bean Sprouts Chicken
- Restoran Nasi Ayam Pak Kong
- Liao Fan Hawker Chan Ipoh Branch
- IPOH Hainan Chicken Rice (Halal)
9 Best Chicken Rice In Ipoh
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.
- Address: 49, Jalan Yau Tet Shin, Taman Jubilee, 30000 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: 10:30am to 9pm
Remark: Don’t expect top service as the staff is often overwhelmed!
2. Ong Kee Bean Sprouts Chicken Restaurant / Onn Kee Chicken Rice Ipoh
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!
Some swear by the chicken rice here instead of Lou Wong’s!
Oh, and they do have pork meatballs that are worth trying!
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 9:30pm
- Contact: +6012-5300888
3. 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 actually in 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 those you would find in other Ipoh chicken rice restaurants. Both rice and hor fun are available.
As well as pork bolls and of course, the quintessential taugeh (bean sprouts)!
- Address: 849, Jalan Guntong, Guntong, 30100 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: 5pm to 9pm (Monday to Wednesday Closed)
- Contact: +605-255 7469
Read more: 11 Best Ipoh Dim Sum Restaurants That You Have To Try
4. 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 chicken rice in Ipoh.
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 12pm (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
5. 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 ~RM4! Prices are still reasonable especially when compared to more established chicken rice restaurants in Old Town.
They’re also very generous with the cucumber slices! With a lovely helping of blended ginger paste on the side. Which you don’t get at other chicken rice shops by the way.
You can order the following side dishes to go with your meal:
- Bean sprouts
- Lettuce
- Braised chicken feet
- Meat balls in soup
- Address: 3, Jalan S. A. Lingam, Taman Ipoh Selatan, 31400 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: Daily except Wednesdays from 11am to 3pm and again at 6pm to 9pm
- Contact: +6017-756 8562
Remark: Service is slow if the restaurant is more than 50% full.
Read more: 5 Famous Ipoh Peanut Candy Stores To Check Out
6. Yoon Kee Bean Sprouts Chicken (润记)
Only open for dinner:
Another place you can get savory Ipoh chicken rice (and hor fun) from is none other than at Ipoh Stadium!
We personally like the rice version better since the hor fun broth is not very satisfactory (I.e., missing out on prawn heads).
Which is great because there’s a lot of other must-try Ipoh 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.
PS: We did not say this is the best Ipoh chicken rice in Ipoh. The taste is a little bland and the chicken isn’t sweet. But they do have Muslim staff.
- Address: No 23, Medan Selera Stadium Ipoh, 31400 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: Daily except Thursday from 5pm to 10:30pm
- Contact: +6016-440 3160
Remark: You may have to park at the other end of the stadium if it’s too crowded
7. Restoran Nasi Ayam Pak Kong
Just when you think we’ve run out of chicken rice shops to write about:
Restoran Nasi Ayam Pak Kong is another deserving contender on this list.
Along with their poached chicken, roasted chicken and char siew is for sale 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.
Although, if you really want the best chicken rice in Ipoh, then this one is pretty 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: 11:30am to 4pm
- Contact: +6012-588 6618
Read more: 9 Famous Salted Chicken In Ipoh
8. Liao Fan Hawker Chan Ipoh Branch
The style of cooking and taste of this Michelin chicken rice in Ipoh is a little different from the other chicken rice shops in this list but:
Liao Fan Hawker Chan Ipoh Branch is none other than the first Malaysian outlet by the Ipoh-born Michelin star chef who found success in Singapore!
Despite the pictures, it’s not roast chicken that they serve here in the clean and comfortable restaurant. But rather, the chicken is stewed in soy sauce!
While you’re here, you ought to try their char siew too! Or fish ball curry noodles.
The common verdict among locals is that the food is pricey. And the chicken rice has been tuned to Singaporean taste buds – sweeter than what you would normally find in Ipoh.
But it’s still worth checking out if it’s not a peak business day for them!
- Address: 8, Jln Sultan Nazrin Shah, 30250 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: 11am to 5:30pm
- Contact: +6016-720 9132
Read more: 15 Best Western Restaurants In Ipoh
9. IPOH Hainan Chicken Rice (Halal)
This halal certified restaurant with an old-school kopitiam ambiance offers Muslim visitors a chance to try Ipoh chicken rice!
Aside from poached/ steamed chicken, they have other renditions like roast chicken and Siamese chicken (sweet and sour). The white coffee they serve is not bad.
There are dishes to accompany the chicken too but these tend to sell out around lunch time.
End your meal with some fried ice cream as dessert!
Note that service is often slow. Perhaps, go elsewhere if your stomach is already rumbling or if you see a lot of people at the restaurant.
- Address: 107, Jalan Raja Musa Aziz, Kampung Jawa, 30300 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: 10am to 10pm (Friday to Sunday), 11am to 9pm (Monday to Thursday)
- Contact: +605-254 5591
Getting To These Ipoh Chicken Rice Restaurants
To make things more convenient, you can include a stop to a chicken rice restaurant in a flexible Ipoh tour itinerary with RayTheTour, a private tour service.
During your tour, you can ask your local experienced guide which Ipoh chicken rice restaurant is their go-to!
Book or inquire more about their tours via WhatsApp.
Further reading:
Conclusion
Going for Ipoh chicken rice means having to join the locals at their favorites chicken rice haunts. Luckily, there’s many to choose from!
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 Ipoh chicken rice:
Another Ipoh favorite is Ipoh white coffee so you might want to check out these 17 places to drink authentic best white coffee in Ipoh. Curry mee is another must-try in Ipoh and you can have a look at these places for the 9 Best Curry Mee In Ipoh.
