There are so many options if you want to have curry mee in Ipoh.
In this list, there are local haunts as well as tourist-famous spots. And we’ll let you know which are which!
As well as which is our personal favorite of the lot!
1. Yat Yat Seng Restaurant
Fancy having dry curry mee for breakfast or lunch? Yat Yat Seng Restaurant serves a tasty bowl/plate of thick curry mee with just enough spice and taste!
The topping for this delicious bowl is slices of chicken, prawns and roast pork. We like that the pork is very crispy!
There is kai se hor fun here too. And it’s not bad. Very standard for Ipoh although this rendition features a lot of deep-fried onions for garnish.
And the perfect way to end a meal here is with their iced coffee! This is dark, smoky, thick, and strong but only slightly bitter.
This traditional coffee shop has been around for many years. And it looks that way – it is dark, the fittings are dated, and the walls and floor could use a good scrub.
It is stuffy in the afternoon, but this doesn’t stop loyal customers from coming here for lunch.
- Address: 83, Jln Dato Lau Pak Khuan, Taman Canning, 31400 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: Daily, 7:30am–3pm
2. Sun Heng Curry Noodles
This eatery used to only serve curry noodles. And back then, it was a simple coffee shop run by an elderly lady.
Now, it’s managed by her children. The shop has a new look, complete with air conditioning and some rustic décor.
More importantly, the menu is very wide with many local favorites. Curry mee remains their signature and we agree they do cook up a wonderful curry mee (we always get the soup version).
You can easily customize your bowl of curry mee for different toppings too – by default, the bowl will come with both char siew and siew yok.
It’s also worth coming here for their nasi lemak with fried chicken too. This dish, they only serve on selected days of the week – Thursdays if we’re not mistaken.
Prices are very high for Ipoh standards, but the portions are generous.
Their drinks like kopi ais (iced coffee) and grass jelly are amazing on a hot day. We do like their barley with bean curd as well. They have other sweet soups (tong sui) to choose from too.
- Address: 19, Lorong Cecil Rae, Canning Garden, 31400 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: 7:30am to 3:30pm
- Contact: +6012-532 3888
3. Chuan Fatt Curry Mee Shop
Notable for the amiable boss plus use of soy sauce in their famous and creamy rendition of curry mee:
Chuan Fatt Curry Mee Shop offers great coffee, honest service, and fried chicken too! The fried chicken and other topping options are what makes this a satisfying meal at this local breakfast and lunch haunt.
For a stronger curry taste and smell, pick the dry version! Careful, it’s very spicy if you don’t usually eat spicy food!
Notes:
- Restaurant setting is old-school (no air conditioning)
- Portions run small
- Fried chicken sells out fast
- Go before 9am on a weekend
- Address: 294, Jalan Pasir Puteh, Taman Hoover, 31650 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: 7:30am–2pm
4. Curry Keng Restaurant
3 minutes’ walk away from August Healing café in Ipoh:
The dining environment (and toilet) is clean at Curry Keng Restaurant. And you can enjoy their good service as well as their dry curry mee!
Tourists don’t usually come here either. But it is tourist friendly as the proprietors speak English and the curry mee is not too spicy. The taste of the curry noodles is more mild than potent.
Like your curry sour? You can add lime juice from the provided bottles. The wet curry version is ok too.
Do get fried bean curd to go with your noodles. There is also the option of getting pork balls for a side dish. And if you don’t have time to try them elsewhere, you can order beansprouts and poached chicken too.
Another dish worth trying here is their pork lard fried rice!
For drinks there is iced coffee and barley. Both of you can request to add guiling gao (Chinese herbal jelly) in too. And we really think you should as their drinks are unique with this additional ingredient!
PS: This is our favorite place for dry curry mee.
- Address: 15 &, 15A, Hala Pasar Baru, Taman Jubilee, 30300 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: Daily, 7:30am–3pm
- Contact: +6012 – 528 3839
5. Yee Fatt Dry Curry Noodles
Yee Fatt Dry Curry Noodles’ namesake is delicious (complete with a thick helping of the savory sauce).
Noodle portions are somewhat small. But the curry taste is strong in this rendition of dry curry noodles and the noodles have a lovely chewy texture. For toppings, they have char siew and roasted pork.
Their glutinous rice (lor mai gai) with chicken is worth ordering too. They top it with curry sauce.
Because of how famous Yee Fatt Dry Curry Noodles is among locals and tourists, go much earlier than 2pm as the food sells out fast.
Although the herbal egg tea is nice, white coffee is average for Ipoh standards.
- Address: 39, Jalan Kampar, 31650 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: 7am–2pm (Closed on Mondays)
- Contact: +605 – 242 1043
6. Kedai Kopi Keng Nam Curry Mee
Kedai Kopi Keng Nam Curry Mee easily draws in breakfast crowds with its above-average selection of glutinous kaya rice, prawn noodles, chee cheong fun and classic Hainan coffee!
Not forgetting the dry curry noodles, of course!
Because there’s so much good food to try here, there are sizeable breakfast crowds.
And so, you really might want to avoid the crowds at 9am. As it can be very noisy and crowded. The tables are very close to each other.
Read about our experience at Keng Nam Coffee Shop.
- Address: 127, Jalan Raja Ekram, Kampung Jawa, 30300 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: 6:30am–11:30am
7. SSF Restaurant
Expect to pay more for the palatable wet and dry curry noodles here. But the price comes with a clean environment and commendable service!
There are pork balls, cockles, lam mee, pastries and dumplings to order too!
Fried chicken is one of the other sides you can get here. Although it is pricey at RM15 for a drumstick. The savory prawn noodles are another popular order here.
Their peak time is 10am although the breakfast crowd starts coming in around 9am. Many guests at the nearby M Boutique Hotel will choose to come here for breakfast too.
- Address: 18, Hala Datuk 5, 30000 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: Daily, 8:30am–3pm; Closed on Fridays
- Contact: +6012 – 507 3536
8. Lim Ji Nyonya Laksa (林记娘惹叻沙)
From the picture, you can already tell that the main attractions are the large and fresh cockles! Together with roast pork and other liew. Even octopus!
The curry is a favorite among locals. It’s spicy and aromatic!
You can sit down at simple tables in a traditional kampung-style restaurant setting. Or you can bring your own container and try their takeaway service!
See what else to expect at Lim Ji Nyonya Laksa.
Note: Total waiting time can be an hour if there’s a queue (peak time is 9am)
- Address: 893, Persiaran Bercham Timur 1, Kampung Bercham, 31400 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: Daily, 7:30am–12:30am; Closed on Thursdays
- Contact: +6018 – 780 2199
9. Nam Chau Kopitiam
You might want to check Nam Chau Kopitiam out if you want a more comfortable dining environment (with air conditioning). They do serve good white coffee, kaya toast and kai se hor fun here as well.
Conclusion
You can’t go wrong with these curry mee shops in this list!
- Yat Yat Seng Restaurant
- Chuan Fatt Curry Mee Shop
- Kedai Kopi Keng Nam Curry Mee
But if you’re looking for something special, less crowded or want to have a wider food selection, the other stalls and restaurants have their own highlights!
We do encourage you to try a few places for curry mee while you’re in Ipoh instead of just one!
Yinzo Kopi
Yinzo Kopi is another air-conditioned eatery that has tasty curry mee. The modern coffee shop is spacious and beautiful albeit a bit dim on the inside. Aside from curry mee, you can get good wantan mee, kaya toast, polo buns, chicken rice and kai se hor fun – all in one place!
Breakfast Spots In Ipoh
Many curry mee spots are also coincidentally popular breakfast spots in Ipoh. But there are even more options than listed here if you decide you want to try other local dishes instead.
More Ipoh Food To Try
There’s still a lot of dishes to try besides curry mee. Like kai se hor fun, Hainanese chicken rice and others like old-school chee cheong fun and popiah. Here are our recommendations on where to find more local dishes.
