Nam Chau White Coffee (or Nam Chau Restaurant or Restoran Nam Chau if you refer to Google Maps) on Market Lane is walking distance from Concubine Lane. Their most popular dish is their curry mee.
But apart from their signature dish, what else can you order here, and how does the coffee shop hold up in terms of service, dining environment and pricing?
Read how we as Ipoh locals feel about Nam Chau Restaurant in this post.
Table Of Contents:
History
Since starting in 2005, Nam Chau White Coffee is approaching 20 years of business, operating out of the same corner lot.
Their legacy is their curry mee as well as their namesake, Nam Chau White Coffee which is sold in-store and online in powder variations as well as 3-in-1 packets.
Beyond this, they also sell their dry curry paste.
Celebrities have visited this coffee shop before and they proudly display the videos and photos on one of the walls.
Ease Of Parking
Parking is never easy in Ipoh Old Town, but on weekdays (e.g., Wednesdays and Thursdays), it’s a little quieter around this area.
Despite this, parking is still scarce with nearby office and bank staff going about their day jobs.
So bear in mind that you’ll likely have to park further and walk to the restaurant.
Ambiance
We feel that the entire coffee shop needs a refresh. The tiles on the floor and walls look grubby and their exhaust system isn’t working too well.
They may have put up some vintage décor, lights and have a large mural on one of the walls, but it still comes across as something between an old-school kopitiam and a very simple café.
The coffee shop doesn’t look very inviting, to put it frankly. Especially when it’s an overcast day and there’s not enough natural light entering the shop.
One nice thing about dining here though is that they don’t try to cram too many tables in such a small space. We feel that the spacing between tables is adequate and comfortable.
Service
Some say the lady boss is rude but we don’t find that to be the case. She frequently checked up on us despite having other customers around.
The staff however, are indeed mostly foreign and we couldn’t help suspecting if that extends to the kitchen staff and chef as well.
It does take a little struggle before we can communicate to the waiter what we wanted but he did get the orders right in the end.
Food and drinks came quickly but to be fair, there were only a few other occupied tables besides us. And it was not a peak day.
Food
We find that the curry mee at Nam Chau White Coffee is good. Not great, but good and it is not difficult to finish the bowl with relish.
The kaya toast is thick and evenly toasted with a generous slather of both dairy butter and kaya. The soft-boiled eggs were perfectly done too.
As for drinks, we had soya bean milk with cincau and their iced Ipoh white coffee. Both beverages were average (i.e., not exceptional) however, they were also not too sweet (which is how we like it).
Pricing
For Ipoh kopitiam standards, Nam Chau White Coffee is above average when it come to their pricing.
Everything is about RM2 more expensive than if you were to eat at a regular kopitiam elsewhere in Ipoh.
At least this is justified by the well-portioned curry mee and use of butter for their kaya toast. There is the option of adding cockles to your curry mee too (additional RM2.50).
- Location: 54, Jalan Bandar Timah Old, Market Ln, 30000 Ipoh, Perak
- Opening Hours: 7:30am–3:30pm (Closed on Wednesdays)
- Contact: +6014-9009163
Conclusion
To wrap up our thoughts on Nam Chau White Coffee – it is a convenient alternative for local style breakfast if other tourist favorites like Thean Chun and Restoran Kong Heng happen to be closed (i.e., Thursdays).
See other places to get breakfast in Ipoh.
Recommended: Other Places To Eat Good Curry Mee In Ipoh
