The Little House by the 'Parit'

There is this little house along Jalan Ban Hock in Kuching that is very famous for Kuching local food, i.e., kolo mee, laksa, popiah, etc. The cafe has been around for many years, probably older than me. Set beside the monsoon drain of one of the main roads in Kuching, the cafe has been feeding the hungry Kuchingites since who knows when.

I went there for breakfast with a group of friends, and it was close to impossible to getting a table to sit down. The time was as early as 8:15 a.m. Now you know why the food gets sold out very rapidly.

The cafe gets very crowded even at early hours.

I ordered a cup of coffee with evapourated milk and the aroma of the coffee is just irresistible! Furthermore, it was served in the classic porcelain cup that the old timers would pour the coffee into the saucer and sip up the coffee from there. It was a fast way of bringing down the temperature of the boiling hot drinks during the old days. I think it is still practiced by some of the elderly people, just by attributes.

A classic way of serving coffee in a local cafe.

The first food item that was served to us was the popiah. It is a vegetable roll wrapped in a thin sheet made of flour, something that looks like a tortilla.

The roll is cut to bite size that is easier for the mouth. You may choose to have an uncut roll to bite.

The various types of vegetables that fill the roll.

The second food item that was served was the roti bakar or roti kahwin as our local Kuchingites call it. Well, it is a toast served with butter and kaya. Kaya is a type of jam made of coconut milk. The roti bakar here is one of the best around Kuching!

The white bread is toasted to perfection of golden brown.

The edges are slightly charred and the toast is as crunchy as biscuits.

Most of the patrons come here for the laksa. That's why we had to wait for more than 30 minutes for the laksa to arrive on our table due to overwhelming orders. And for that, the auntie manning the stall didn't stop cooking the laksa for the hungry Kuchingites to feed.

One of the best laksa in Kuching, but not my favourite because the broth is a bit diluted to my taste.

Well, the shrimps are very fresh and boiled to perfection.

The cafe is just by the main road and it is very easy to spot, as many cars are parked illegally by the main road near to it.

The Little House by the 'Parit.'

It is very near to one of the larger hotels in Kuching, the Grand Continental Hotel. There is a bus stop nearby that the buses never stop to pick up passengers.

The bus stop that the buses never stop.

This is what we call as the 'white elephant' bus stop.

If you are interested to go there but are still confused by my poor instruction of directions, well, Google Earth™ is always there for you.

Google Earth™ map to Choon Hui Cafe. Just click on it to view a larger map.