Best Char Kuey Teow in KL

Trishaw’s Char Kway Teow originates from a bona fide traditional trishaw CKT in Penang. The CKT “uncle” shared his secret soy sauce recipe and Trishaw are carrying on his legacy.

Their signature is the prawn char kway teow, with fresh juicy prawns that absorb the flavours of the marinade while being tossed together with the noodles over sufficient “wok hei”.

Hot Kitchen aims to make their char kuey teow as close to Penang-styled ones as much as possible. With just enough char, the use of fresh prawns and banana leaf does make a difference on the taste of the char kuey teow. And nothing makes it better with lots of bean sprouts on top.

Judging a good char kuey teow is mostly a matter of personal taste. Some people prefer to be deep fried and cooked with animal fat while others prefer lighter variant with some soft eggs. Food Clans's char kuey teow style however, has a good balance between the both. While it does not use animal fats to cook, it is not overly cooked nor is it too lightly done. Many char kuey teow places tend to freeze ingredients, but the eggs, prawn and scallops over at Food Clans's taste great as they are fresh, not frozen. They are never stingy with the ingredients too. 

Hutong @ Lot 10 is constantly patronised for their convenient and fairly extensive selection of some of the best hawker food. This of course, involves a constantly smoking Char Kuey Teow stall. Whipping up a flavoursome and moreish serving of char kuey teow is what they do here, with speckles of cockles, eggs, chives, bean sprouts, and Chinese sausage - a perpetual dish that never fails to disappoint. Unlike your common CKT experience, the ambience is charming and clean. If you’re one of those who always carry cleanliness up your sleeves, this is the place to be. 

Starting off as a small roadside stall before expanding into a proper restaurant spanning three shop lots has proven to be a working formula for Mali’s. The place has been in business since 1997. Despite only offering two kinds of food which are nasi lemak and char kway teow along with drinks and using the concept of self-service to customers, the place continues to bloom and expand. The char kway teow has been listed as the best in KL in several blog postings and for good reason. The noodles are fried in a thick brownish creamy gravy that will make your mouth water and garnished with sliced chillies. The smoky and fishy aftertaste of the gravy is all due to the use of the prawns which the restaurant seem to be generous with. 

From a modest hawker stall in Penang back when it started in 1992, Sany has now made its mark in Kuala Lumpur right opposite Istana Budaya. The open-air food court-style eatery offers almost 20 items but of course the char kuey teow is what people come here for. The secret to their CKT is its gravy, which is available for sale in case there are some ambitious cooks out there trying to imitate. Besides that, the mixture of egg and prawns resulting in a watery gravy really adds to the wow factor of this dish and it will also be the reason for your spoonfuls of CKT getting scooped up from the plate. Another fun fact is that the cook always fries each plate individually instead of in batches. Hard work isn’t it? If you have never liked Malay versions of CKT, give this a try.

Jai Char Kuey Teow does take an interesting turn of events. You know how regular Char Kuey Teow is stir-fried and dry? Well, Jai's version comes with soup - odd, but bare with us. It comes with all the basic ingredients such as prawns, bean sprouts, spring onions, flat noodles, as well as similar method of stir-frying. The only difference is the end-result, where they serve it alongside a pool of broth. It may be odd at first, but the flavours and unique blend of texture certainly is quite enjoyable. So if you're looking for something new, why not give it a try?

There are quite a number of things to enjoy here at Rocky Restoran, with most of them being local classics. Asam laksa, curry laksa, mixed rice, pork noodles and of course, the ever so popular Char Kuey Teow as well. Like some of the more popular places, the Char Kuey Teow is cooked to absolute perfection, packing in a whole load of flavour as well as texture. The noodles are done incredibly soft, while the beansprout adds on a layer of crunch, and the shrimps giving it some bite. Overall, the dish as a whole is delicious, so do give it a try when you can.

The infamous go-to place for char kuey teow among the residents of TTDI, Mie Cord’s lunch queue always seem to never end. Maybe because most of the time, the men tend to flock here after Friday prayers at the nearby mosque. This dish was first recommended to a friend who lives around TTDI and boy, I was not disappointed. The fragrant smell alone will entice even the iciest of hearts. Brimming with prawns and cockles with a slightly wet texture, the CKT is probably as close as you can get to Penang Chinese-style CKT as Malay versions tend to be either too watery or too dry.