There are two schools of thought when it comes to Bak Kut Teh (BKT); more often than not, a native would either stick to the local peppery style or totally reject it for the herbal style more commonly found across the causeway in Malaysia.
+@+Johore+Bahru+(Large).JPG)
I am considered a misfit as i am equally comfortable with either type of BKT. Today, i am going to talk about this particular BKT in Johore Bahru which, according to my brother in law, is popular with Singaporeans on weekends; Shoon Huat.
+@+Johore+Bahru+(Large).JPG)
Air-conditioning lovers might find it extremely difficult to be guzzling boiling hot soup in such typical kopitiam setting. Fret not as you just have to step in further into the shop.
A section has already been converted to an indoor dining area with vastly different decor and cool air blasting down your neck!
Our order - claypot bak kut teh for four persons with additional "liao" (ingredients).
This wasn't the BKT i expected. It was too chock-full of ingredients; many of which i don't take, like pig livers, pig intestines etc. Furthermore, the clear soup was more like mixed pork soup (猪杂汤) with a vague herbal taste and nothing like the BKT i know. To be fair, i should have requested for a typical serving of BKT with pork ribs for comparison purpose.
Despite the disappointing BKT, the sizzling pot of sesame oil chicken was a ray of optimism for me to revisit Shoon Huat in the future.
Fantastic to go with plain white rice, the sweet savoury sauce was a delightful concoction of chicken (duh), spring onions, sesame oil, ginger, dark soya sauce and a hint of Chinese wine! The chicken was extremely tender and fell off the bones with minimal effort. If there's anything to complain about, i could actually do with a more generous serving of chicken!
To lick clean a bowl was an easy feat for me when it comes to delicious food but to do so when i was having diarrhea said a lot on how much i totally enjoyed the food (note: the sesame oil chicken and not the BKT).
=====
Location
Jalan Sutera 1, Taman Sentosa
[Near Taman Seri Tebrau (da ma hua yuan or 大马花园)]
Price
As above. A singular serving of BKT cost RM 8.00 for one person whereas the sesame chicken had a price tag of RM 9.00 for small and RM 11.00 for medium.