Auntie Sim Kitchen @ Damansara Uptown

 

Regal Comfort Chinese Dishes

 

A restaurant that has been running past a decade in the bustling township of Damansara Uptown, Auntie Sim Kitchen has been serving up Teochew and Hong Kong style Cantonese dishes to ardent foodies. What started as a casual café has now been elevated to private dining as well as casual Chinese dining space to appease palates of all diners.

 

The restaurant is named after Elaine Sim, more commonly known as Auntie Sim to many, who is so passionate about ensuring her diners enjoy quality and tasty dining at Auntie Sim Kitchen. Strongly focusing on the quality of the ingredients, Elaine often travels to source the ingredients from Hong Kong herself. The restaurant has two floor dining spaces. While one can opt for the ground floor for a casual and comfort ambiance, they also have the option to head upstairs for more privacy dining with private rooms available as well as main dining room.

 

Menu is full of dishes and those first timers like me was obviously impressed with the list of choices. From premium seafood, soulful soups, to succulent beef and pork as well as the humble chicken rice, there’s even the traditional Teochew braised duck and pork, the menu literally caters to even the finickiest eaters as well as those who seeks comfort dishes.

 

The Traditional Teochew Prawn Balls (RM35) and Szechuan Style Salt & Pepper 3 Combo (RM25 small) came highly recommended as the restaurant’s signature bites to whet the appetite.

 

Heh Cho or Traditional Teochew Prawn Balls had us tucking into balls of sumptuousness. Deliciously moist, the prawn and meat filling had a solid bite encased in crispy beancurd sheet. From the perfect balance of crispiness to juicy filling, it’s certainly a must-order at Auntie Sim Kitchen.

 

A trio pairing of eggplant, squid and Shimeji mushrooms, skillfully fried to light crispiness and finished with a tasty coating of chiu yim sums up Szechuan Style Salt & Pepper 3 Combo. The dish is so light and easy to enjoy, we polished this off happily that evening.

 

To warm up the tummy and soul, simply order the Double Boiled Top Shell Cube & Dried Pitaya Flower Soup (RM58 per pot). Dried Pitaya Flower or Ba wòhng fâ is said to have nutritional values as it eliminates heat from the body, nourishes the lungs, relieves phlegm and cough as well as nourishes the skin. Sip on the clean delicate sweetness of the double-boiled broth and one will immediately feel a soothing sense of comfort. The combination of the flower with HK imported dried scallops and top shell along with honey dates and chicken resulted in this soulful soup of pleasure.

 

When I found out that Auntie Sim Kitchen has Taufu Kang or Teochew Seafood and Tofu Broth (RM33 – small), I couldn’t resist trying it out. While I have savored quite a few Taufu Kang, the version here fits right to the top of my list with its generous amount of fish maw, seafood bits, beancurd and more, gloriously braised and thicken up to just the right amount of bisque goodness. A gentle dash of black vinegar elevated the broth with another dimension of flavours.

 

The Claypot Braised Tilapia with Bittergourd (From RM38 onwards) beckons for a bowl of steamed rice to soak up that moreish sauce. Whole tilapia, with other choices of fishes available as well, is fried and braised with cooling bittergourd and black beans with aromatics in a claypot and finished with generous splashes of Shaoxing wine. The aroma is deliciously enticing when the cover is lifted. The flesh of the fish is sweet and firm, pairing well with the slight bitterish but tasty note of the sauce.

 

For greens, we were pretty pleased with the Stir Fried Poh Choy with Organic Mushrooms. Cooked to perfection, the spinach is tender with a lovely sweetness alongside the earthy organic assorted mushrooms sourced from a big organic mushroom farm in Seremban.

 

The ever-humble chicken rice has been on Auntie Sim Kitchen’s menu for years. Anointed as Mun Cheong Chicken Rice (RM58 – half | RM98 – full), Auntie Sim’s version uses free range beard chicken for the poultry’s firm and succulent meat. Poached and smothered in aromatic soy sauce, the chicken is accompanied by fragrant lemongrass infused rice along with house made ginger and coriander sauce as well as garlic chili sauce. A constant crowd favorite, the MunCheong Chicken Rice is always available now unless sold out daily.

 

 

The limelight of the evening for me was their signature Dry Fried Fresh Water Prawns with Hong Kong Yee Mee (seasonal price with min 2 prawns). It’s another first for me to savor a dry version of yee mee and I must say that I was totally smitten with the dish. It’s a dish that really showcase the skill set of cooking the noodle and prawn perfectly right.

Large freshwater prawns are slowly pan seared to extract the sweetness of the crustacean and its luscious roes into the yee mee noodles. Gorgeously cooked, the prawns were very fresh and sweet while the yee mee had this amazing aroma and flavour with an al dente texture that had me going back for seconds!

 

Dinner ended on a luscious refreshing note with Iced Cold Thai King Coconut with Avocado (RM16). A clever concoction of creamy avocado with coconut water and crowned with tiny pearls of sago, served in coconut, the dessert is divine and not overly sweet. Every spoonful is very enjoyable and freshened up the palate after a delicious meal of savory notes. Another must-order!

 

Auntie Sim Kitchen is one restaurant that caters to your budget. When one is clueless on how to select from their long list of dishes, simply state your budget and they will plan your menu to your preference of ingredients under their private dining menu. Else, if you are looking for a no-frill and comfort dining, there’s plenty of affordable dishes for daily consumption.

 

 

AUNTIE SIM KITCHEN

24, Jalan SS 21/58,

Damansara Utama,

47400 Petaling Jaya, Selangor

 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/Auntiesimkitchen

 

Business Hours:

Monday-Thursday: 11am – 3pm | 5pm – 10pm

Friday-Sunday: 11am – 10pm