Kopitiam Bagus.Bagus 捌哥.捌哥特色馬拉茶啡廳 (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

After going to the "Summer Aqua Kids Carnival" in Wanchai, everyone was dehydrated, beat up and water-soaked, so the plan was to go home and take a quick shower before getting out again for dinner. But I was missing my Teh tarik and kaya toast too much and obviously, I wanted them now! 



Some of us have never been to Kopitiam Bagus.Bagus (捌哥.捌哥特色馬拉茶啡廳) before. Of course, we were just here a couple of weeks ago and that's why we knew all about their menu.

I needed this Malay pulled tea about 2 hours ago. Served iced cold as usual.

Kaya butter toast (鮮牛油咖央多士) – It was already 6:30pm so it's not exactly tea time but that wasn't going to stop me from enjoying a slice or two of these kaya butter toast. The toast was oozing with these greenish kaya jam made with pandan and coconut. Very addictive as usual. Fortunately, we had dinner in mind so we didn't have to fight over the remaining pieces.

Bagus Bak Kut Teh (捌哥肉骨茶) – I haven't had this for years. If my memory serves me correctly, my last sip of Bak Kut Teh was in KL. That was some years ago.

This herbal broth was really intense and rich flavored. Just look at the color. The aroma suggested a blend of meat (pork) and medicine with a small touch of spiciness (star anise).

I ordered pork belly (三層肉) to go along with my broth. Very tender and full of flavors thanks to the aromatic broth.

Nasi Lemak Nyonya Kari Ayam (辣死你嗎配娘惹咖喱雞肉) – Jelloman got her adventurous self back today and she ordered the restaurant's signature Nasi Lemak Nyonya Kari Ayam. Just by looking at the Chinese translation and you knew it came with some extra spiciness. 

Chicken legs cooked with Nasi lemak. Sambal bawang, peanuts, cucumber, ikan bilis (fishy), potato, and boiled egg. I hope I didn't miss any ingredients. The rice was pandan flavored and thus the green color. I had a crack at this with my pork belly (as seen above) and I wasn't sure if I did like it. It's very spicy as suggested by the name of the dish, and you won't notice that extra spiciness until it reached your throat!

Otak-Otak (愛他愛她) – Grilled fish cake made of ground fish meat and mixed with tapioca starch and spices. It was beautifully wrapped under with these banana leaves for the extra fragrance. Once again, it's a little too spicy for me. I love hot and spicy food but somehow not today.

Ipoh chicken ho fun (怡保雞絲河粉) – For little one, it was his favorite noodle soup with the usual suspects of prawns, chicken, fish cake and bean curd. The clear broth was chicken soup which I suspected was infused with white curry but turned out, it wasn't. 

Some of us who have lived in Singapore for a few years were fascinated by the authenticity of some of these dishes. I have never been a citizen of the lion city myself but I guess having two former bosses from Malaysia and Singapore counts. I can tell I'm slowly falling in love with this place, especially its pulled tea and kaya toast. And I certainly won't be surprised if I would be writing another experience here, perhaps as early as next week.

Food Rating: 5.5/10

Price: $$$

Address: G/F, 188 Yu Chau Street, Sham Shui Po, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Sham Shui Po

Tel: +852 2253-6911

Opening Hours: 11:00am - 10:00pm daily