THE Fried Hokkien Noodles had the aroma of “wok hei”, or “breath of the wok”, in them, with a flavourful dark sauce coating each thick strand.

They were fried with squid, chicken and cabbage, and finished with crispy fried chicken fat. We tucked into these noodles at Chopsticks, a new halal Chinese restaurant in Taman Tun Dr Ismail, Kuala Lumpur.

Though I am used to the non-halal version, I rather enjoyed these noodles with the chicken-fat crisps.

I liked very much, too, the Cantonese Beef Noodles, drenched in an egg sauce with lots of ginger and spring onion. The eatery’s owner, Muhammad Oon, recommended these two noodle dishes, and told us about his Chinese chef from Malacca who does them well.

For the Cantonese Beef Noodles, you get to choose either kway teow or mee hoon, or a mix of both.

We went back for a full dinner the next week, selecting from the menu the Four Beans Fried with Belacan, Nyonya Steamed Fish, Ma Po Tofu and Kung Po Chicken.

The “Four Heavenly Kings” as the four vegetables – petai, four-angled beans, long beans and ladies’ fingers – are called, cooked in the spicy belacan style, delivered the expected flavours. Skilfully fried, the vegetables stayed green and crunchy, with the taste and aroma of belacan, chilli and dried prawns coming through.

The Nyonya Steamed Fish is a popular dish at Chopsticks. We had a choice of garoupa, siakap or tilapia, and we picked the first.

The hot-and-sour curry released aromas of lemongrass and turmeric, with ground shallots adding sweetness. I found myself drinking up the curry and wondering if we could have more of it. The garoupa was fresh and of a fair size; the vegetables in the curry were ladies’ fingers and tomatoes.

We would have loved to have had more ladies’ fingers, and apparently, customers can ask for extra vegetables when ordering this.

The Ma Po Tofu featured soft, smooth tofu cooked in a hot bean sauce, with minced chicken and mushrooms. It didn’t appeal to us at first, but it grew on us as the dinner progressed. We recognised it as a familiar style of cooking bean curd at home.

The Kung Po Chicken had pieces of deep-fried chicken tossed in a spicy-sweet sauce, with dried chillies and plenty of onions and ginger. It was a little disappointing as the meat was a bit tough and dry from the deep frying, and I missed the cashew nuts that are usually in this dish.

Perhaps, we would have fared better with the Marmite Chicken or Claypot Salted Fish Chicken, which Muhammad Oon – who also goes by Brian – recommended.

For dessert, he treated us to the Lychee Jelly, a lightly sweet, refreshing agar-agar with santan, which reminded me of what we used to make often at home. It was yummy.

Chopsticks is about food cooked home-style, light on oil and seasonings.

Prices are reasonable. The noodles are RM12.50 per portion, Nyonya Steamed Fish (garoupa) (RM44), Kung Po Chicken (RM22), and Four Beans Fried with Belacan and Ma Po Tofu (both RM15).

Service is warm and welcoming, and water is served free of charge.

Chopsticks is located at 35, Lorong Rahim Kajai 13, Taman Tun Dr Ismail, Kuala Lumpur. It can be reached at 03-7498-0345 or 012-203-2727.

The restaurant is closed on Mondays. – July 6, 2019.

* Eu Hooi-Khaw has been writing about food for the longest time, covering all aspects, from restaurant reviews to cooking and recipes, as well as the healthy side of it. She has written for major newspapers and magazines, published the cookbook Fresh Ingredients, and also writes for her website hooikhawandsu.com.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.