Lee Wong Kee restaurant along Jalan TAR has always been part of my childhood memories as far as I can remember.
My family loved to have lunch over there after church. We usually will order the 'usual' dishes, which are Salted Fish Fried Rice (Ham Yu Chau Fan), Steamed fish with Ginger (Giong Zheng Wan Yu) and Butter Fried prawns (Nai Yau Ha). We would order the occasional 'Fa Lan Pou' which I can't translate in English, but basically it's a claypot dish with striped pork, salted fish and dried chillies.
This restaurant has been operating since 1926. It was known to be one of THE restaurants during its heydays, before Tai Thong, cafe-styled kopitiams and a slew of HK Cha Chan Tengs overtook the market. I was shocked to learnt from my dad that this restaurant would ceased to operate after 28th Feb 2006.
On the 26th of Feb, we headed there after church for lunch. Our last lunch at Lee Wong Kee. The aging waitresses confirmed they will 'close shop' with no intention to relocate. Perhaps the chef thinks it's time to retire too.
As usual, the fried rice and steamed fish is still delicious as ever. Dad complained the fish was slightly smaller though. My favourite will always be the Butter Fried Prawns. I even savoured every last bit of the fried coconut, curry leaves and chilli bits.
Before departing, I took some photos as a memory. Who knows what will become of this place in future, as it was built on prime land.
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