Hwa Mei Bak Kut Teh — Restaurant in Johor

Ok, let's talk about the parking first - it is challenging. Not just in finding lots, but in navigating with other cars doing the same due to narrow lanes/ space.

The restaurant was nearly full house at 1pm on a Tuesday, but all diners were eating, and there wasn't a queue.

I got a table immediately, it required a clean up, the lady who did that was friendly, she also took my orders after I had a few questions.

I read a common complaint about this place, it's the price. And it was obvious to me that the lady did not stop me from over ordering.

Nevertheless, it surprised me that it took them 20 minutes to serve the food (which is basically a scoop/ assembly job, especially without any use of claypots).

The bak ku teh was maybe a tad about average, not massive on herbal flavors, but pretty tasty.

The "salted vege" was a lot more sour than salty, I didn't like it one bit.

The pig trotter, which the lady claimed is a 招牌, was way below average - it was chewy, under flavored. Also, they said it was their 'last bowl' and turned out it contained parts that were 90% skin, fats and bones. Also noticed that the flavoring is the same as the bak ku teh soup, only much thicker.

But there's a highlight, the chicken feet. Good flavor with a hint of chili 🌶️, nice texture too (deep fried before braising).

Ok, the lunch came out to be RM46. I commented to the lady at the cashier, that the pork trotter was all bones, fats and skin, and she acknowledged me, and asked if there was any meat at all, I said 1 small piece. But yes, lunch was...

Of the two places I tried bak kut teh in Johor Bahru, I enjoyed the overall experience here more but the taste of the bkt was a notch below the other joint. Ordering here is simple and straightforward. Menu provided on wall, clearly listed items for sale and prices. I had the small bkt set, pickled vegetables, Chinese crullers and an iced white coffee. The small bkt was decent in size. The soup was more muted than the other I tried; it tasted more watered down. The pork was tender and serving portion was very fair. The pickled vegetable was served hot drowned in garlic oil. I actually enjoyed this as I’ve never had it served this way before but it can get greasy after several bites. The fried cruller didn’t taste fresh but I drowned them in the soup anyway. White coffee is typical. Total for my meal came out to be MYR24.50. For the uninitiated, this place will be a better spot to experience your first bkt, as it’s more diner friendly. Service was friendly...

This bak kut teh restaurant has a long history and is one of the few bak kut teh restaurants in the urban area of ​​Johor Bahru that still uses charcoal to cook food. The soup of the food is very fragrant, and the meat can be cooked just right, neither too blunt nor too soft. If the soup is not enough, you can ask the boss to add soup, and the boss will double-check that you want to add soup to avoid of wasting the soup. Prices are moderate for bak kut teh, not outrageously expensive, and not too cheap. It’s just that there are not many tables in the restaurant, so it often takes a while to get a dining table on weekends. At the same time, because of the charcoal cooking, the restaurant will be a bit stuffy. Customers must be mentally prepared to avoid complaining that the dining...