Xi Yue Happiness Asia Chicken Plus — Restaurant in Kuala Lumpur

Lesson learnt today after buying some take away. Just because some food has gone viral on social media doesn't mean it's good. facepalm

No doubt, you will see a looooooong queue outside because they only have 10 small round marble tables inside - those kopitiam marble tables - which can normally seat 4, but maybe can squeeze in 5 per table, if you dont mind fighting elbows when eating.

I'll give a review with factual details and you decide whether you would want to try it out or not. For us, there will be no second time.

Firstly, the rice is mushy, too soft, no bite, and not good quality rice at all. It cost RM3 per portion of rice for 1 person leh. So I expect something better lah, not some cheap rice cooked in a mushy way. To put it simply, some chicken rice stalls at food court can provide better tasting and better quality rice. If they cooked it nicely with good quality ginger and spices to make the oil rice, at least there's some saving grace. But even the spices they used to cook the rice is not good and the rice taste bland and very uneasy to the palate.

Secondly, the chicken is totally tasteless and doused with yellow coloring during cooking. If you go the next time round, try looking at the meat of the chicken - it's supposed to be white or pale but you will find some part will surely get dyed with the yellow coloring. If the chicken is naturally yellow, only the skin is yellow and not the meat. If the meat is also yellow, then it's dye or coloring.

Xi Yue will surely reply and say it's natural yellow coloring, but well, it's not about natural or not. It's about cheating - making the chicken look more yellow than it should. So, I regard this as cheating. If the chicken is good quality and taste good, one does not need to camouflage it with yellow color to make it "look" more tasty, right? Good quality free range or kampung chicken is yellow, no doubt, but it's natural yellow...lighter tone and a more pleasing yellow. Not the kind of deep, shocking yellow that the chickens has at Xi Yue. I am in the chicken meat industry for 20 years and I know my chickens, Xi Yue.

Thirdly, the chickens are not good quality kampung chicken or good quality free range chicken. No doubt, they are not the regular soft, soft white chicken that you get everywhere else; their chicken are somewhat better than those regular white chicken, but it's not flavorful like good quality kampung chicken or good quality free range chicken. The chicken flavor is very faint, almost unnoticeable, just slightly better than those regular white chicken. So, they are using a sub par quality product and selling it to customers at shocking prices, like RM11 for regular part like chicken breast and RM14 for thigh, drumstick and wings, paired with poorly cooked oil rice.

They will continue to have good business for the foreseeable future, I dont doubt that, due to the queue outside. When people see queue, they will be curious to try. When they read viral content on social media, they will try. But slowly, the queue will die out when more and more people realise that the food quality is nothing to shout about, and when customers read reviews on Google and on their FB page.

So, there you go, our 2 cents on Xi Yue Happiness Asia Chicken - a place that we have planned to try out for a long time - only to be super disappointed with the kind of stuff people serve as food nowadays and yet still selling at exorbitant prices. We are definitely not happy with the food bought from them, so, the word "happiness" in their business name is somewhat irrelevant...

Now whenever pass by at lunch time on weekdays, not much of crazy long Q, perhaps not so viral anymore. And economy take a toll for many netizen which 1 meal here can get 2/3 meal in other places for white chicken, and many other options available in Kepong as well

2nd time dine in on April 2024

Rice: Seems not that tasty and getting less fragrant

Chicken: Not smooth at all now, not like when starting opening in Kepong time.

Soup: Was the only highlight for me so far. Always full of ingredients and taste flavorful

1st time dine in on Oct 2023,

Chicken is not as smooth and tender as last time, need to improve back on this.

Reason for long Q when peak time, as the table inside is just limited, of course easily overpack, now next door is empty shop, why don't expand as well?

On9 experience in 2022:

I am sharing my personal experience ordering online, I ordered 2 times, both time delivery was fast, I would say really fast. Didn't expect to be so fast, I think the reason people are Q-ing for hours is maybe the layout of the shop is quite small for dine in, if the owner expand by another shop, should have faster Q time.

So I hope owner can accept with open heart for room of improvement

Rice: Got taste, but not fragrant enough maybe the goreng ingredients not enough before cooking the rice, like buttery flavor. Portion if can give more would be perfect.

Chicken: Portion for single pax is OK, texture smooth, tender and juicy (2nd time a bit overcooked for the meat and less tender), the fried garlic added aroma to the chicken, if got bawang goreng even better.

Chilli: Great portion, for me is thicker than many chilli sauce.

Soy Sauce: Slight sweetish, no complaint, but can improve the by adding some special recipe oil to enhance the flavor

Ginger: Better than many chicken rice provided ginger, still far from my best tasted ginger paste. But it's accepted, maybe the one I had got cook/goreng before.

Sour cucumber: This is a bonus, I would say this is something extra by the owner. I really like it, n not much places have given this sour cucumber unless u go those high end restaurant to eat roast meat.

Egg: Cooked to perfection, eat with the soy sauce from chicken rice, a good combination, egg yolk still slimy a bit, it's good as I don't like my egg yolk fully cook type

Would I order again? Yes, I will order, but cannot be frequent as pricing wise, it's higher a bit, but if that's the boss pricing, if felt can afford and enjoy it, then just go ahead, haha... like me yesterday order already, today order again even myself also say quite expensive, but food is to enjoy..

about the owner's Google review reply attitude, I have no comment cos I don't have prior experience myself but even myself also don't like and will boycott LCLY kind of owners, so this owner need to ponder on and hope everything can be better for everyone.

Yes I know, sometimes when we pour in our effort and there is people who give reviews that take us down, but realistic we cannot please everyone and only can do our best. perhaps in future, reply with great gesture like, "We will try our best and hope to serve you again" ☺️. Haha, write too much already....

My recent visit to this place has left me underwhelmed and questioning its reputation. This restaurant, which I had heard so much about, turned out to be nothing more than an overpriced, overrated, and thoroughly mediocre experience.

To begin, the chicken rice, the supposed star of the show, was disappointingly ordinary. There was nothing about it that warranted the praise and hype I had heard. The chicken was passable, neither exceptionally flavorful nor tender. It was an utterly forgettable meal that left me wondering what all the fuss was about.

This place charges a premium for what is essentially a simple and common meal. Dining here feels like an unnecessary splurge on your wallet without commensurate value in return.

Adding to the disappointment, this restaurant should consider placing toothpicks and floss outside the restroom, ensuring that customers have access to these amenities without any potential hygiene concerns. It is simply unacceptable to encounter a restroom where customers' personal hygiene items are mingled with fresh toothpicks and floss in the same space where hygiene matters. This small change could significantly enhance the overall dining experience.

What truly soured my experience, however, was the way the owners responded to customer feedback. When we left an honest review expressing our disappointment, we were met with arrogance and condescension. Instead of addressing the valid concerns we raised, they chose to turn our review into a joke and dismiss our opinions. Such behavior is not only unprofessional but also reflects a complete disregard for customer satisfaction.

In conclusion, this place is overrated, overpriced, and marred by arrogant ownership. The chicken rice, which is the main attraction, is nothing to brag about and certainly not worth the premium price. Additionally, the hygiene lapse I encountered and the owners' dismissive attitude toward customer feedback are simply unacceptable. There are plenty of other dining options in the area that offer equally satisfying food at a much more affordable price and with better customer service. I strongly advise against wasting your time and money here; it's a culinary letdown, an overhyped disappointment, and an unfortunate example of...