Ho Kow Hainan Kopitiam Hainanese Coffee Petaling Street KL

Ho Kow Hainan Kopitiam – A Traditional Hainanese Coffee Shop in Petaling Street that’s been operating for more than 60 years! I’ve been meaning to check out this old-style Kopitiam at Lorong Panggung but I skipped so many times because the queue is insanely long! It is situated just a throw stones away from the Historical Kwai Chai Hong.

Decided to give it a try one fine weekday with a friend and as anticipated we were greeted by a queue. Glad that it wasn’t long maybe because we came on a weekday around 9 am-ish. Didn’t expect that they do have a machine to get a number – quite systematic! It’s not grueling as I thought it would be to get a table. They managed it well despite the crowd.

The counter is as busy as a bee. Luckily, the table that was prearranged to us was located upstairs. Totally change the overall atmosphere – quiet, retro, and with a historical vibe. The food menu is not like any other. The newspaper style food menu blew me away looking at the ultimate local favorites, I seriously don’t know where to begin.

Started off with the classic Nasi Lemak. The chicken skin is crunchy, and the meat is soft. The sambal is salty, slightly spicy and a little sweet. I think the saltiness is overpowering just the way I like it. Who can’t resist the Butter and Kaya Toast? It’s a definitive Hainanese breakfast, so we gave in to it along with the soft-boiled eggs. The toast is crispy with a smooth texture not to mention very aromatic. Ho Kow Hainan Kopitiam Classic Hainan Cham is a must! Don’t leave the Kopitiam without trying this!

Ho Kow Hainan Kopitiam Butter Kaya Toast

Surprisingly, the Ho Kow Hainam Kopitiam staff move fast in clearing the table, and they served the food quickly, too. Making the food still hot. Impressive! It’s not easy to maintain a legacy but the effortlessness, quality, and authenticity of the Kopitiam is undeniably remarkable.