AYER TAWAR (Perak), June 3 — We love road trips, especially if they bring us to our destination via small towns and villages that we’d otherwise not visit. Each new place offers opportunities for discoveries, as our tastebuds (and bellies) will often attest.

Ayer Tawar is one such happy stopover during a longer journey. Situated 60 kilometres from Ipoh, this rural town is surrounded by oil palm plantations and more than a few durian orchards. There is a sizeable population of Hock Chew people, which colours the style of cooking here.

Fancying some lunch, we spot Restoran Sun Hon Siong along Ayer Tawar’s main thoroughfare. A corner lot shophouse built of wood, it fits the image of an old-fashioned, small town restaurant beloved by generations of residents. Inside the walls are painted a faded shade of turquoise and ceiling fans spin at a leisurely pace.

Restoran Sun Hon Siong is located inside an old wooden shophouse

Regulars at Restoran Sun Hon Siong are mainly Ayer Tawar residents

This is not a place for fast food; even a "quick” one-dish lunchtime meal is meant to be lingered over, much less the slightly gluttonous number of dishes we’ve ordered for just two people to share. Regulars take their time to chat with the restaurant staff; there’s no hurry to place an order, surely?

One of Sun Hon Siong’s little quirks is their beverage of choice. Usually at a daichow or Chinese restaurant, there will be some homemade brews such chrysanthemum tea (júhuā chá), Buddha’s fruit with dried longan (luóhànguǒ guìyuán chá) or herbal tea (liángchá).

Here they only have one cooling Chinese drink and that’s their signature barley water (yìmǐ shuǐ). What’s unusual is how the barley water is bottled. When our drinks arrives at our table, we wonder if they got our order wrong: we ordered barley, not beer.

There’s no mistake. Apparently this is one of the ways a small town engages in recycling: the barley water comes inside repurposed beer bottles. It’s great for the environment and quite fun to pour. (Don’t worry, there’s no alcoholic residue at all; the bottles are washed quite clean.)

Sweet and sour fish fillets (suān tián yú piàn) that tastes of grandmother’s cooking (left). Bitter gourd scrambled eggs (kuguā chao dàn) (right)

Enjoy some barley water (yìmi shui) poured from a recycled beer bottle (left). Momo buns with alternating layers of peanut and red bean filling (right)

Two bowls, chockful of greens and slices of fishcake, arrive in rapid succession after an easy wait punctuated with snippets of conversations from nearby tables. The Hock Chew fried noodles (Fúzhōu chǎo zhǔ miàn) is not unlike loh mee, albeit rather generous in its portion and without a strong vinegar flavour. For anyone under the weather, the creamy Hock Chew tofu soup (Fúzhōu dòufu gēng) would nourish and comfort.

The pièce de résistance is the sweet and sour fish fillets (suān tián yú piàn). Sweet and sour flavours are typical of Hock Chew cuisine and this dish exemplifies that style admirably. Every piece of crispy fish, coated in a thin batter then fried, is slick with that trademark gravy. The addition of fried potato wedges and thickly-sliced cucumber gives every mouthful a taste of grandmother’s cooking.

We finish off with some bitter gourd scrambled eggs (kǔguā chǎo dàn), to get a little more greens. This isn’t on their menu as it’s subject to availability of the vegetable at the pasar pagi. We’re glad they included it in their morning market haul because the tinge of wok hei on each piece of translucent green bitter gourd — flash fried to perfection — is a rare pleasure indeed.

Shuan Fu is famous for their fluffy momo buns

After such a hearty lunch, you’d be forgiven if you imagine there couldn’t possibly be any room for more. But given we’re passing through this town so briefly, it’d be a pity not to look for a tasty treat to bring home with us. Something to remember Ayer Tawar by or, you know, in case we get hungry during the drive back.

The famous momo buns at Shuan Fu fit the bill perfectly. Located behind the police station, the shop is nondescript other than the towers of bamboo steamers visible from the entrance. These are for steaming the momo (its name in the Hock Chew dialect).

Made with a batter similar to that used for fatt koh, these buns (also known as zhěntou bāo or "pillow buns”) have multiple layers of ground peanuts or red bean paste. Shuan Fu also makes some light and airy steamed brown sugar cakes (zhēng huáng táng gāo), but everyone comes here for the fluffy momo buns.

Bamboo steamers used for steaming the buns

Given the name of the shop means "double happiness” in Chinese (shuāng fú), we decide to double our pleasure in savouring these buns by choosing the double flavoured version. Alternating layers of peanut and red bean filling: there’s no such thing as too much of a good thing, we reckon.

And we have to confess that, despite our best intentions to bring some momo back for breakfast the next day, we finished every last one during the journey home!

Restoran Sun Hon Siong

142, Main Road, Ayer Tawar, Perak

Open daily 10am – 10pm; closed alternate Mondays

Tel: 05-672 6544

Shuan Fu

214, 5 Kampung Baru Ayer Tawar, Ayer Tawar, Perak

Open daily 12:30pm-5pm

Tel: 016-738 8793