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The messy Lai Foong's interior is the ideal setting to indulge in classic kopitiam fare: the breakfast of champions, retro Straits Settlements style.

Lai Foong's iconic beef noodle soup comes in huge steaming bowls; Pauline enumerates the contents. "Flat rice noodles, beef bouillon, beef slices - and in Chinese culture nothing is wasted, so you have cow's tripe, intestines, it's all in there," says Pauline.


"Sometimes they serve penis as well." (Believers in traditional Chinese medicine swear by bull penis' aphrodisiac and revitalizing properties.)

Other beef soup ingredients include bouncy beef balls; spring onions; fried lard tidbits; and salted Chinese vegetables. Tiny saucers of chili paste are served on the side, for spice-loving diners to add as they please.

"The secret to the noodles' [flavor is] pork fat," Pauline confides. The liberal use of pork fat may turn off health nuts, but Pauline thinks complainers could use some perspective. "If you're going to continue eating processed food, if you continue eating McDonalds, then what's a little pork fat?"

Bitter Coffee, Just as the Old-Timers Like It

Diners looking for a more Spartan (yet no less traditional) breakfast can order Lai Foong's coffee; Pauline orders us "kopi o kosong, gao" and translates for our benefit - "'kopi', coffee; 'o', no milk; 'kosong', no sugar; 'gao', extra strong!"

Another cup contains a mysterious dark brew; Pauline invites me to taste it.

"It's 'cham' - a Hokkien word, meaning 'mixed'," Pauline explains. "Basically it's a mix of coffee and tea."

Malaysian kopitiam coffee is invariably brewed from locally-grown beans, a relatively rare coffee species called Liberica. Mild Arabica coffee beans can't hold a candle to Liberica's caffeine load per bean, but the added kick makes a bitter-tasting brew. To counter the taste, kopitiam brewers have learned to fry beans with margarine and sugar before grinding them.

"[Malaysian] grandfathers are passionate about this drink," Pauline tells us. "It's more affordable as well."

A bland but familiar dish accompanies the bitter coffee: sticks of toast slathered with margarine and that Malaysian/Singaporean favorite, kaya. At Lai Foong, Pauline tells us, "There are two types of kaya and bread - one is toasted like this, the other is steamed."

Pauline shows us another suggested partner for our kopi o kosong: a round pastry filled with lotus seed paste, cut in half to show off the filling. "The lotus seed paste is mixed with preserved eggs, century eggs," Pauline explains. "So it's a whole combination of sweet, salty, savory, and a bit of sour. It's a strange pastry, but a lot of people like it!"

A Wide Range of Traditional Kopitiam Fare

We had neither the time nor the intestinal real estate to sample the full range of Lai Foong's culinary repertoire; to sample the kopitiam's other fan favorites, you'll have to pay it a visit yourself. Go there and explore: char kway teow, rat's tail noodles, Hainanese chicken rice, and wan tan mee compete for your attention. The beef noodle soup is good, but is by no means the only star of the show.

A meal at Lai Foong will set you back $2 to $4, but a meal at the upper range will leave you sated for the rest of the day.

• Address: 138 Jalan Tun H.S. Lee, Kuala Lumpur (Location on Google Maps)
• Phone: +60 3 2072 8123
• Opening hours: 6:30am to 4:30pm