Melaka Trip Part 1: Hoe Kee Chicken Rice Ball, Jonker Street, Melaka

Recently, I was invited on a weekend trip to Melaka. The main purpose of the trip was to meet up with some friends from my old university but being Malaysian, food never strays far from our sights. First stop for us was Hoe Kee, which we loved from our last visit to Melaka.

Sights on the way to Hoe Kee: Peddler in his element.

Hoe Kee is located right at the tip of Jonker Street and is well-known to locals and tourists alike. Hoe Kee is famed for its ball-shaped Hainanese chicken rice, smooth steeped chicken and Assam fish. This trip round we didn't go for the fish as it would have been slightly too heavy on the stomach.

There was already a queue forming outside the restaurant as we passed the restaurant in our car. As it turned out, our strategy of putting down 2 passengers to line up paid dividends, as after parking our car, a huge U-line had formed outside the restaurant. Orders were taken while waiting in line to shorten serving time.

The cooking station

"Warning" for customers expecting nothing but balls

The restaurant is beautifully preserved showing traces of its heritage from the old days with wooden chairs, marble tables, large plaques with chinese characters and floating lanterns above our heads.

The courtyard

Our food arrived in about 5 minutes, which was fantastic news for our tummies. The chicken was silky smooth albeit being slightly fatty. The plate of chicken also included some chicken liver (which we never asked for) which none of us at the table ate. I'll make it a point to specify our preferences on our order for any future trips. The chicken rice was good, fragrant from the inclusion of chicken stock in the rice. They are shaped in golf-sized balls, originally done to keep the rice warm for longer.

Silky smooth chicken

Rice balls. We ordered 30 to share, each ball costing RM0.30.

Vegetables to balance out the meal.

All in all it was a pleasant meal, this being one of Melaka's most famous food establishments. Next stop: desserts!

Opening hours: Open for lunch.

Service: Prompt and efficient.

Price: RM43.30 for a 5 person portion plus drinks. Reasonable.

Location: Nasi Ayam Hoe Kee, 4, 6, 8 Jalan Hang Jebat, 75200 Melaka.

Tel: 06-2834751 or 012-6238431

GPS Coordinates: 2.197306, 102.246006


*This is a guest post by The Unc.