I’ve heard very good things about Fatt Hei Len from a blog reader of mine, who also recommended the Chinese restaurant in Taman Shamelin to me. Fatt Hei Len is said to serve fancier Chinese dishes similar to what you’d get from those large Chinese restaurant groups.
Dining here requires a bit of planning. Table reservation is a must as I was told they would turn you away if you walk-in without one. Also, the portions for their signature dishes are meant for 6 pax and more, so it’s advisable to dine in a larger group.
My friends and I visited Fatt Hei Len very recently and ordered quite a number of their signature dishes, including the highly raved about Pau Heong rice with river prawns (RM350). Since there were 9 of us, we ordered 5 prawns (split into half).
Pau Heong rice with river prawns
I enjoyed this as the rice puffs were well-flavoured and the broth is sweet from the prawn stock and chopped vegetables. I’m generally not a fan of porridge texture so this dish is well-suited to my preference as it offers the comfort of a bowl of porridge with textural contrasts and flavours from the crispy rice, vegetables and prawns.
Pork intestines with dried shrimp
The pork intestines with dried shrimp was surprisingly delicious and addictive. I don’t eat intestines because of the odor and gaminess but the one at Fatt Hei Len was crunchy and odor-free, which plenty of umami from the dried shrimp and garlic. This was one of my favourite dishes that night.
Steamed patin with yellow rice wine
I had high expectations for the steamed patin with yellow rice wine but it was pretty average in my opinion. Granted there’s a good kick from the yellow rice wine, I thought the flavours overpowered the fish.
Yin Yang Pork Ribs
The yin yang pork ribs (RM70) were a tad dry for me – the seasoning was alright but I thought the meat cuts used could have been better. We got mostly bones with hardly any meat to chew on. Also, the “yin” version of this dish was sweet, which I didn’t enjoy.
Crispy chicken skin stuffed with fish paste
Fatt Hei Len serves several signature chicken dishes, and we decided to go with the crispy chicken skin stuffed with fish paste (RM100) as it’s a classic that’s hard to come by these days. Sadly, it was dry and hardly juicy, which made it difficult to eat.
Yam ring with buttermilk mantis prawn
Stir-fried sweet potato leaves
Yam ring with buttermilk mantis prawn (RM40) was quite good – yam was light in texture while the mantis prawns were rich from the buttermilk coating. No complaints about this dish. The vegetable available for that night was sweet potato leaves (RM30) so we asked for that to be stir-fried with garlic.
Pork tendon pot
The pork tendon pot (RM120) comes with mushroom, chicken feet and fish maw. Tendon was well-braised so it’s tender enough, without being too mushy. I don’t eat chicken feet but my friends who do seemed to enjoy it. That said, I prefer the pork tendon pot at Buddies over this.
Soy milk with white fungus
Dessert of the day was hot soy milk with white fungus (RM6). I didn’t eat this so I can’t comment about taste. Fatt Hei Len seems to have limited or no dessert, save for tong sui so if you’re expecting Chinese pancake or something of that equivalent, you’ll be disappointed.
Service isn’t great despite booking the private room. I find the staff impatient and grumpy in general, so bear that in mind if you’re planning to dine at Fatt Hei Len. Corkage charge is a nominal RM10 per bottle of wine which is odd since most Chinese restaurants don’t impose a corkage charge.
RM10 corkage charge per bottle
Our bill came up to RM1100 for all the above, which is a bit steep for the quality of food we got. In terms of taste, I wasn’t entirely impressed apart from the Pau Heong rice with river prawns and pork intestines. Parking can be challenging so be prepared to walk a little.
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Ambiance: 6.5/10
Price: 5.5/10
Food: 6/10 (non-halal)
Verdict: Only the Pau Heong rice and pork intestines stood out for me. The rest of the dishes were average in my opinion.
Do you have a food recommendation? Tell us!
Fatt Hei Len Restaurant
8, Jalan 30a/119,
Taman Taynton View,
56000 Cheras,
Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: 016-218 2382
Business hours: 11.30am till 3pm, 5.30pm till 10pm