Tucked in a quiet commercial area in Bandar Puteri Puchong, Qian Xi Lou Restaurant is a fuss-free Chinese restaurant that serves decent dai chow and other Chinese-style dishes at value-for-money prices. The shop is air-conditioned but no frills, with about five tables made to accommodate larger groups inside, and two more outdoors.

I have dined here on several occasions, and the food was always served fast and hot.

What we Tried

• Claypot tofu with seafood and vegetables. The ingredients were fresh and well seasoned, and the consistency was not starchy.
• Deep fried pork marinated in nam yu (red fermented bean curd) was my favourite of the night. The ratio of lean and fat was perfect, the exterior was crispy, and the meat was tender and well marinated, with the nam yu giving it a creamy, earthy taste.
• The salt and pepper squid was excellent, springy and bouncy in texture, coated in a light and crispy batter, and seasoned well.
• Stir fried noodles came chock full of vegetables, egg, slices of Chinese sausage, and shrimp.

On another occasion during Mother’s Day, we tried other items on the menu – and was again impressed by the consistency of flavours. Service was fast and efficient. We ordered a soup, and one dish each of meat, chicken, and seafood.

The soup was a hearty, belly-warming concoction comprised of chicken broth, sliced mushrooms, carrots, and faux crab meat, with a slightly starchy consistency, similar to egg drop soup. There’s something inherently nostalgic about this style of soup; it reminds me of Chinese wedding dinners in jao laos.

Next came the poached chicken in soy sauce. The chicken is the kampung variety ie not raised in a poultry farm, so it has slightly tougher, leaner meat. The texture was still very smooth and tender, though. My parents prefer the one from Kong Sai Zai, but I like this one better as it has more chew. The dish came served with ginger and scallion oil for a spicy kick.

Another meat dish we got was the deep fried pork ribs, done in two styles. The ribs were meaty and chewy; one done in a savoury Marmite-like sauce and the other in a sweet and creamy Thousand Island sauce. Both were good, although I prefer the latter flavour.

The star of the meal was the steamed seafood platter, which was kept warm over a small gas stove. It contained a butterflied fish (calculated by weight), gigantic river prawns, a generous amount of squid, as well as clams and huge scallops. Everything tasted fresh, and the mild broth it was served in had a nice hint of garlic, ginger, and rice wine, which brought out the natural sweetness of the seafood even more. I especially liked the shrimps, as they were juicy and sweet, as well as the scallops, which were humongous and came with sacs of bright orange roe attached.

Be prepared to shell out (pun intended) some money for the platter – ours was priced at over RM300. To be fair, seafood is very expensive these days, and I think they give you your money’s worth, what with the size + portions of the shrimp and scallops. This time around, the meal for five plus rice and drinks came up to RM480.

Overall, portions are hefty, prices are reasonable, and the food is fresh and cooked well.

QIAN XI LOU

21, Jalan Puteri 7/9, Bandar Puteri, 47100 Puchong, Selangor

Open daily : 11AM – 10PM

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All food reviews are paid out of the author’s own pocket unless otherwise stated. All views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not constitute an endorsement or criticism of any business, establishment, product, or service mentioned. Every experience is personal and may not reflect the views of others.