KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 — In the world of Indonesian noodle dishes, mee soto tends to be eclipsed by bakso, its cousin with the bouncy meatballs.
Once you taste a good bowl of mee soto though, you will agree with me that it’s waiting in the wings to stage a huge comeback.
That’s why Soto King deserves a big pat on the back for giving this understated bowl a proper stage to shine.
Opened in March, mee soto is celebrated with all kinds of toppings here, allowing you to create the ultimate bowl.
It’s not just chicken or beef, there’s also an unheard of pairing with fried fish, in a bid to make this dish more inclusive.
Bovine lovers can also enjoy variations with beef balls, tendon, tripe and brisket too.
Soto Daging with tender sliced beef and beef broth is for beef lovers. — Picture by Lee Khang Yi
Soto Ayam King (RM13) is the way to go for the traditional pairing of chicken with that broth layered with flavours from those earthy spices and herbs.
Traditionally served with yellow mee, here one can go crazy with a whopping eight choices with your broth.
Some are traditional pairings like the mee, nasi impit or compressed rice and even beehoon.
Here, you get unusual yee mee or even pan mee, usually used in Chinese dishes. There’s also rice and mee tarik too.
The chicken broth has a warmth to it from the coriander and cumin seeds.
It’s topped with peanuts, bean sprouts, juicy chicken meat, begedil, chopped coriander and spring onions.
Begedil is a must for this noodle soup, as that soft mashed potato patty mixed with that soothing broth, makes the whole eating experience even more pleasurable.
Soto Daging (RM15) is for those who prefer a deeper beef broth, topped with tender slices of beef.
Remember to squeeze the lime and add a dollop of their chilli kicap to change the flavour profile of your broth, infusing it with the spicy-sweet flavours, making it even more drinkable if you love tingly spiciness on the tongue.
Dining is comfortable and even the service here is top notch. — Picture by Lee Khang Yi
While the menu is dominated by the mee soto, one can also find Ayam Penyet and Mee or Nasi Kari Ayam here.
Variations for pan mee are also served here, with soup, dry or the numbing mala flavour.
Even the beef soup can be tweaked with mala.
For weekdays, there’s a set lunch ranging from RM16.90 to RM19.90, where one can select Soto Ayam King, Soto Bebola Daging, Soto Daging or Ayam Penyet with a drink and two pieces of fried wantans.
As they start early, breakfast items like toast, nasi lemak, fried noodles and a Western fry-up can also be ordered.
Located inside Aurora Place, it’s comfortable air-conditioned dining, a must when you’re slurping down that bowl of mee soto in this crazy heat.
The restaurant is walking distance from Pavilion Bukit Jalil. — Picture by Lee Khang Yi
Soto King,
A-01-03, Aurora Place,
Plaza Bukit Jalil,
1, Persiaran Bukit Jalil 1,
Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur.
Open: 8am to 9pm (Monday to Friday), 10am to 9pm (Saturday and Sunday)
Tel: 017-4691131
Instagram: @sotoking_0103
Facebook: Soto King
* This is an independent review where the writer paid for the meal.
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