There are several coffee shops around Gaya Street in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, selling various types of bak kut teh (or pork ribs soup, 肉骨茶), which are popular delicacies in both Singapore and Malaysia.
Sin Kee Bak Kut Teh (新记肉骨茶), located along Jalan Pantai, is one of those shops serving several styles of bak kut teh from claypot to original soup version to dry-style.
Sin Kee’s signature claypot bak kut teh is served with both pork ribs and belly meat in herbal soup, but I opted for pork ribs only with rice. The use of claypot enhanced the aroma of the pork ribs soup, which has a heavier herbal presence that is more prominent than the garlic-peppery Singapore Teochew-style but not as strong as the dark-herbal Hokkien-style.
The herbal soup with tender pork ribs is a different experience from the bak kut teh that I had tried before. It is not salty, not oily and deliciously addictive — I finished all the soup.
Sin Kee Bak Kut Teh has a newer branch in Plaza 333 in Penampang District, Sabah.
Address:
Sin Kee Bak Kut Teh (新记肉骨茶)
26, Jalan Pantai, Pusat Bandar Kota Kinabalu, 88000 Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
Opening Hours:
12pm - 9:30pm | Daily