Known as Market Street in the 1800s, Petaling Street was home to Chinese miners during the tin rush. Over the years, it evolved into a cultural melting pot, becoming one of Malaysia’s most popular tourist destinations.
While many stalls have ceased business over the decades, a handful remain to carry on the legacies of those who have come before them. FMT Lifestyle takes a stroll down Petaling Street to examine where past and present converge.
- Madam Tang’s Muah Chee
If you’ve ever been here, you would have heard the spirited shout of Madam Tang, or Tang Kwok Wang, famously known as the “muah chee queen”. Now, her signature call echoes only from a radio hanging at the stall.
Operating from 8am, the soft, chewy sweet treat made from glutinous-rice dough has been a part of Chinatown’s story for over 50 years.
Madam Tang, 79, passed away in 2023. Today, her son and granddaughter carry on her legacy.
“Everyone who comes to Chinatown knows there will be a grandma here shouting in Mandarin, ‘Muah chee, come, muah chee!'” shared 25-year-old Tracy Liew, as she skilfully cut up muah chee alongside her father.
“Every night at home, I would watch my grandmother making it, and as a kid, I thought it was so squishy and cute.”
Her father Ben, 53, said the stall must remain for those who loved Madam Tang’s treats.
When she was in charge, it was all about the original peanut flavour. Now, the younger generation has added fun twists like black sesame, Ribena, mango, and lychee.
Learn more about Madam Tang Muah Chee on Instagram.
- Seong Ying Chai Bakery
Another longstanding gem is Seong Ying Chai Bakery, which was founded in 1935. It once ceased operations in 2016 but Leonard Lee, the founder’s grandson, revived it.
“Whenever I came back from school, I felt kidnapped – by my parents!” he said with a laugh. That’s because he and his brother would be tasked with preparing the next day’s dough for the confectionaries, and neither was allowed to sleep until the job was done.
Famous for their mooncakes, their top CNY bestseller is the Nyonya pineapple tarts, arguably among the best in Malaysia.
In the kitchen, elderly hands carry on the traditional way of making this treat, using a 70-year-old copper pot to cook the pineapple filling.
Lee, having grown up on Petaling Street, recalls fond memories of celebrating the festive season here.
“Chinese New Year in Petaling Street is the noisiest in the whole of KL,” he said, describing how lion dancers would perform so close to the crowd, one could actually touch them.
Check out Seong Ying Chai Bakery here.
- Petaling Street mural
These aren’t the only nods to the past: stalls like the popular Air Mata Kuching, Sze Ngan Chye Salted Roasted Duck, and Kien Fatt Medical Store – the latter founded in 1942 – have been around for decades.
Today, Petaling Street is a lively mix of food vendors and revitalised alleys. One mural, titled “Missing Stories of Petaling Street”, was inspired by real photographs of the iconic area from 1910 to 1950.
Head towards Lorong Petaling 2 and the timeline unfolds, showing cars replacing bullock carts, and highlighting unique occupations from the past, such as an elderly calligrapher helping to write letters to China, alongside other Chinese vendors.
“As Malaysians, we feel there’s a lack of knowledge about the history of our places,” artist Lee Yiang Siang of co2_mural told FMT Lifestyle.
“We wanted this mural to spark conversations between the elders and the younger generation about the past and how hard life was back then, so there would be more respect for our ancestors,” he concluded.
Get to know co2_mural on Instagram.