Yu Kee Restaurant – Bak Kut Teh

74 Gaya Street, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah

Yu Kee restaurant is a speciality restaurant in Kota Kinabalu’s Gaya Street that serves a local, Chinese favourite called bak kut teh, which literally translates as pork tea.

What bak kut teh actually is, is a fragrant, clear herbal soup and the collection of pork parts and dishes that can be ordered in combination with it.

At first, perhaps, the untrained palette might find the herbal richness of the soup a little foreign, but to try bak kut teh is to love it – even if it is only after the 3rd of 4th try.

Although there are many places in Kota Kinabalu where to enjoy a warming session of bak kut teh (for that reason very popular on rainy days), Yu Kee is one of the restaurants that serves small, separate portions, as opposed to other restaurants, which may serve all the elements in one pot.

Of course, there are various camps that would debate the virtues of either approach, but SabahBah feels Yu Kee’s way is best for the culinary explorer foreign to this cuisine.

Mushrooms, meatballs, pork ribs, pork belly and char kui (a savoury fried dough) are good accompaniments to the bak kut teh, which is served with tofu on the side and goes great with rice.

For the more adventurous eater, perhaps pig ear and intestines might appeal, actually tasting a lot better than you might imagine. A bit of heart, lung or liver is also on offer.

As with most Chinese restaurants, eating in groups works out cheaper per person, but a full table of bak kut teh with a hot or cold Chinese tea, might set you back RM15 – RM20 per person for a small group.

Yu Kee Restaurant - Bak Kut Teh General Info

• Seats: 100
• Avg. Meal: RM 15
• Serve Pork
• Outside Seats
• Smoking Area