Overview

Nestled between Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s political capital, and Putrajaya, its administrative capital, Puchong is among the prime towns for property investment.

Property Development

Puchong, previously a rubber estate and tin-mining town in the 1960s, renovated its sprawling industrial regions to convert them into office buildings, commercial centres and residential areas, with rising numbers of houses and apartments for sale. These have mainly developed along Jalan Puchong.

Concentrated with many houses and apartments for sale, property in Puchong predominantly serves as residential areas for the three dominant cities (Kuala Lumpur, Subang Jaya and Petaling Jaya). Therefore, it is unsurprising that Puchong is scattered with multiple options for food and general shopping. Puteri Mart at Bandar Puteri functions as a wet market, and Town Park is a great spot for grocery shopping.

Amenities and Facilities

Restaurants in Puchong, apart from local delicacies, cover a wide range of cuisines – Western, Balinese, Japanese, Korean, Italian and Thai. 3 Wise Monkeys, famous for its Broken Heart Monkey Pizza and Melted Cheese Nachos and Bumbu Bali serving extensive, authentic dishes from the island of Bali are definitely worth a try.

Local and foreign owned shopping malls also spread across Puchong, including Tesco Puchong, Giant, Jusco, Puchong Parade, Puchong Plaza and IOI Mall. Located at the heart of Bandar Puchong Jaya, IOI Mall is equipped with a cinema multiplex and a bowling alley.

Business centres in Puchong include IOI Boulevard and SetiaWalk Puchong. SetiaWalk, unlike IOI Boulevard, which is mainly decked with retail and office units, has further shopping complexes, restaurants and cafes, an entertainment complex, and serviced apartments. Comparably, located within the hub of Bandar Puteri Puchong, The Cube is another thriving commercial development. These complexes provide services and serve expectations of Puchong’s contemporary society.

Puchong also provides amenities such as hospitals (Columbia hospital), schools and prominent banks, both local and foreign, which tend to hook property buyers.

Accessibility and Transportation

Puchong offers a couple of options in terms of transportation. The effortless, toll-free way to reach Puchong from Kuala Lumpur would be through Jalan Klang Lama or Bukit Jalil. If approaching from Putrajaya, the Lebuh Raya Damansara Puchong (LDP) would be a good choice with a toll fee of only RM1.60. From Shah Alam on the other hand, KESAS highway is available and from Subang Jaya, and the LDP is accessible via Bandar Sunway.

Having the LDP running across it, Puchong is very easily reached by car. A convenient aspect about this mode of transportation is that there is no necessity to pay toll within the Puchong area itself. On top of that, there are a number of entry and exits along the highway hence getting in and out of housing and commercial areas is relatively trouble-free.

Apart from that, Rapid KL and Metro bus services are distributed throughout Puchong. The LRT (Ampang line) is also looking to expand its extension to Puchong. Once this is completed, getting to Puchong from the major cities using public transportation would be a breeze.

A Tale of Food and Traffic Woes

Mention Puchong and more often than not, the conversation will turn to food as well as traffic woes — both of which are signs of a booming town. Said to be named after Burung Pucung, a type of heron, Puchong was once a rubber plantation and tin-mining town that was established in the early 20th century.

To delve into a bit of history, many local Chinese companies acquired mining companies in Puchong from the British after indepenence in 1957. In the mid-1980s, the collapse of international tin prices resulted in many residents and workers shifting to rubber and palm oil plantations. In the early 1990s, Puchong’s strategic location between Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya attracted a wave of development and led to a rapid rise in its population.

The growth of the area was further spurred when Putrajaya became the federal administrative capital while neighbouring Cyberjaya began to flourish.

There are many things to do in Puchong, from enjoying the outdoors at the Ayer Hitam Forest Reserve or Taman Wawasan, to sports activities at Spacerubix community centre or Kinrara Oval Cricket field.

However, the biggest draw for many would be the food. Puchong is known as a food paradise and a regular haunt of foodies and bloggers. It has a vast selection of eateries, especially in the busy commercial centres.

Bandar Puchong Utama offers many Chinese food options. Based on recommendations and reviews, here are some of the more popular eating spots.

A local favourite is Yap Chuan Restaurant, which is famous for its dry bak kut teh, though Puchong has many bak kut teh outlets.

Restoran Kari Kepala Ikan Tiga, also in Bandar Puchong Utama, is known for its steamed fish, especially its Specialty Steamed Seafood King — a steamed fish dish similar to the classic xiong tong la la (superior clam soup), topped with squid, prawns and clams. As its name proclaims, it is also well known for its signature curry fish head.

Along the same road is Patin Place, which serves brick oven-baked Patin fish in various styles, including Patin Ketuhar Tempoyak Pekat, a combination of fermented durian and Patin.

Puchong is also famous for yong tau foo. Puchong Yong Tau Fu and Kedai Mee Siew at Kampung Baru Puchong are among the top restaurants that whip up this Hakka treat.

At Pusat Bandar Puchong, Wai Kei Wantan Mee stall, which relocated from Fatt Kee restaurant to Everyday Food Court in Jalan Bandar 1, is a household name for its springy noodles and thick caramelised char siew.

For crab and seafood dishes, head to Fish Village Steamboat Restaurant in Pusat Bandar Puchong. Apart from crabs, other popular items include la la mee hoon and steamed prawns.

At bustling Bandar Puteri Puchong, Restaurant Fu Gua Thong is where bitter gourd fans flock to for the bitter gourd soup, chicken with black bean sauce and bitter gourd slices, and pork belly yam.

Among other food options is a wide selection of dim sum restaurants. At Foo Hing Dim Sum House in Jalan Puteri 2/6, one invariably finds long queues patiently waiting for a table to sample, among other treats, its Macau-inspired Portugese egg tarts. Over at Jalan Puteri 1/6 is another widely praised dim sum place, Jin Xuan.

Over at Bandar Bukit Puchong, Warung Cikgu’s Nasi Mmanggey draws the crowds. Commonly known as nasi kukus ayam berempah, the dish comprises steamed rice drenched in gulai ayam and topped with fried chicken pieces and sambal.

Apart from local treats Puchong also serves up a myriad of other cuisines, including Korean, Japanese and western, as well as other F&B options such as cafés and bars.