Mee First

 

We didn't include this photo in our portrait round-up of Penang, but it seems appropriate to begin at the beginning.

Just the thought of Penang makes our stomachs rumble, so even before we boarded our plane in KL Dave and I were weighing first-bite options. By the time our (late) flight arrived we had missed lunch, but we were too early for dinner. A plate of mee goreng split between the two seemed like just the thing to tide us over. 

I don't suppose I'm qualified to pronounce Hameed's mee goreng the Best In Penang, but it is pretty darned fabulous, certainly one of the best versions we've ever had in Malaysia.

 

Hameed is a serious dude - by which I mean he's totally focused on his fry pan. No time for chit-chat or posed photos here. He has to maintain his concentration because the orders come in thick and fast at his stall in Kota Selera, the food court next to Georgetown's Fort Cornwallis. Hameed is in perpetual motion, flying from stove to plating counter and back again a half dozen times a minute.

In addition to mee goreng (your choice of fried beehoon, thick yellow mee, or wide rice koayteow), he also serves mee rebus.

He starts with a perfectly cooked bed of noodles - tomatoey with a not-too-harsh but quite robust creeping chili burn, slight sweetness balanced by a bit of bitter char flavor, well-coated with sauce but not gloppy - and tops them with crispy caramelized shallot and chopped scallion greens. 

   

Then he adds his piece de resistance: a blood red tangle of squid stewed in a thick sauce made from ground dried chilies that he roasts himself. The flavor of the sauced squid echoes that of the noodles but is deeper, richer. The two together are a match made in heaven. Or hell, I suppose, if chili's not your thing (Even if it isn't, don't be deterred - this mee goren'gs slow burn is nothing like the sharp bite of a super-spicy Thai dish).

 

We must have watched at least twenty-five plates of mee goreng fly by our table before we were served our own, a torture justifed when we finally dug in.

 

Hameed Mee Sotong, Kota Selera next to Fort Cornwallis, 12-8pm (closed Sunday). Be sure to specify mee sotong (indicate which noodle you'd like) or mee rebus sotong to get your pile of squid.

Comments

[nova bennett]

This is what I miss about Asia and my country.... Thanks Robyn and Dave...

[KY]

ooo absolute sin, I love it!

[Pete]

Even though I don't really take chillies or like spicy food, your photos/write-up on Hameed looked so absolutely fabulous, I won't be able to resist trying it on my next trip to Penang!

[Andrew Samtoy]

"I don't suppose I'm qualified to pronounce Hameed's mee goreng the Best In Penang, but it is pretty darned fabulous, certainly one of the best versions we've ever had in Malaysia."

THANK YOU FOR THIS. One of my biggest pet peeves is when someone declares something "the best/worst ________" (i.e., "the best Mexican food in California," or "the tastiest cabernet ever") as if they have a completely universal and objective opinion. Admitting that you are possibly not qualified to declare a subjective opinion objective is incredibly refreshing. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!

[Rasa Malaysia]

I have never tried this but I love Bangkok Lane mee goreng, and before that, it was Edgecumbe Road mee goreng when I was in high school.

[mycookinghut]

nice!!!!!!

[Saida]

You just kill me right there Robin.......... aaahhhh mee mamak. I can only dream for it here in the cold midwest.

[Jason]

If only you could spend a day with that guy and learn his secrets.

[steph]

oh, for a good mee rebus.

[Siva]

Thank you for this! Damn, I miss Malaysia.