Sg Besi Wan Tan Mee @ Sungai Besi

I finally decided to seek out this famous wantan mee stall after coming across an article written by The Star (more than a year ago!)...well, better late than never.  It was the article's (as well as some other blogs) positive reviews that tempted me to come and try.

I'm talking about the Sg Besi Wan Tan Mee @ Sungai Besi.  We reached there slightly after 6.30 pm (the time I thought they'd be opened based on the info provided by the newspaper article) but noticed some tables had already finished the meal (it seems they now operate from 6 pm).

From the name of their stall, it's obvious that wantan mee is their speciality.  As our total bill came to RM38.70, I do not know the individual prices for some of the dishes we ate.  All the noodle dishes can be ordered in portion sizes of small, medium or large.  We ordered a plate of char siew/siew yoke wantan mee to start (just char siew wantan mee alone is RM6.80 while roast pork wantan mee is RM7.50 for small).

The char siew we got was very meaty and lean, similar to most standard wantan mee stalls in a typical coffee shop environment (maybe I was supposed to make a request for pun fei sau or a half-lean-half-fat ratio as the photos I saw online looked far better).

The siew yoke turned out to be a disappointment...the meat wasn't very tender and the crackling wasn't very crispy either.  The siew yoke came with such glowing reviews that I actually wanted to order a plate of it on its own initially (luckily I didn't) when I read that the siew yoke was served piping hot as the owner would roast them in-house in small batches to ensure freshness (maybe that was how it was done a year ago but the one I tasted was neither hot nor juicy).

I went for the char siew/chicken feet wantan mee (the price for just chicken feet wantan mee is RM7.50) but no prices stated on the menu for combos.  My plate also had lean char siew slices.  But I shall refrain from passing judgement until I've had the chance to taste their pun fei sau char siew.

As for the texture of the wantan mee, it's somewhere between soft with a good bite and not overly springy. The sauce wasn't oily but the flavour of it wouldn't land a spot in my list of favourite wantan mee to eat though.

The chicken feet also comes highly recommended as the owner deep-fries them herself instead of buying ready-made ones from the market.  I actually prefer chicken feet that are just braised, not fried and then braised.  I did appreciate the freshness and soft texture of the chicken feet but felt it could be braised longer.  I like my chicken feet so well braised until the skin is literally falling apart (like the ones from Char Siew Yoong)...perhaps not so pretty to look at but pretty darn good to eat! :P

Both our plates of wantan mee were served without any wantans which was kinda strange.  I would have thought that, by default, wantans would be included (it's called wantan mee for a reason!) and need not be requested.  Maybe, it was because we had asked for an extra topping in each plate that they decided not to give us any wantans. >_<  Or maybe we were supposed to tell them we wanted wantans (the wantans cost RM0.50 for one in the menu).

We went with a side order of fried dumpling @ RM1.20 a piece.  The dumplings didn't felt like they were fried to order as they didn't arrive piping hot or super crispy.  They were probably fried ahead of time and so lost a bit of that crispiness around the filling.

The fried dumplings were accompanied by a immensely refreshing chilli dip that had the perfect balance of spicy and sour notes.  They nailed this chilli dip and I'd even say it's better than what many roasted meat stalls provide.  The pickled green chillies I didn't care for as they were too thickly sliced and had not been pickled long enough.  It's a rare commodity to find a cooked ma lai chan lat chiew (sambal belacan) on the table that allowed customers to help themselves to however much they want.  Stalls usually wouldn't be that generous as the plentiful dried prawns (which are expensive) made this a very fragrant belacan.  The soup base was alright but not good enough for me to consider ordering the soup version of wantan mee.

The distinction between this wantan mee stall and other wantan mee stalls is that they offer a few types of toppings not usually found in other wantan mee stalls.  The toppings include chee kiok chou (black vinegar pork trotters), Hakka char yoke (braised pork belly with wood ear fungus) and sang chee yoke kar li (wild boar curry).

Since we didn't order a separate plate of roasted meat (siew yoke specifically), we were able to order a plate of wild boar curry @ RM10 (small, RM15 for big) to share instead.

This was a very good plate of absolutely tender wild boar meat, a little oily but good (forgivable even, after all a curry needs its oil).  The curry had the right amount of spiciness with a hint of sweetness and creaminess from the coconut milk. ^o^

I ordered the kat chai suen mui or limau assam boi (lime & sour plum juice) @ RM4 but the drink tasted (and looked) more like sar lay suen mui or kedondong juice (umbra juice) which I loved even more.  This refreshing drink was thickly-flavoured with a real sourish kick...very appetite-inducing indeed! ^.^

My Personal Opinion

Although my wantan mee experience didn't turn out to be all that positive, it was still decent by many standards.  Personally, it was just alright for me but not deserving enough to be on my list of favourite wantan mee to eat.  When all is said and done, the wild boar curry single-handedly turn the tide on the satisfaction level of this meal.

That in itself is enough to make me return...plus their tasty umami dried shrimp sambal and fresh chilli dip would help its cause too.  Seeing how successful their wild boar curry was, I'm eager to try their chicken curry and curry mee to see if they're just as good.  I'm eager to see how their curry laksa fares against my benchmark.

I can understand their popularity given their niche market as a late night supper joint.  Where else can one find wantan mee opened till the wee hours of the morning (like 3am).  This is a wantan mee shop that doesn't just focus on roasted meats but whose speciality lies in the various toppings you can have with your wantan mee.

Sg Besi Wan Tan Mee
302 & 304 Jalan Sungai Besi
57100 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-9222 8177