No Name Seafood Restaurant

Remember the name, or lack thereof.

Interesting name for a restaurant, eh? Do not be fooled by the unassuming name. No Name is a name you ought to remember.

No Name is the kind of restaurant you would not stumble upon, unless you got lost in one of the housing areas deep in the heart of Pengkalan where it happens to be in. Dad found out about the restaurant from a friend, who happens to be the father of the restaurant owner.

If I am not mistaken, the first time I had dinner at No Name was back in 2007. Back then it was a single shop, with few customers and a friendly lady boss standing at the counter near the entrance of the shop greeting customers with a sincere smile; today, the shop is twice the size and so is the crowd, but the lady boss is still there with her signature smile. Some things have changed but the excellent quality of the food stays.

The older half of No Name.

That should be enough background information.

We usually dine at No Name with family friends. Today, however, there are only four people dining, hence the limited number of dishes I can review.

Fried Choi-tam (Brussels sprouts)

First up is the fried choi-tam. I have tasted better but this one is above average I would say. Nothing much to say here.

Deep-fried egg tofu with minced pork.

A common dish found in most, if not all Chinese restaurants, deep-fried egg tofu with minced pork. Many restaurants can achieve a delicate balance between crispy tofu skin and a soft interior. However, No Name takes it up a notch with the secret sauce which makes this dish put those of other restaurants to shame. The minced meat is also just right. Moist and juicy from being soaked in a light amount of the savoury sauce, the minced meat makes a perfect complement for the less salty tofu. This dish is definitely a must-eat.

Steamed pomfret.

I would not call No Name's steamed fish the best, but it is definitely one of the better. Usually, steamed fish is drenched in sauce that can match the saltiness of brine. No Name's fish sauce is a bit light on the palette, but nowhere near bland. However, for today, which is out of the ordinary, the fish lacked freshness.

The flagship dish: fried crabs with salted egg yolk.

Last but not least, No Name's signature fried crabs with salted egg yolk. Words cannot describe accurately how good this dish tastes. For years, No Name has been the benchmark for this dish and it still is so. It is hard if not impossible to delineate the wonderful burst of flavours as the tongue comes into contact with a full pinch of solid, fresh crab meat dipped into the buttery yet chunky salted egg yolk sauce. This dish is by far the most superior among that of all restaurants I have ever ordered this dish at. It is, for a lack of a better word, epic. It is most definitely the best thus far. Enough said.

The next best thing, or the best thing if you are a cheapskate, is the price. The meal cost us RM125.50 including rice and drinks. We paid RM38 for two crabs, RM66.50 for a huge pomfret, RM8 for the tofu and RM6 for the choi-tam.

The downside of having a dinner at No Name is definitely the fact that the restaurant is so hard to find. Had No Name been in a less secluded location, the business would be better by leaps and bounds. On the flip side, there might be a compromise in quality if there is a crowd. I guess you cannot have the best of both worlds.

Restoran Makanan Laut No Name

No. 20, Jalan Pengkalan Indah 5,

Bandar Pengkalan Indah,

31650 Ipoh,

Perak.

Tel: 017-5088523/012-5673115