A KL franchise that arrived on our shores more than 2 years ago, the simply yet aptly named Chilli Pan Mee may perhaps serve the best version I’ve tasted here so far.

Half the fun is in thoroughly mixing the bowl laden with a mass of fried shallots, crisp ikan bilis, spring onions, minced meat and poached egg into the pleasingly al-dente and toothsome noodles to create a melange of utmost umami that’s greater than the sum of its singular parts.

The egg yolk, chilli oil and lard make a great makeshift sauce to coat the noodles in, and the jar of dry chilli mix on every table means you can tailor the level of spiciness to your own liking. A little goes a long as the aromatic chilli packed a tongue-tingling punch.

Of note as well was the bowl of wolfberry leaf soup on the side that serves to cleanse the palate and extinguish the heat between slurps of noodles.

Taste: 4/5