IPOH, Jan 9 — Let me start by reiterating my feelings toward Nyonya laksa that I’ve made known in the past — I’m not a huge fan.
I usually prefer the stronger, more intense flavours found in KL-style curry laksa or even Ipoh dry curry mee.
Though the broth in Nyonya laksa is often very, very rich with santan and full of fresh, herbal aromatics like turmeric, galangal, and lemongrass, the fiery, full-bodied chilli and the distinct flavour of curry leaf in curry laksa just speak to me on a deeper level.
It isn’t just the broth either.
Nyonya laksa’s lighter toppings — like julienned cucumber, finely chopped daun kesum, prawns, and a few fish cakes — don’t quite compare to the satisfying indulgence of curry laksa.
Long beans, bean sprouts, fried tofu pok, chicken (strips or poached), blood cockles, and, if you’re feeling lucky, crispy, salty siew yoke or melty char siu.
That’s the kind of rich and savoury excess I’ll come to regret in 20 years' time, and I’m all for it.
So you can picture my intrigue when I read about Lim Ji Nyonya Laksa in Bercham, Ipoh.
They’ve been around for more than a decade, starting out in Simpang Pulai before moving to a house here in Bercham.
Today, they’re located in Kedai Makanan dan Minuman Kam Men, right next to the house they operated out of for nearly 10 years.
The first thing that stood out to me: Ipoh, a city known for its dry curry, isn’t exactly a hotspot for this style of noodles.
Second thing: every picture I came across online showed bowls of noodles in a bright-red curry broth, topped with plump cockles and hunks of siew yoke.
No fish cakes, no prawns, no cucumber — the only clue to its Nyonya designation was some finely chopped daun kesum (laksa leaf).
There are other variations, but Nyonya laksa with siew yoke and siham (RM14.80) is the most popular order.
It looked exactly as pictured, but I still didn’t know what to expect.
Would it taste more like Nyonya or curry laksa?
And if it leaned toward the former, could this curious marriage of Nyonya laksa with KL-style toppings actually work?
The answer to the first question: a bit of both.
It had the zingy, grassy notes of daun kesum, typical in Nyonya laksa, but imagine the spiciest version you’ve ever had, then crank it up a notch.
The broth was laced — no, submerged — in a thick layer of fiery red oil that left me sputtering and coughing on the first sip.
In my defense, this was my first taste of anything that morning, after unwisely deciding to skip water during the drive from KL.
And the toppings? Of course, they worked.
The juicy, iron-rich cockles played beautifully against the broth’s herbaceous kick, while the siew yoke was everything it needed to be, unapologetically: fatty, salty, and crispy.
Any broth that’s spicy and rich is a match made in heaven for it.
As this is still Ipoh, Lim Ji also offers a pretty good dry curry mee, which you can top with siew yoke and siham as we did for RM13.50.
It’s far from the most robust and complex dry curry I’ve had, but it was thick with a slightly sweet finish.
If you like that flavour profile, the chicken curry (RM6.50) is another good side option — thick and hearty, with plenty of potatoes and tender chicken.
Lim Ji Nyonya Laksa
893, Persiaran Bercham Timur 1, Kampung Bercham, Ipoh, Perak
Open daily, 7.30am-12.30pm. Closed on Thursdays.
Tel: 018-780 2199
Facebook: Lim Ji Nyonya Laksa
* This is an independent review where the writer paid for the meal.
** Follow us on Instagram @eatdrinkmm for more food gems.
*** Follow Ethan Lau on Instagram @eatenlau for more musings on food and mildly self-deprecating attempts at humour.
