I can't really recall when, but I started to develop an addiction to pan mee (especially the dry type) a while back. Maybe it's the crunchy texture of the black fungus, mixed with a healthy dollop of dark soya sauce and a generous helping of crunchy pork bits which sealed the deal. Whatever it may be, this ranks as one of my favorite noodle dishes.

It's kinda hard to find good pan mee in Penang, and most would agree that the de-facto place to be would be near the flats close to Bukit Jambul. However, I am not exactly a fan of the portions there (even if you specify 大大 in your order, the portion is barely filling) and the al-fresco type setting beneath the trees are just begging the pigeons to unload their bombs while you're busy slurping away.

So, when CL read about this other pan mee place along the Jelutong expressway which received pretty good comments online, we decided to track it down and give it a try.

The aforementioned place is a small shop called I Mum Mum, which is hidden rather deep within the PDC flats at Pengkalan Weld. They specialize only in serving pan mee, but in a variety of styles as well as noodle types (fine, broad as well as 'hand-torn' variety of noodles).

There was only one person manning the actual kitchen, so service may be a little slower than usual. But it's ok since there weren't many tables around, and the late afternoon crowd wasn't that much either. The good thing about this place is although it's very stripped down like most hawker places in Penang, this spot is relatively clean, which is very welcomed.

The first dish which came was the Spicy Pan Mee. This is the dry variety which came with minimal dark soya sauce, additional meatballs and a huge serving of chilli flakes.  There was a heavy hint of Chinese cooking wine, which lent a very appetizing aroma to the dish. It isn't exactly very spicy as expected, so you might want to add more chilli paste to give it more kick.

Next came the Minced Pork Pan Mee with Special Sauce.  This is supposed to be the dry variety as well, but I find it rather generously lathered with the mentioned sauce. It tastes exactly like the usual Pan Mee you get elsewhere, but the sauce have slightly more depth. I dunno wot the chef put into this one, but I really liked it. Plenty of minced pork as well.

Eating pan mee won't be complete unless you have the soup variety as well. So we ordered a bowl of Pan Mee Soup which came complete with the 'hand-torn' variety of the noodles. The anchovy based broth was fantastic, clear yet rich in taste. Unlike other places which taste like water-ed down pork stock. The chewy noodle pieces added a nice texture to the meal which perfectly complemented the crunchy bits of the black fungus.

The final dish which came was an order of Sui Kow (pork dumplings) and some fish dumplings swimming in a bowl of broth. I enjoyed the Sui Kow, which was really fresh and springy. I wasn't exactly too fond of the fish dumplings though... which I felt was a little 'squishy' and bland. But overall, this gave a perfect ending to a totally satisfying meal.

The meal came to a total of less than RM15, which I felt was well justified considering the number of dishes we ordered. With stomachs closed to rupturing, I would say this place provided good food with good value. I will definitely come back again to try the rest of the items on the menu...  ;)