Melaka Trip for Ikan Bakar

I was thinking of writing a long reviews on my dissapointing food trip to this place but decided that it would be better to left things as it is...no turning back so best to put past behind and start a new chapter. We need to move on and grow from bad experiences to find ways to greater adventure. That is how I comfort myself. Anyway I am grateful for my cousin's hospitality ahaksss who sponsored this round trip from the fuel to tolls to meal to accommodation. Thank you very much! I had great time traveling with you...just not our luck to find the best ikan bakar yet but insyaAllah one day we will find that one place where at last we can finally say "mission accomplished".

It was an unexpected trip although we did plan to check out the Ikan Bakar place in Umbai that folks around the "world" talked about. We had high expectation of a place in Umbai called Parameswara Ikan Bakar, based on the popularity and recommendations received through Internet, TV food channel and from word of mouths. We were thinking of bringing our family to Umbai but first we need to find our way there so our parents wont have to deal with being in the hustle & bustle of being lost on the road.

Yesterday Pidah sms me around 5pm with this msg "Wat u doin. If aleh n bab don go anywer 2nite, lets go to umbai.can or not". Offcourse la CAN...crazy la if I said cannot. So I on my ym and chat with her about her Umbai plan. She "instructed" her 2 brothers to stay home while I Informed my parents and got 2 green lights. Pidah fetched me and we left my home at 9.05pm. The journey took 2 hours. By the time we reached Umbai at 11.15pm the stall kinda like deserted...to our surprised they were ready to close tho one of the staffs said friday night and weekend they close around 12am. Then it hits me! We're not in KL where night life starts after midnight...we're out of town in this remote place called Perdu-Umbai. Ordered few dishes...Pidah belanja me (as she said - for my help in fixing her pc/internet connection 2 weeks ago).

We finished our meal by 12:15am and headed our way to Melaka town. Gheee...it was like a ghost town. Nothing to see...except for the funfair that was about to closed. We cancelled the plan to find a hotel to stay. Pidah drove without directions while I was beside her looking like a confused girl with minor concussion. We surely look like two crazy town girls traveling without direction in the middle of the night to early morning. Haiya...dunno where to go laa...until we reached Klebang beach around 1am. We sat by the levee overlooking the strait for a while. I love the morning breeze on the seaside. Too bad my camera battery went flat.

Back in the car, Pidah decided to just drove back to KL. I can't agree more as there's no point of staying without purpose. Well...on our way to highway using Ayer Keroh route, we saw numerous places of interests like the recreational forest, zoo and Mini Malaysia so we changed our plan again and decided to find budget hotel nearby these tourist attractions at Ayer Keroh. Followed few signboards but lead us to who knows where. Made a u-turns few times still no sign of any hotel. Fancy hotels and resorts are everywhere but we just wanted a simple place to sleep. Fidah frove and drove til we reached the highway. Dang..."this is full of crap"...my excitement died as we entered the highway. The time was 3am and we were yawning. Need to get some sleep or nap especially Pidah who did all the driving. Solution: Find the nearest R&R and sleep in the car for few hours. Made it to Ayer Keroh R&R. We noticed the signboard "Highway Hotel". What?! Really? Just our luck I guess...there's only 1 room left for twin bed. Costs only RM50. Very basic but totally convenience (compared to car seats).

Pidah woke me up at 6:45am for prayer. After that I read my Harry Potter book while Pidah slept peacefully across my bed which made me felt sleepy again. Last thing I remember I woke up again at 10am and she already took her bath. Chessss....sabo je la. Ate our breakfast (yesterday's Nasi Lemak with fish leftovers we tao bao (tapau) from Umbai. We left the hotel around 11am and made a stop at Ayer Keroh Overhead Bridge Restaurant where we had our post breakfast meal at A&W...I had a float and curly fries.

Continued our journey home...and reached KL after 1:30pm. Instead of going straight back home...we made our way to Jusco Maluri and then we went home...

Lotta things playing inside my mind that I want to share but I'm lost for more words to write. Do check out Pidah's blog for another review of this trip if you're interested. I post these photos for your eyes...

1) The Ayer Keroh Exit : Toll fare : RM16.50


2) Parameswara Ikan Bakar : Menu & Price list


3) fish dips : Sambal belacan and cicah kicap

Look very dry eh? Taste too sour. Too much lime and need more kicap kipas udang.

4) Starter : Sotong Goreng Tepung (Fried Squid)

Nothing unusual about this dish that I bet is using a ready made flour batter.

5) Terubuk Bakar (grilled fish)

Credit for the fresh fish. Prefer if they just grill the fish as a whole rather than splitting it in 2 pieces for faster cooking. Killed the juice, it taste and turn this fish dry.

6) Siakap Tiga Rasa (Sweet-sour-spicy fish)

I actually like the freshness of this fish and the way it being fried...but the sauce spoiled the fish...BIG TIME! The tiga rasa - sweet sour and spicy doesn't blend well together.

7) The bill - RM45.00 (with free 3 packs of nasi lemak)