Whatever one might feel about the Pontian style of wanton mee, no one can deny that it is the best known style of wanton noodles from Johor. Beyond Johor, there are many shops and stalls serving Pontian style wanton mee in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.
This is Heng Heng wanton mee shop in Pontian, Johor.
There are many other Pontian style wanton mee shops and stalls in Pontian, in Malaysia and Singapore. Many have large followings for their egg noodles, others for their char siew, and there is even a hugely successful Pontian wanton mee franchise. But, Heng Heng will always be the only original Pontian wanton mee.
Mr Low's grandfather who hails from Guangzhou in China invented Pontian wanton mee some 70 years ago after settling in the small seaside town in British Malaya.
To this day, Heng Heng still make their own egg noodles like old Mr Low did 70 years ago (nowadays with the help of machines).
Heng Heng's noodles felt heavy, tender but have a certain subtle stiffness at the core. Ang mohs call it al dente. I enjoy the mouth feel of Heng Heng's noodles.
The signature of Pontian wanton mee is their sauce - it's a blend of chili sauce, oyster sauce, tomato ketchup, black soy sauce, lard, sesame oil and peanut oil.
Love it or loathe it, Pontian wanton mee sauce is a blend of tangy, sweet, savoury with hints of spiciness. This robust sauce is likeable (though my favourite is KL style sauce but that is another story for another post).
Don't be put off by these char siew's anemic look - I like them because they have a grilled cuttlefish flavour. I know that sounds weird. Maybe it has something to do with how Heng Heng still roasts their own char siew with charcoal.
Pontian wanton mee comes with a bowl of soup and wantons, and then uniquely, there are fish balls too 😆 (Shouldn't be surprised as Pontian is a fishing town.)
The soup tastes like simple bone broth (no anchovies).
The wantons were good. Little knobs of tender minced pork wrapped in a soft and smooth little handkerchief. Biting into the wanton releases natural porcine sweet flavours and a bit of sesame oil taste.
The fishballs were good too - made with Ikan Parang fish (wolf herring), they were dense with a little spring to the bite. We can taste the fresh fish sweetness when we bite into the bouncy fish balls.
Heng Heng has a lot of takeaway orders. We waited about 30 minutes for our food this morning.
👍 When you are unique, there will be die hard fans and there will be haters - so it is the same with Pontian style wanton mee. Never make up your mind based on other people's opinion - get to know Pontian wanton mee yourself and be your own judge. As for me, I find enough things to like about Heng Heng's original Pontian wanton mee to recommend it to you 😋
Restaurant name: Heng Heng 兴兴
Address: 766, Jalan Parit Mesjid, Taman Anggerik, Pontian, Johor
Map: http://g.co/maps/xb3f9
GPS: 1.489997,103.391416 / 1°29'24.0"N 103°23'29.1"E
Hours: 9:00am to 6:00pm (closed on Fridays)
Non Halal
Date visited: 4 Apr 2012
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