Succulent Ikan Pari Bakar at Gerai Seri Melaka

These three stalls have been serving up great ikan bakar for quite sometime. Come here and you’ll be spoiled for choice, our favourite though is Gerai Seri Melaka…

” You sweat like a horse and come out smelling like fish ”

It’s noon and you are craving for some really good ikan bakar. What are you going to do? You can either drive down to Umbai, Port Dickson or opt to stay in the state and drive behind Istana Negara at Jalan Bellamy. People from all over town congregate here to eat ikan bakar from three stalls that specialises on ikan bakar . At noon, this place gets really packed. The only place to park your car is on top of a tree. By two o’clock, most of the ikan bakar would have probably sold out.

Although all three stalls have their own fans, our favourite is Seri Melaka. Their stingrays are spiced and succulent and come here early enough and you will have a heap of ikan bakar wrapped in banana leaves to choose from. Location-wise they are the middle stall.

What makes their fish special is that they use female stingrays only for the grill. Don’t ask me how they know which is which but the pari (stingray) at Seri Melaka tends to be more tender and flavourful than the others. Apart from stingrays, Seri Melaka also grills the local mackarel (kembung), terubuk, cuttlefish and seabass. Before grilling, the fishes are marinated in a combination of fragrant serai, halia and special powders which includes curry.

Also a must try is their grilled catfish bakar going from RM3 a piece. Expertly grilled, the outer side is grilled crispy but the inner flesh must be well cooked, juicy and moist. Another recommendation is the terubuk. Terubuk is a kind of fish with a lot of bones. The flesh is very tasty if you don’t mind the bones (you pick the bones out, don’t eat them). The grilled fish is best taken with a plate of warm rice and a glass of ice lemon tea.

And if you don’t fancy fish, then the sotong bakar is pretty good too!

The place opens around noon and by 3-4pm there’s nothing left so get there early as parking can be horrendous. This is the kind of place where you sweat like a horse and come out smelling like fish. If you don’t want to come of of lunch smelling like one, better keep a spare shirt in the boot of your car. Anyway have a nice lunch and enjoy the food…

Address	Lorong Bellamy, behind Istana Negara Tel:
Open	Lunch
Pro	Guaranteed a good ikan bakar meal. Try all three to find your own personal favourite
Cons	Hard to park and really hot during the day
Price Range	RM 10
Parking	Canlah
Certification	Muslim Owned