SHAH ALAM, Nov 9 — For anyone who has lived or worked in KL, nasi kandar has probably slipped into the office-lunch rotation at some point, or far more often than one might care to admit. 

These days, the Penang staple can be found at many, many mamak joints across the city, with results ranging from euphoric to downright depressing. 

But for a taste of time-honoured offerings at enduring institutions, many head to Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, which has been home for the better part of 50 years to longstanding favourites like Kudu, Yaseem, and, until recently, Ibramsha.

Ibramsha’s storied past goes back as long as the rest. However, it moved to its most recent location in 2000, closer to the rebranded Coliseum Theatre (now LFS Coliseum Cineplex) and a little further out from the other two, which remain clustered around the intersection with Jalan Sultan Ismail — Kudu and Yaseem are barely 50 metres apart!

For 25 years, Ibramsha stood in that shop lot, until last week when it brought down its shutters for the final time. 

By Monday, it was already open for business at its new home, 30 kilometres away in Taman Sri Muda, Shah Alam. 

The owner had already known the Jalan TAR location was going to be repossessed and put up for auction for more than a year, hence the quick turnaround. 

He told me the decision to move all the way out to Shah Alam, rather than stay closer to KL, was driven by the hope of more consistent business and foot traffic, which they aim to capture by staying open 24 hours.

When I visited, however, they explained that for now they’ve opted to open from seven in the morning until midnight while waiting for the crowd to build. 

Ibramsha may carry history stretching back to the 70s, but here it is the new kid on the block, with three other 24-hour nasi kandar spots already entrenched in the immediate vicinity.

Most of the essential dishes are ready as early as nine in the morning, including ayam kicap, sotong, ayam goreng, perut kambing, ayam bawang and of course, all the different types of kuah. 

By eleven, the full spread is out, including fish head, daging in multiple ways and okra. 

Piled high with sotong, ayam goreng, perut kambing, kobis and a small dish of ayam bawang on the side because I’d run out of space, my plate came to RM35. 

It’s on the high side, but only because it was enough food for two and then some. 

It’s easy to lose yourself in the smorgasbord of spice, the chaos of curries, but everything at Ibramsha carries a notable undercurrent of heat, particularly the ayam bawang. 

The titular onions lend plenty of sweetness to temper things, but then your spoon catches a bit of the perut kambing, chewy little morsels of mutton tripe that hold its watery kuah superbly, and everything gets spicy again. 

And if that’s not enough, where most nasi kandar joints offer some version of sambal nyok, a coconut-based sambal, Ibramsha puts out a bright red sambal belacan that’s as fiery as it is salty. 

Salt is your friend for keeping heat at bay, but the real dish for the job is the thick, jet-black ayam kicap, sweet, sticky, luscious and oh-so-satisfying with a real depth of flavour.

There’s a reason why people continue to return for the nasi kandar at Ibramsha after all these years: it’s still really, really good. 

But we live in an age where consistency and quality may no longer be enough to keep a restaurant afloat, and whether the move to the suburbs — part of a wider trend seen with other city-centre icons like Lian Bee — will pay off is now entirely in the hands of its new crowd.

Restoran Nasi Kandar Ibramsha

18E-G, Jalan Setia 25/65, 

Taman Sri Muda, 

Seksyen 25, Shah Alam.

Open daily, 7am-12am

Tel: ‪012-361 2000

Facebook: Restoran Nasi Kandar Ibramsha

* This is an independent review where the writer paid for the meal.

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Follow Ethan Lau on Instagram @eatenlau for more musings on food and occasionally self-deprecating humour.