We get a rare chance to go a-food-courtin' in Chatswood, we try May's Malaysian in the Mandarin Centre.
The food court upstairs at the Mandarin Centre is a gem, we wish we could get there more often. Today we give May's Malaysian a whirl. The menu and cooking style leans more towards the Chinese side of the Malyasian food spectrum, and there's some interesting dishes we don't normally see around the traps. We really liked their version of Hainan chicken rice, while the soups we tried were good but lacked that special Malaysian magic. Something tells us we must come back for the Ipoh Hor Fun.
Hainan chicken rice - $9.50. We really like May's take on this dish. It was served cold which is unusual but most pleasant on a sticky summer day. The chook was tender and moist with ginger and shallot flavours poking through, and made extra wet with a splosh of soy.
Mee rebus - $10.80. Thick egg noodles in a curry flavoured gravy, which thins out to a soup as you get lower down the bowl. The curry has a sweet flavour and reminds us a little of Japanese curry. Fixin's include tofu, prawns and egg. It's a massive serving and we doggy-bagged half of it. It was fantastic the next day.
Penang Prawn Mee - $11.80. A light prawny broth with thick egg noodles, prawns, eggs and some lovely big hunks of chicken. It was enjoyable but we remember getting much bigger kicks from the har mee at East West Gourmet across the hall.
Alison finds the Daiso Japanese 100 yen\$2 shop. 'I am just going inside and may be some time'.
May's Malaysian is in food court at the top floor Mandarin Centre, corner of 61-65 Albert Avenue (corner of Victor Street) Chatswood. Daiso is on the ground floor, with lots of grumpy husbands waiting outside.
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Should try Ashfield Cafe. 2 Hercules Street, Ashfield opposite the train station. Specials on Saturday alternates between Hainanese Chicken rice and Nasi Lemak. Other Malaysian dishes are also excellent - try the Char Kuay Teow with plenty of sambal!
ReplyDeleteAlso try the curry puffs - available on Saturday when Nasi Lemak is the special.
Worth taking the trip. Close on Sunday.
We did - it's awesome - thanks!
DeleteThanks for the Ashfield Cafe tip. That's not too far for a Saturday lunch adventure and sounds right up our alley.
ReplyDeleteWould you mind if we post your review on our Facebook Page?
ReplyDeleteNo worries, go for it :-)
ReplyDeleteIf you guys go to Chatswood again, there's a great little Beijing style food court stall, called Grape Garden, which, in my opinion, has some of the best dumplings in Sydney (amongst other Beijing dishes). Very little English on the menu, but that always means good food! It's in the Lemon Grove food court, which is like the little brother of the Dixon House food court (in terms of the age and dodginess)
ReplyDeleteThanks Ian, you mentioned the magic word - dodginess! We'll have to check it out.
DeleteI second Ian's recommendation on Grape Garden but not only for its dumpling but more to their super yummy Beijing-style noodles with many protein choices e.g. beef, pork, lamb, etc. IMHO, the noodles are better than the ones available around Chinatown-Haymarket. The boss here speaks "China-English" and most menu written in Chinese so it will be hard for non-Chinese customers but you've got to persevere because it's worth it.
DeleteMay's Malaysian best dish is actually its "Char Kuey Teow" which is used to be my favorite in Chatswood but now it has more serious competition from the new outlet called "Sedap" in Chatswood Westfield foodcourt. Their Penang-style char kuey teow is one of the best in SYD.