Growing up I was raised my mom and dad who were not the most adventitious eaters so we had a meat and potatoes kinda of dinner almost every night, the most exotic thing we had been typical westernized Chinese food so it I didn’t start venturing out taste wise till I was older.  My food and taste adventures have taken me all over Europe and America’s but Asia is still kinda of new, Japan, China and Thailand are tastes that I somewhat am familiar with but this taste adventure was completely new for me at 34~Malaysia!.

Mamak Malaysian Cafe is located at 324 Cambie street~just down from Meat & Bread and Mamak’s old location inside a bar, they are now splitting space with a Ethiopian restaurant so keep your eyes out for the Mamak’s sign on the street to know you’re in the right place.

I’ve heard tons of great things from There is always room about the place and I have been wanting to try them for a while.  There a family owned and run restaurant that specializes in Malaysian comfort food, the decor of the new place that of the other restaurant they share space with but in their corner of space where dishes are finished they have a family looking picture up and when I asked about it the really nice chef’s wife informed me that the Malaysian King and Queen visited them for dinner when they had 1st restaurant in Yaletown so you know that your eating some quality traditional food when the King is searching it out!

I was really looking to try a variety of items but not looking to blow my head off with hot spice so the owner was really helpful in suggesting things for me to try and gave me a few sample tastes to see what I would like~class A service in my eyes, I liked everything I tried and it came on the sample plate~the Nasi Kandar, and I also went with the Laksa soup, roti canai and chicken satay appys.

the chicken satay was moist and tender, grilled nicely without being over charred and the satay sauce was delicious and doesn’t taste like peanut butter with soy and some hot sauce like I’ve had at some places in town.  I’d definitely recommend these and at $4 it’s a no brainer!

Roti Canai $3

The Roti Canai here is some of the best roti I’ve had in my life~the other was from a friend who was from Trinidad & Tobago.  The roti often sells out here and I can see why, it was light, flaky and melt in your mouth delicious and the side of curry sauce was a treat!

Next up is the Laksa $7.50

A big bowl of noodles, fish cake, fried tofu, chicken, shrimp, egg (not ordered by me) and bean sprouts all in a warm fragrant curry coconut milk broth.  I really liked this dish!, I can see myself craving this from now on during our winter months.  The curry paste used in the soup is house made and isn’t gritty like some can be, the broth is rich and has some kick on its own but there is house made sambal for you to add if yo like.  As I was eating this it warmed be from the inside out and I found myself craving each mouthful and would have licked the bowl if it was socially acceptable!

Now for the sample plate~Nasi Kandar $8.90

This has a bit of everything to get your taste buds going and is a must try if you’ve never been before.

Sambal Prawns made with a homemade sambal chili paste, these were a bit to spicy for me but if you like spice you should be just fine, the prawns are plump, tender and sweet.

Side salad made with cabbage and a zesty dressing adds a great texture to the plate and the ingredients were all very fresh.

This is beef Rendang, one of my favorite dishes I’ve tried!, it’s stewed beef with 11 different spices and is savory and kind of sweet tasting, the meat is tender as all heck and I can see myself eating a bowl of this with 5 or 6 roti’s!

Kari Ayam is Malaysia’s chicken curry, it’s nothing like a chicken curry from India and is more like from the Caribbean region~my favorite by far and is not available lots of places here, it has juicy chicken and potatoes and the sauce is the same served with the Roti Canai.

Papadum and coconut rice also come on the plate

they are great sides to have, the rice is cook properly and is not clumpy or sticky and the papdum is a nice crunchy treat to dip in the Kari Ayam.

I’m really happy to have found out about this hidden gem and everything I ate I loved and would definitely order again.  Get on out and check out Mamak’s cafe, there open only Mon-Fri 11am-7pm and don’t forget to try the roti!

**UPDATE** Mamak has closed it’s doors and is unsure when or where they will reopen.

Mamak’s Facebook page
@mamakcafe
www.mamak.ca