Little Malaysia - Brisbane

Little Malaysia is a cafe-style restaurant in West End, Brisbane. The restaurant itself is plain and rudimentary akin to some of the eateries in Malaysia. The service was prompt despite it being run by only two staff members.As connoisseurs of Malaysian food, my wife and I dined here on Wednesday 15th March 2017 to sample their cuisine. We ordered a tahu goreng as an entrée, and gado gado and nasi lemak for our mains. Our drinks were two glasses of teh tarik.The tahu goreng, which is a fried tofu dish, was served with bean sprouts and cucumber with a dousing of peanut sauce. The tofu itself was freshly fried and nice, however the sauce lacked the bite of the authentic version which would usually have a distinct taste of tamarind, shrimp paste, brown sugar, kecap manis (sweet soy sauce) and the zing of bird’s eye chillies, with a sprinkling of chopped roasted peanuts. Sometimes, the authentic tahu goreng would have kangkung (water spinach) in addition to bean sprouts and cucumber.The gado gado that was served comprised broccoli, cucumber, beans, boiled egg, bean sprouts and puffed tofu in a peanut sauce. Somehow, the sauce looked to be the same one used on the tahu goreng and tasted similar. The blanched vegetables had not been spun dry enough and seemed to be exuding moisture and liquid and making the dish a bit soggy.The authentic gado gado, that we are accustomed to, would normally have tofu, diced boiled potato, cauliflower, carrot, cabbage, tomatoes, boiled eggs, bean sprouts, snake beans and kangkung. Furthermore the peanut sauce would have a fiery, sweet taste due to the red chillies, shrimp paste, kecap manis, ginger, garlic, brown sugar, coconut milk, lemon juice etc. The nasi lemak was well presented in a green leaf-shaped plate. There was a mound of jasmine rice doused with curry, a few pieces of chicken in curry, a small dollop of beef rendang , a boiled egg sliced in two and coated with chilli sambal, ikan bilis (fried anchovies) and two slices of cucumber. Generally, the taste of the sambal egg, beef rendang, chicken and anchovies were fine. However, we found the rice to be sticky and mushy. The rice in authentic nasi lemak is generally cooked with coconut milk and pandan leaves and would be soft, aromatic and grainy. Also, there might be roasted peanuts with the anchovies, and a vegetable pickle in the authentic version, and sometimes a piece of omelette rather than boiled egg.The teh tarik (hot milk tea beverage) was frothy and tasted good. Given our seasoned Malaysian palettes, we would rate the food at this restaurant as not overly authentic, though palatable.

I visit Little Malaysia whenever possible when I visit West End for work. It is inexpensive, fresh and extremely tasty food. Excellent value for money, the restaurant is basic, now has air con, and the staff are friendly.

Since moving to West End 2 years ago, Little Malaysia has become a regular. A no frills low priced establishment that serves up Malayan/Asian food with authentic flavours. No pretensions, just good honest and affordable food.

Just grab a take away from them few days ago, cheap fast but more than anything else very authentic Malaysian!! the best curry massaman i ever have in Brisbane!!

Don't be put off by the decor - the food is delicious. My sister and I really enjoyed our meal. We have both lived in South East Asia so we were looking for an authentic Malaysian meal and we got one. The satay sauce was really good, the gado-gado and nasi goreng were tasty. Also, two adult and a child ate for under $50 so good value for money.