Mamak (CBD)

366, Lonsdale St, Melbourne, VIC 3000

http://www.mamak.com.au/

This is a West Malaysian place - clearly, distinctly and proudly so, not to be confused with Singaporean tastes. Singaporeans tend to prefer their Prata to be crispier and to achieve that, it tends to be a bit greasier. Malaysians tend to have Canai that fluffier rather than crispy - that's what I have seen all over Malaysia and Singapore. It is still very popular and queues go on as late as 8pm on weekdays. It is also pricier than many other Malaysian eating places. Ok - I hate to say this but too many people expect to pay Malaysian prices for roti because after all, it's just 'bread' - but this isn't Malaysia and the number of wait staff they have here and the efficiency speaks for itself. The main question of course is whether it is worth waiting for? I think it's not bad at all but depends on what you are looking for. However, there are some reasons why some might not like it and I will explore these in this entry.

The Place
This is near the corner of Lonsdale Street and Elizabeth Street. It is a busy noisy place, and not for those who like a bit of quiet. The ambience is a noisy mess hall with everyone trying to outdo each other. While the tables are set wide apart enough, it doesn't stop the noise from being somewhat overpowering at times. This doesn't seem to deter most of the diners I saw here. It's not a great place for kids and can be a bit overwhelming. The airconditioning here is great and that's amazing given the Roti kitchen is set within the restaurant itself. Parking is not great on Lonsdale Street itself.

Things to do Nearby: Melbourne Central is nearby, and QV is about a block and a half away. JB HiFi is just 2 doors down.

The Food

I like! Mee Goreng! Could do with more spice though.

2 different rotis

Mamak cuisine is strongly influenced by South Indian cuisine, but with a Malay twist especially with the curries. There is no questioning the authenticity of this place but whether it is nice or not is discussed here. My crew ordered a number of dishes to try range of Mamak offerings.

Mee Goreng - is really good here with al dente Hokkien Noodles and the right balance of spices. It was my favourite dish of the night. It is of the drier Malaysian style of Mee Goreng, unlike some of the more soggy and wet Singaporean styled mee goreng, Therefore, this is authentic and yummy, though my personal preference next time is to ask for extra lime, to give is a bit more tang.

Roti - there is no doubt that the Roti here is of high quality. I watched them doing it fresh and yes, why would you go to a number of other places that sell frozen roti when you can come here for fresh made roti that's not too greasy. Well done on this front - though the accompanying gravy needs some improvement and there needs to be more of it. The murtabak was ok but really thick and because it's not greasy like the ones in Malaysia, it is a bit dry and it is much thicker than many of the places in Malaysia. It also needs a bit more seasoning though the whole point is to let the curry gravy seep through (though there's not enough gravy here). Overall the roti quality is impressive.

Satay - was the biggest disappointment of the night for me. Don't get me wrong, it is a well presented and tasty dish. The meat is relatively well marinated. The sauce was sweet and while the amount of nuts and spice was right - the sweetness was all wrong. Therefore, it was not to my taste - but if you like sweet satay sauce - go for it - definitely much better some of the horrendous deep fried offerings some places have.

Kari Ikan - The fish curry is very KL (Kuala Lumpur) and tasty but not as tangy as some of the best offerings from Malaysia. They also use the Malaysian prefered cut of fish, and the vegetables (tomatoes, okra and eggplant) that go with the curry are beautiful.

The Service
For such a harried place - the service was really good and friendly, and given the amount of activity, it could go wrong so easily but that wasn't the case here. Minor mistakes in timing is easily dealt with by calling their attention to it. This is really well done and the wait staff is well trained. Most of our food came together when it was supposed to, even when the dishes are coming from different stations of the kitchen. It is certainly friendlier and more personable than many of the other Malaysian and Singaporean places to eat.

Overall
I'd go again because overall, the food is not bad but just for a quick meal and not as a place to hang out because of the noise level. The things that stand out for me here are the rotis and the mee goreng. I am also impressed with the service and they clearly have a pretty good system going. I am also excited by the wider clientale that seems to be enjoying mostly authentic West Malaysian fare. The one thing that's not authentic about this place is that you can't really hang out here - like many of the Mamak places in Malaysia.

Cultural Moment

I spent a whole year eating Mee Goreng 2 times a week from a Mamak Stall in Singapore - I used to give tuition to two kids, when I was a teenager - and they would buy me food from their favourite stall and their favourite dish. Why did I now say something about variety? Because I was just grateful and didn't want to create a fuss. However, what is Mamak?

Mamak is a term that refers to Indian Muslims, primarily in West Malaysia and Singapore. Historically, they have been in the area for a very long time as trading between the Malay peninsula and the Indian sub-continent dates back to 800AD (or even before). The term Mamak actually means Uncle originally though most Chinese don't actually know this. There are those who find the term somewhat derogatory while others have just used it as a descriptor of a culture. It's all in the tone - like many other terms we use to describe cultures other than our own all over the world. It can be either affectionate, descriptive and perjorative but usually not mutually so, depending on the person using the term - know what I mean?

A Mamak Stall is a real hangout place for many young people in Malaysia in particular because of the cheap and tasty dishes, by the road sides. However, like the 'dhabas' of the Punjabi region, some more successful Mamak Stalls more recently have evolved into Cafe style eating houses with air-conditioning - some are even opened 24 hours. The best ones sell the most reliable and tasty usual Mamak fair of roti canai, curries, mee gorend, maggi goreng and rarely - Indian rojak which I love but can't get in Melbourne.

Desi Dhaba

134, Flinders St, Melbourne, VIC 3000

Desi Dhaba doesn't rate very highly on Urbanspoon and having only been there once, this is based on one visit. I think I would go again at some point as the first visit has been relatively pleasant and I like the quirky deco of the place. This place is connected to the Tandoori Times chain of Indian restaurants. The clientale here is a healthy mixture of both Indian and non-Indian groups of diners. This place is supposed to be Halal certified too - though it does serve alcohol at the bar.

The Place

Set near the corner of Russell and Flinders Streets, this place is diagonal to Federation Square and so, parking will have to be paid mostly. It's a place that I think balances between quirky and tacky - I will let the pictures here speak for themselves. I suspect it can get noisy in here though when I visited with Paul and Robbie - it was relatively quiet (other than the loud Bollywood music which I love). There's a lot of space here and they don't try to cram diners in, which is great.

Things to do nearby: Federation Square, Russell Street, Little Collins and Collins Streets are all within 5 minutes walk.

The Food

This place serves a wide range of Indian cuisine (both north and south) but I think has clearly north Indian sensibilities. It claims to have authentic dishes but they are not as spicy, rich or hot as the dishes in India. However, the food is relatively tasty and well presented. The naan bread was average and 2 ofthe 3 dishes we had were yummy.

Paneer Saag - a common dish in many restaurants, it's pretty good here too and not overly salty as some places are wont to do.

Chicken Tikka - was not as tasty as some other places and not as well charcoaled or tangy as I would have liked it. I have had much better Chicken Tikka than this.

Goan Lamb Vindaloo - had a good kick and the goat was tender, it was yummy and you definitely rice to go with this one.

Chicken Tikka

The Service

The service was nonchalant. We were not greeted, walking in and though I don't want to be precious about it, it would have been nice to have been acknowledged when walking into a restaurant. Once we got settled in though, the food came pretty quickly even when there was a crowd. Although not very personable, it was not rude either.

Overall

I'd give it another go to try a few other dishes given the extensive menu. However, I would hope that the service would be better the next time.

Cultural Moment

A dhaba is usually a road side eatery. It could range from a tin shed to a dedicated purpose built building that is like a truck stop. It reminds me of some of the 'truck stop' eateries in Australia, that's attached to petrol stations in country roads. You could quite easily google image 'dhaba' to get a sense of the range of dhabas in India.

I believe that Dhabas in India tend to focus on Punjabi cuisine - the Punjab region covers parts of North India and Pakistan.

Famous Punjabi dishes in Australia include Tandoori Chicken and Chicken Tikka, Rogan Josh, Saag Gosht and Paneer,and Biryanis. All very yummy but does not have the chilli crazy hotness of their southern cousins.

Flora Indian Restaurant and Cafe

238, Flinders Street, Melbourne, VIC 3000

This is a canteen style no frills place to eat. It scored 78% on Urbanspoon, with lots of favourable reviews and some disgruntled punters because of their inconsistencies and service. You get a selection from the bain-marie and it's quick and easy. However, if you are there as a group, and some of you are orderding from the ala carte menu while others are ordering from the pre-prepared meal - don't expect to start your meals (or finish) at the same time.

The Place

To me, this is equivalent to a fast food joint. It's a pretty large space that could accommodate groups. The only ambience you can expect is that of an air-conditined cafetaria at a Senior College. It is situated across from Flinders Street Station and is easy to get to in you are already in the area. (For those new to Melbourne - this means there's no parking here.) If you are in a hurry, say before a move at ACMI (Australian Centre for the Moving Image) and are looking for Indian - this is the place.

Things to do nearby: You are essentially in the heart of the city, surrounded by the shopping precinct, Federation Square and the Arts Centre and Southbank is but 5 minutes away. Heaps to do.

The Food

The food is not bad for this style of restaurant. A testament to this is the number of Indian punters that are usually eating here. One thing I have to say though, it's not very spicy, so if you are into really hot foods - you are better off ordering from the menu (and expect to wait in that situation).

They have the usual range of Indian fare from Vindaloo, to Rogan Josh, to Korma, to Madras style, and of course, butter chicken - all ready to be spooned on to a waiting thali. So, they are generally reliable but do not expect to quality food for it is essentially off the bain-marie. One advice I would give you is to NOT order the dish that looks like it's about to finish and only the dregs are left. Just DON'T. There's usually plenty of others to pick from.

Two things to note; The vegetarian fare is usually rather disappointing here, in my humble opinion, but if they are serving goat on the day you visit (and you like goat) - go for it - but expect it to be on the bone.

You can order a range of different things including biryani and dosai too, but will have to wait.

The Service

This is where it gets a bit challenging. :) The servers are there to scoop up food for you and collect your money. It's essentially self-service, but for what you are paying for, please do not expect a red carpet and over friendly interest in you as another human being. They are not into relationship building, if I might put it delicately.

Some people see this as downright rude - I see it as the most basic of service. They are not rude at all, but they might not smile all the time, and be a bit 'matter of fact' about their jobs.  Their role is to facilitate me getting access to the food, that's it. It's that kind of place. If you want good service with a smile - you need to go to a more expensive proper restaurant. I would have complained if they were actually rude, but I sincerely have never encountered that.

Overall

I have said this before - it is what it is - a fast food joint, where you go in, feed, and get out relatively satisfied. It can get rowdy sometimes if a lot of students are in. I go there as an old reliable if I am in a hurry around Flinders Street.

Cultural Moment

Thali literally means plate. In this case - more of a platter with various dishes on it. In some parts of India, it's almost a big round tray and the various dishes are served in small bowls (katori), whereas in other parts of India and in Nepal, a thali is a big plate with different 'compartments' for the different dishes. It usually comes with rice or chapatis (bread/roti) as a main staple, with all the other accompaniments.