Malaka Spice: Friends, Food and Fun!

A couple of days back a few foodie fellows, yours truly included, who had gotten to be online friends decided to get together for lunch at Malaka Spice. We were meeting for the very first time. We were friends in the virtual world but strangers to each other in the real one. What connected us, though, was our love of food or more specifically, “good food”. We all met up at Malaka Spice and soon settled down to an afternoon of  ‘gup-shup’ and deliciousness.

I’ve been to Malaka Spice countless of times in the past few years and it was the same for the others at the table hence we knew exactly what we wanted to order. Our starters comprised of Top Hats, an all time favourite and a dish that the chefs at Malaka Spice have mastered. The crunchy outer casing with its delicious filling topped with spouts have always been a winning combination. The other starters for the afternoon were Randang Fish Satay, Thai Mutton Chops, Lotus Stem Tango and Nan Thod Potatoes.

The fish used for Randang Fish Satay was Basa. It was well marinated and cooked to perfect texture. 

While I’m not generally a fan of Lotus Stem, give it to me fried, crisp and tossed in a sweet chili sauce and see me polish it off. *greedy grin* The Lotus Stem dish was exactly that. We all loved it! 

The Thai Mutton Chops were peppery and succulent as always. It’s another dish they never get wrong and is a must try if you’re as much a carnivore as I am. 

The Nan Thod Potatoes was a new dish for me. These were baby potatoes stir-fried and tossed in a tangy tamarind-chili sauce. What I truly appreciated, though, was that the potatoes were cooked through. Each and every potato was tender. It was a vegetarian dish that had all the makings of getting on to this carnivore’s ‘must-have at Malaka Spice’ list.

We also opted for a couple of stir-fry dishes: Sambal Crunchy Veg and Green Pepper Chicken. We were well advised by our server to pair it with Phad Thai Noodles. 

While the Sambal Crunchy Veg was very nice, I preferred the green pepper chicken. The flavour of the greens, mainly mint and coriander came through beautifully and yes, as recommended to us, both stir-fry dishes paired perfectly with Phad Thai Noodles.

Instead of trying out a new curry we decided to stick to our tried-and-tested Malaka Kari Kapitan Chicken for our main course. We chose Roti Kanai and Steamed Rice as accompaniments for this dish. 

The gravy was creamy and silken. Roti Kanai is a soft and yummy multi-layered roti and you simply cannot eat just one. That is precisely why we ordered an extra helping. The Malaka Kari Kapitan also paired well with steamed rice but we did prefer it with those hot, fluffy rotis.

We ended our meal on a sweet note: Malaka Magic Choco Lava. This was a brownie covered with a sheet of chocolate over which the server poured hot chocolate. It was served with vanilla ice cream. We were all stuffed to the gills but couldn’t help dig into this plate of molten delight.

It was an afternoon well spent at a place where the food never disappoints; with people who understand and appreciate good food. It was a meal shared with people who have gone on to become foodie friends in the real world. A lunch doesn’t get any better than this!! 

A few more pics..