One of the reasons I like Vancouver is the diversity of the food. Specifically, Malaysian food. Kaya Malay Bistro does a wonderful take on street style Malaysian food for their lunch menu. Reminds me of Hawker Bar in Toronto.
Menu
The daily special drink was a passion fruit soda. Yum!
Passion Fruit SodaMango Smoothie
Hubby had the Kari Lamb. The lamb was succulent and the lively flavors made my taste buds dance.
Kari Lamb Boneless lamb shoulder stewed in curry, infused with cumin, fennel and coconut milk
I had the Satay chicken, gado gado and rice. The chicken had lots of flavor, and I could have eaten the peanut sauce all day long. I love gado gado; a take on an Indonesian cooked vegetable salad. There was also a green salad on the side with a sweet mustard dressing.
Satay Chicken, Gado Gado with Rice Famous Malaysian skewers served with a bean sprout tofu salad topped with peanut dressing.Satay Chicken, Gado Gado with Rice Famous Malaysian skewers served with a bean sprout tofu salad topped with peanut dressing.
I love the food of Singapore and Malaysia. I traveled there a few years ago and savoured laksa (my favorite), clay pot chicken, roti, beef rendang, nasi lemak and mee goreng. Ever since Tropika closed it’s doors years ago, there hasn’t been anything comparable in Calgary. I’ve had to venture to Vancouver and Toronto for my Malaysian food fix. Then Tropical Delight came along. I have been saved.
My friend and I decided to indulge after a few hours at the climbing gym. We were hungry. The portions are generous and the amount of food we had would easily feed three people. We ordered to share. The laksa lemak was nice and spicy. It contained what I thought was squid and scallops, but after the spice fog cleared, I’m pretty sure it was sliced fish balls, fried tofu, fake crab sticks and hard boiled egg. I’m glad we ordered the wonton kolo mee so we could give ourselves a break from the spice. This was dry egg noodle with ground pork, green onion, deep fried wonton and soup on the side. Comfort food; it reminded me of my Mom’s homemade wonton noodle soup. The roti canai was delicious and the curry sauce also spicy. We also had a complimentary dessert. My friend suspected it was cassava cake. It was yellow and dense, tasted a bit like squash with a hint of coconut. Tasty. Lunch was rather affordable.
They had some interesting specials such as white curry which I will have to try another time. The service was quick; our food arrived within minutes of ordering. Well, we were there at 2:30 in the afternoon and surprisingly, the restaurant was half full. This warrants a repeat visit.
They take only cash and debit and are open Monday though Saturday 10:00am – 5:30pm. The following menu photos only shows the pages with the specials.
Portion of menu with specialsDessert SpecialsLaksa LemakRoti CanaiWonton Kolo Mee
Restaurants this trendy don’t have their name permanently displayed on their premises. “Prove that you love me and buy the next round”.
Seeing that I follow food trends on regular basis, I decided on Hawker Bar. It has been open 6 months, long enough for the buzz to die down but not long enough for it to be not trendy. I was in the mood for Malaysian food, but heard the pickings were slim downtown.
Love the menu on the back of a card board box.Laksa Lemak. Coconut based curry gravy.
The chicken laksa lemak was delightful. The gravy had a complex flavor of coconut, curry and spices that warmed the tastebuds. The chili was moderate but not overwhelming as it hit the roof of my mouth. The delay in the chili arriving was welcome.
We also had the son in law eggs which were tasty. I have never seen these on a restaurant menu, except for the one occasion where a friend asked for a special order from the kitchen The chili jam went well with the crispy eggs.
Upscale street food. Interesting idea.
