77 Berry Street, North Sydney NSW 2060
Over the bridge for Malaysian
A reader recommendation by Akiko on my Singapore Shiok post brings me to May’s Laksa House to try their chicken rice. Upon arrival it’s clear that this place is very popular. Shuffling up to the service counter amongst the busy 12.45 pm queue I noticed all the Malaysian classics you’d hope to see on the menu. Self service Prawn crackers are complimentary which is a first for me to see and obviously a crowd pleaser. To make the over-the-bridge lunch visit worthwhile I order four dishes with my colleague. The Prawn laksa ($8.90) is quite generous in size with at least 5 quality large prawns. The broth is more coconut creamy in flavour than my preferred Malay-Chinese laksa and not particularly chilli hot. There’s quite a lot of noodles making the laksa more gravy in consistency than soupy but it also doesn't seem to be too oily which is good.
The Roti canai & curry chicken ($7.90) comes with a side soup which could have been perhaps hotter. The roti is served flat and not puffed up like the freshly made to order ones you get at Mamak. They’re quite tasty but also on the oily side to touch. The curry comes with pieces of chicken and potato I think and pretty tasty but a little hard to dip your flat roti in and perhaps could be better served in a traditional flat metal tray. The Hainanese chicken rice ($8.50) is thankfully deboned which gets a big tick in my books. The young service staff lady suggests ordering the thigh as the breast is usually drier. It’s decently moist and comes with the usual cucumber and tomato sides although the rice was maybe a little on the dry side. The side soup is a little luke warm but I like the accompanying chilli and shallot/ginger paste although some more fresh ginger would have been welcomed. The Char Kway Teow ($8.90) doesn’t have any traditional blood cockles in it which I long to find in Sydney one day. The dish sadly lacked a decent char factor like Malay-Chinese, Yummy Cuisine and Sayong but included good quality prawns. I’d love to see some sliced Chinese sausage and fishcake added and extra chilli which was fairly subtle if at all present compared to others I’ve tried.
The only other popular Malaysian place I know of for lunch in North Sydney is To’s Malaysian Gourmet which has similar priced dishes with the addition of a bain-marie for quick take-away meals — I’ll have to revisit to compare.
The Roti canai & curry chicken ($7.90) comes with a side soup which could have been perhaps hotter. The roti is served flat and not puffed up like the freshly made to order ones you get at Mamak. They’re quite tasty but also on the oily side to touch. The curry comes with pieces of chicken and potato I think and pretty tasty but a little hard to dip your flat roti in and perhaps could be better served in a traditional flat metal tray. The Hainanese chicken rice ($8.50) is thankfully deboned which gets a big tick in my books. The young service staff lady suggests ordering the thigh as the breast is usually drier. It’s decently moist and comes with the usual cucumber and tomato sides although the rice was maybe a little on the dry side. The side soup is a little luke warm but I like the accompanying chilli and shallot/ginger paste although some more fresh ginger would have been welcomed. The Char Kway Teow ($8.90) doesn’t have any traditional blood cockles in it which I long to find in Sydney one day. The dish sadly lacked a decent char factor like Malay-Chinese, Yummy Cuisine and Sayong but included good quality prawns. I’d love to see some sliced Chinese sausage and fishcake added and extra chilli which was fairly subtle if at all present compared to others I’ve tried.
The only other popular Malaysian place I know of for lunch in North Sydney is To’s Malaysian Gourmet which has similar priced dishes with the addition of a bain-marie for quick take-away meals — I’ll have to revisit to compare.
SNAPSHOT REVIEW:
PROS: Friendly and efficient service, Seating available but limited when busy, Complimentary prawn crackers for customers, Decent quality prawns used which were deveined properly, Chicken rice served boneless, Reasonably priced
CONS: Tables were left uncleared and could be cleaned much quicker, Side soup was a bit luke warm, Char Tway Teow wasn’t particularly smoky in taste and needed more charring, Roti a bit oily and not as good as Mamak’s fluffy version
MUST TRY: Other dishes on the menu next time like Har Mee, Assam Laksa and Beef Rendang
WORTH TRYING: Chicken Rice
—
Prawn crackers complimentary
SIMON FAVOURITE :-)
Prawn laksa ($8.90)
Roti canai & curry chicken ($7.90)
WORTH TRYING :-)
Char Kway Teow ($8.90)
Menu
Lineup for May's Laksa House
Reserved seating area for May's Laksa House customers
Char Kway Teow ($8.90)
Menu
Lineup for May's Laksa House
Service counter and customers waiting for their orders
Reserved seating area for May's Laksa House customers
Food court seating
Traditional Asian drinks storage — wherever there's a spare spot
Signage
Spring Street entrance to Berry Square
This is 2 Berry Street — don't go here which is where one of the Google Maps had it located at :-(
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