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Malaysian Restaurants

April 19, 2013 by Ron Wen Leave a Comment

First Take: Cuisine Malaya for Flavorful and Spicy Asian Fare

Front of Cuisine Malaya, Charlotte- NC Triangle Dining
Front of Cuisine Malaya, Charlotte- NC Triangle Dining

I’m visiting Charlotte for work and need to find a tasty and casual dinner.  Yelp and some reviews bring me over to 5Church but after a beer, I just realize this place is NOT for me.  Way too many suits and ties, I’ve often found restaurants in the Financial district of any city to be ok and over-priced.  So I check my iPhone and there you go, Cuisine Malaya!  It’s way across downtown Charlotte but I’m willing to walk if it’s worth it.  From the outside the place looks a bit bare and there are four doors on the outside, three of which are locked.  I finally find the real door and step inside Cuisine Malaya.  The space is big and casual, with a long back bar for cocktails and sushi-making.  I grab a table for one and it’s time to eat!

Roti canai at Cuisine Malaya, Charlotte- NC Triangle Dining
Roti canai at Cuisine Malaya, Charlotte- NC Triangle Dining

 A quick scan of the menu and I know I’m going to focus on the Malaysian eats.  Service is quick, I immediately get a glass of water and free glass of wine courtesy of a Yelp check-in and put in my order for some roti canai and golden tasty shrimp.  About 10 minutes later, my roti app comes out and it’s a winner.  One large, folded roti with a tender interior, slightly crisp exterior and not greasy at all.  The small cup of red curry and potatoes is well spiced and makes a perfect foil for the carbs.

My main of shrimp is not quite golden, it’s more like 12 or so large shrimp stir-fried in a chili sauce with onions, string beans and basil. The shrimp are cooked just to tender as well as the vegetables.  It’s a slightly spicy dish which needs the cup of white rice to take down the heat a bit, perfect!  It’s a simple dish but done well.  After all this food, I can’t resist and go for a Malaysian dessert.

Peanut pancake at Cuisine Malaya, Charlotte- NC Triangle Dining
Peanut pancake at Cuisine Malaya, Charlotte- NC Triangle Dining

The final act of the meal is Cuisine Malaya’s peanut pancake!  Take that same roti and put some brown sugar and peanuts inside, pan-fry it and serve quickly!  It sorta looks like a rectangle quesadilla and brings a nice blend of sweet, salty, crunchy and soft, a very nice finishing touch.  Although I admit some honey drizzled on top would make it even more awesome if not authentic.  Service all night was very good, the young man who took care of my table was on point all night and I asked him for some recommendations which were helpful.  Overall I really do like this place, Cuisine Malaya!  Once you can find the right door, you’re stepping into a great, authentic Asian meal. Whenever I go to a restaurant that’s mixed cuisines, I tend to go for the less popular side (Malaysian in this case) cause it’s usually the tastier option.  And yes, no surprise but Malaysian is what you should be eating at this place, bon appetit!

 

Cuisine Malaya

1411 Elizabeth Avenue

Charlotte, NC 28204

704.372.0766

 

Menu at Cuisine Malaya

Location on Google maps

Filed Under: Charlotte, Restaurant & Bar Reviews Tagged With: Charlotte, NC Restaurants, Malaysian Restaurants, NC Restaurants, Sushi

January 17, 2017 by Ron Wen Leave a Comment

First Take: Rasa Malaysia in Chapel Hill for Real Ethnic Malaysian Eats

Front of Rasa Malaysia in Chapel Hill - NC Triangle Dining
Front of Rasa Malaysia in Chapel Hill – NC Triangle Dining

If you’re a fan of Asian eats, you might be a fan of Chinese, Japanese, Thai or even Laotian cuisine (Bida Manda). But there’s a much broader spectrum of Asian eats given all the countries in the region and one that might have slipped past your foodie radar screen is Malaysian! I’ve only had the chance to try it a handful of times but have always been impressed by the different flavors and ingredients used in the cuisine. And over in Chapel Hill, we may have the only Malaysian restaurant in the area (that I know of), Rasa Malaysia. So on a quiet Friday morning, I hoofed it out to see what they were dishing out!

Dining room at Rasa Malaysia in Chapel Hill - NC Triangle Dining
Dining room at Rasa Malaysia in Chapel Hill – NC Triangle Dining

If you’re familiar with this area of Chapel Hill, you might have known Rasa Malaysia’s predecessor: Merlion. Sitting in this corner of Southern Village I always found it odd that a very ethnic restaurant was located in this very suburban setting. And Rasa Malaysia isn’t really any different. It occupies the same location with the same interior of dark brown and airy whites for the interior. One difference is that the street-facing entrance has been closed, enter through the building foyer to the right. The menu at Rasa Malaysia has definitely taken on a more Malaysian twinge, offering favorites like roti, char kway teow, mee goreng and beef rendang. I decide to go all in on some of the more “exploratory” dishes.

Complimentary soup at Rasa Malaysia in Chapel Hill - NC Triangle Dining
Complimentary soup at Rasa Malaysia in Chapel Hill – NC Triangle Dining

Rasa Malaysia starts off lunch with a small cup of soup. It’s recognizable to me as a simple Chinese soup: Napa cabbage in light chicken broth. Very basic but well done and perfect on a cold afternoon. And then things start to get interesting. My stuffed you tiao (stuffed Chinese cruller) comes to the table as a colorful heap of shredded veggies bathed in a cream sauce. I start scratching my head here, usually Chinese crullers are long, fried pastries and I’m wondering if I ordered the wrong item. A closer look at the menu shows that it’s served with a mango salad and some digging underneath shows off some slice pieces of cruller hidden underneath it all.

Stuffed you tiao at Rasa Malaysia in Chapel Hill - NC Triangle Dining
Stuffed you tiao with mango salad at Rasa Malaysia in Chapel Hill – NC Triangle Dining

So it’s time to dig in! This multi-hued plate has shredded mango, carrot, onion, and cucumber topped with a sweet creamy sauce. The crunchy cruller pieces make for a nice textural and savory contrast to the topping, very different. Again, I think this plate must be pretty Malaysian and a spin off of the “typical Chinese cruller” offering. It tastes of the tropics which makes sense to me.

Nasi lemak at Rasa Malaysia in Chapel Hill - NC Triangle Dining
Nasi lemak at Rasa Malaysia in Chapel Hill – NC Triangle Dining

Next up is my nasi lemak and I had NO idea what to expect other than I understood that it’s a very popular dish in Malaysia. It’s plated beautifully with a variety of colors and textures on the plate. One bowl of coconut rice, some curry chicken, what I think is beef rendang, half a boiled egg, peanuts and sambal ikan bilis (anchovies). Whoa! First time here and yeah, I’m trying to figure things out. The coconut rice is great, perfectly steamed and supple with hints of coconut underneath. Taking a bite of the more savory curried chicken and beef rendang makes for an interesting mouthful with the rice. The anchovies at the bottom of the plate along with the peanuts add some crunch and I’m not sure how the egg fits into this meal! Besides adding some additional protein.

Back bar at Rasa Malaysia in Chapel Hill - NC Triangle Dining
Back bar at Rasa Malaysia in Chapel Hill – NC Triangle Dining

At Rasa Malaysia, there’s one older gentleman running and serving the busy dining room, he’s obviously a pro. And still manages to check in several times to see if I’m enjoying my meal. I can tell you for sure that Rasa Malaysia is the real, authentic ethnic deal. They’re serving up Malaysian cuisine without making too many accommodations for those less familiar with the cuisine. Which is fine by me because I always appreciate authenticity in my food. That being said, you certainly come to Rasa Malaysia with a curious and exploratory mindset and palate, ready to taste some different food. It’s not for everyone but if you enjoy Malaysian eats, I’m pretty sure you’ll love Rasa Malaysia!

 

Rasa Malaysia

410 Market Street

Chapel Hill, NC 27516

984.234.0256

Location on Google maps

Filed Under: Chapel Hill, Restaurant & Bar Reviews Tagged With: Malaysian Restaurants

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