Café Malacca 馬來一菜館 (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★☆☆

For the past few years, I have always counted on Satay Inn (沙嗲軒) to satisfy my craving for Singaporean and Malaysian food but since checking out Café Malacca (馬來一菜館) two years ago, I realized that I have a strong alternative waiting on the wing.



Located on the second floor of Hotel Jen near Shek Tong Tsui, Café Malacca is a little out of the way but the Kennedy Town line really helped to put them on the map.



Fried carrot cake with prawns (炒蘿蔔糕) ($98) - Turnip cake cubes fried with bean sprouts, prawns and preserved turnips. Very authentic as it looked and tasted exactly like those found on the streets of Singapore. I like the one in Satay Inn a little better because of the added sweetness from their sweet soy but this was very tasty (and original).



Penang chee cheong fun (檳城豬腸粉) ($68) - Hand cut steamed rice rolls served with hoisin sauce, prawn paste and chili sauce. I had a hunch to check this out to see if it's any different from our Cantonese rice rolls. Looks like this Malaysian version is more or less the same thing except the prawn paste and fried shallots.



Penang char koay teow (檳城炒貴刁) ($98) - A signature hawker dish and my favorite dish of the afternoon.



The stir-fried flat rice noodles were very nice. Just the right amount of moist so the texture was perfect. The noodles were tossed with the usual ingredients of prawns, Chinese sausage, chives and bean sprouts. Only fish cakes seemed to be missing.



Singapore Hokkien char (新加坡福建麵) ($108) - Again very authentic. The mix of fried yellow and white rice noodles was wok-fried with bean sprouts, chives, prawns, sliced pork, squid and eggs, and served with a dash of sambal and wedge of lime. Not bad.



Malay fried chicken (馬來炸雞) ($92) - The chicken legs and thighs were deep fried with a special homemade turmeric spiced marinade. Looks a little too oily for me.



Fried kai lan with salted fish (鹹魚炒芥蘭) ($88) - Always nice to finish a Singaporean meal with this dish. I love my kai lan fried with salted fish.



Everyone was happy with the authentic Singaporean and Malaysian dishes this afternoon. Now as I promised myself early, I will go back to No Milkshake No Life to get my sweet treats.

Food Rating: 5.5/10
Price: $$$
Address: Level 2, Hotel Jen Hong Kong, 508 Queen's Road West, Western District, Hong Kong
Closest Metro Station: HKU
Tel: +852 2213-6613
Website: www.hoteljen.com/hongkong/westerndistrict/taste/restaurants/cafe-malacca/