My mother is visiting at the moment, so what better chance to share with her our last Malaysia Kitchen dining experience. I sweated a lot over this restaurant selection, considering our – how shall I say it? – unexpected trip a few weeks ago. We didn’t want to drive all the way into the city either, as Adam had worked all day. So we compromised and drove halfway to East Kew.
I’ve driven past this particular strip of shops lots of times but never actually stopped to have a better look. Now I have I think we’ll go back – there are boutiques nestled close to second-hand stores, all waiting to be explored.
Cherating is a nice space to be in: exposed brick wall, comfortable seating, warmly lit. Our waitress was fantastic, always ready to leap when we needed a water top-up and was very friendly with the kids. Food service was incredibly quick.
Entree
Riley took such a shine to this dish he practically polished off all by himself. In other words, TOTAL VICTORY IN MY EYES. Lohbak is described as minced chicken blended with five-spice seasoning, wrapped in a bean curd skin and then fried. It basically is a pretty fancy meatball, served with a lovely tangy sweet and sour sauce.
When Adam saw this on the menu and read the description of it being diced vegetables stuffed in bean curd with peanut sauce and sesame seeds on top, he immediately cried, “I’m ordering this.” At this point I turned to him and asked, “Who are you and what have you done with my husband?” Turns out he’s become a lover of the bean curd. I – sad to report – am not. I’ve tried, Lord I’ve tried, and in the spirit of experimenting I tasted this. The bean curd tasted a little watery. The peanut sauce was nice… but then again I’ve rarely eaten a peanut sauce I didn’t like!
We ordered other entrees, like curry puffs, which my mother loved (but weren’t as good as these ones) and vegetarian spring rolls.
Main
Keira declared this dish of the night and we were unanimous with her decision. Marinated and battered beef, then fried, served with tomatoes, capsicum, pineapple and a sweet soy sauce. The burst of fresh tomato chunks, with the crispy capsicum, and the beautiful sauce were wonderful.
We got two other mains – a honey king prawn and a lamb curry. The prawns were disappointing, honestly. They hadn’t been deveined properly and were pretty sloppily plated. My mother really enjoyed the curry.
Dessert
We didn’t eat all our mains and asked for containers so we could take the leftovers home (no waste for us!). However, we all felt we couldn’t do a review justice without sampling the dessert menu (this is the story we’re telling ourselves and we’re sticking to it!) Our range of choices was somewhat limited as they were out of almost half of the menu! So we went for the wrapped penang pancakes and mango sago. The sago was a fine, cleansing choice to end the meal. Nice and refreshing and the pancakes were nice (if on the small side) and coconut-y.
As far as value for money goes, Cherating is a good choice. Their wine list is respectable, given the not too-large size of the place. A trip to the toilets revealed a function room out the back. There is a tram stop right outside and parking isn’t too arduous (it wasn’t for us, at least!)
Very pleasant indeed.
Cherating Cafe Bar & Restaurant
627 High Street
East Kew VIC 3102
(03) 9859 7882
We dined as part of the Malaysia Kitchen Blogger Ambassador Program. I’m a little sorry it is over! As is the rest of the family, to be honest. Thank you Malaysia Kitchen and Ogilvy 360 Digital Influence.
