Penang Bistro, Pakubowono

So, I grew up in Asia and dishes like nasi goreng, sate ayam and mee soto roll off my tongue like other people might say cheese and pickle sandwich. I adore South East Asian food. It is a cuisine that is bursting with flavours and influences. Today, it had to be Penang Bistro for lunch. They specialise in Malaysian cuisine and as I grew up for many years in Singapore this is a cuisine that provides a huge amount of comfort to my soul when I eat it. Top of this list would be roti canai (or roti prata, as it is more commonly known in Singapore). This dish consists of a crispy Indian type of flatbread served with a curry. You break off pieces of the bread, dip them in the curry and then devour shamelessly. What could be better? The roti canai at Penang Bistro lives up to every expectation. When you receive your dish, the roti canai is a very generous serving, folded in half and taking up most of the plate. It is crispy in some parts and soft in others. The accompanying curry is rich and full of flavour. Perfect! Actually the roti canai is almost enough on its own if you are not ridiculously hungry. 

If you are, there is a wide selection of traditional Malaysian dishes to choose from including nasi lemak, laksa and claypot curry. Today I wanted to try the mock mutton curry. It is vegetarian and the mock mutton is made from mushrooms, cooked in such a wickedly clever way that you wouldn't really miss the fact that it's not meat. The texture is so similar and yet the pieces of mock mutton are soft and juicy. The dish comes with fried bread on the side. Although the fried bread is rather oily it does go well with the curry and you can dip your bread in to soak up any excess curry. I imagine, however, that just uncooked sliced bread would be equally as satisfying and less calories. 

Not only is the food at Penang Bistro of a deliciously high standard, the decor is simple and elegant and there is always clientele filling the place with a happy buzz that can only come from satisfied stomachs. There is a fantastic aroma of green tea wafting through the restaurant that comes from a burner hidden away in a discreet corner. It creates a relaxing ambiance that you just don't want to leave.

I would thoroughly recommend lunch or dinner at Penang Bistro. They have a number of branches throughout the city. The menu is so extensive that you will find yourself wanting to come back again and again in order to sample another Malaysian delicacy...