Being away from Singapore or Malaysia means missing local street food. So when most Sydney food bloggers rave about this little place call Mamak (15 Goulburn St, Haymarket, Sydney), I had to go and check it out myself. Mamak is located in the heart of Chinatown. One of the signature dishes is the authentic and traditional roti canai or roti prata (a type of flat bread that is made from lard, egg, flour & water). Back in Singapore, having prata for breakfast is like a norm. And it tastes even better after a night out of clubbing or drinking!

After 3 days of queuing for food, we decided that we will beat the crowd this time and be at the doors at 11.45am when it opens. A couple of silly ‘jumping’ photos outside Mamak while we waited for the doors to opn. Disclaimer: Mister is NOT Mary Poppins.

Mister jumping

It has a very nice selection of savoury or sweet roti, mains, desserts & drinks. My eyes were darting across the whole menu. Just roti? But the kambings and the rojak looks enticing. Or nasi lemak? Mee goreng? Oh No! It was too hard to make a decision. I wanted to eat everything on the menu! The waiter kept coming back for the order and I kept saying “Give me a couple more minutes”. Mister calmly ordered 1 teh tarik & 1 teh halia. (Teh tarik is a ‘pulled’ tea with condensed milk and halia has an added hint of ginger). After a couple of sips of my teh halia, we placed our order.

Teh drinkers in Singapore will travel for a good teh tarik. It is the way the teh is pulled to the right temperature. The density of the condensed milk and the teh. There must be a perfect harmony between the condensed milk, tea and the temperature. The teh tarik at Mamak wasn’t not bad.  A good froth at the top but it tasted a little ‘thin’. I had to remind myself that the tarik skills from the kopi tiams in Singapore/ Malaysia are made my old masters. But really good effort! And the first time I’ve seen it done the proper way outside of Asia.

Teh Tarik

The roti canai arrived. Looks great on the plate! The roti was very light and crunchy as it should be. And the 2 curries on the side were luke warm. Perfect for those that were going to use their fingers to eat. And the  sambal sauce had a real kick! I was definitely impressed.(Price – $5)

Roti canai

Mister ordered the roti planta (added margarine & sugar to the canai mixture). It got its name because Planta is actually the name of a type of margarine that is used in Asia. I am unsure if  this margarine was used in this dish here. Nice and soft on some parts and cripsy on others. It is a nice play on texture. Mister was loving it and mopping the pieces up with the curries.

Roti Planta

A order of kari kambing were made as well. Smells good. Looks good. And it tastes pretty good! Kari kambing is a spicy slow cooked lamb curry. The curry had a nice consistency. The lamb was very tender and moist. I wish I had more roti but I had to leave room in my tummy for more food! And I was thinking how lovely if I had some rice and stir fry chilli long bean.

Kari Kambing

And next the chicken satay! Nice colouring and char bits. The peanut sauce is to die for! But where is the rice cake or we call it ketupat. Rice cake or ketupat is made from rice wrapped in coconut leaves. It is really good in mopping up sauces. A little disappointed because I was really looking forward to it. But still, the satay tasted pretty damn good. And did I mention how good the sauce was? Mister had to stop me from licking the bowl.

Chicken satay

The place was almost filled up at this stage. Many tables ordered 2 dishes for each person. The portions are good sized but I guess there is nothing wrong with over indulgence with yummy food. We looked around and something caught our eyes – AYAM GORENG (deep fried crispy chicken)! We knew we HAD to order one to try. Looked soooo devine and to die for! And we were not disappointed. Super crispy skin that just pops and crunch when you bite into it. Tender moist chicken. Reminds me of how my grandma used to deep fry the chicken but of course, grandma’s chicken will always be the best. Better than any KFC, that is for sure!

AYAM GORENG

Now I understand why so many Sydney food bloggers are in love with this joint. I miss sitting in mamaks, drinking ice cold beers, eating stick after stick of satays and chatting all night long with friends. It is a really good thing that there is such a mamak experience in Sydney. And I am really glad that I made a point to try it and be open about it. This is one of my highlights of Sydney and making me realise how much I still miss my grandma

Does anyone else know where we can get some of this in Melbourne or even other parts of Australia?

Double YUM UP!