GET TO KNOW YOUR BYO with Kellie Larson

Malaysian in Milford

BYOs are often viewed as the “cheap” alternative, not a dining experience. I’d like to think this isn’t entirely true. BYOs on the North Shore are integral to the local restaurant scene that we love to rely on for great food and a friendly atmosphere. Relaxed, in a good way. Not lacking in flavour. Just delicious, enjoyable dining experiences in our local communities. But these BYOs aren’t always easy to find. Online searches produce very little for the North Shore, and personal references tend to only take you to someone’s local Thai restaurant. So I have taken it upon myself to seek out the best BYO experiences to add to my “black book” of restaurants.

Malaysian in Milford

With one year under my belt of North Shore BYO-ing, I am even more excited and determined to find the best BYO restaurants located in our backyard. I say this because I now know how important they are to our social life – or at least to my social life! These local restaurants are where we go each week to have a curry with our friends, where we go for a regular date night – and more than anything, where we go a majority of the time we dine out here on the Shore. And, if this is where we are eating – why not find the best of the best to ensure that each time we dine out, the experience is nothing but superb.
This month I ventured to Langkawi Malaysian Restaurant located at 122 Kitchner Road in Milford. Milford never has a lack of BYO restaurants, and I
think that is why I always seemed to miss out on this Malaysian eatery –
though judging upon our Sunday night experience, we were in the minority
as the restaurant was quite full. Walking into the restaurant the dark atmosphere was lit up by large quantity of fabric wall coverings and twinkle lights. Unique indeed.
The menu was great – a decent amount of choice but not too much where we felt overwhelmed. We were very happy to not be ordering number 143A off of a novel of a menu.
Not being too familiar with Malaysian cuisine – my partner and I decided to order a variety of dishes in order to sample as much as we could. For entrée we ordered Chicken Satay and Murtabak, a grilled lamb and vegetable pastry.
The satay was the best with a rich peanut and charcoal grill taste.
For main, we ordered Ayam Tumis and Mee Goreng with Garlic Chanai Bread. Being a person who likes hot food, and never hesitates to order a hot curry, I was quite surprised by the punch this food provided. And while I found it quite delicious – it definitely was not for the weak! The Ayam Tumis consisted of fried chicken and vegetables in a chili sauce (the menu did say it was hot). What was delicious about this dish was that the rich chili sauce had a deep peanut flavour – resulting in more of a gravy rather than a sauce. Great flavour! The Mee Goreng – a more traditional dish – was also surprisingly hot although without the warning on the menu. Similar to a pad thai, the stir-fried noodles, beef and bean sprouts were full of flavour. So good was this dish, that it may become my regular pad thai replacement. And, as a palate tamer, the garlic chanai – similar to a garlic naan – was very yummy.
It was a great evening experiencing Malaysian cuisine for the first time, and with great, earthy, rich flavour I would definitely go back for more. The food was fresh and unique to the typical fare, plus we had excellent service – and they were very attentive to our water needs!

Langkawi
Malaysian Restaurant
122 Kitchner Rd, Milford.
Ph: 486 2700

Kellie's rating:
Food:        7/10
Atmosphere:     7/10
Service:         9/10