Malaya The

My kids don't believe me, but this restaurant actually started when I was at high school, in the early 1980s, in the middle of North Sydney, my Indonesian class went there for lunch! Ok, so they've moved to the other side of the bridge and gained a water view, but the food is still BAGUS (excellent) and delicious. OMG the beef rendang, how do they do it ? Perfection. Great 12 course menu and matching wines, I can't wait to tell my old high school pals how good it is. Thanks for a perfect night out.

The Malaya have been making laksa since before coconut milk was even possible to buy in Sydney! They use cow milk - and have continued to do this, because people got addicted to the taste!

A restaurant that's been serving Sydneysiders for 40 years must be doing something right. The Coco and Vine team had the privilege to be part of the Sydney festival special tasting night and sampled the best of The Malaya's extensive treats that draws inspiration from South East Asian cuisine. The highlights were the Szechuan Eggplant, who knew a vegetable could taste so good. Stir fried with cashews, chillies and shallots, it's a stunner. Traditional Malaysian dishes like Beef Rendang are strong as well, forget the knife as it just falls apart. Situated at King St Wharf, it's the perfect location to enjoy the spice and flavours of Asia.

Located within the King Street Wharf area, this restaurant has a wonderful vista of the water. It is a lovely space and a great place to eat.

We were here to sample the Sydney Festival Menu. It looked enticing and lived up to the descriptions and more! They offer a wonderful selection of cocktails of Asian influence both of the alcoholic and non alcoholic varieties. The favourites amongst the table were Kapitan Prawns/Chicken (they kindly offered me this variation as I don't eat prawns) which had a rich sauce which went well with the rice. The Coconut Beef Rendang was rich in flavour but not too heavy as with some other versions. The beef was melt in the mouth and absolutely delicious. The Szechuan Eggplant was beautifully crispy and had a lovely caramelised taste to it. It was nice and soft on the inside. We ended on some delicious desserts.

Real shame I was sick last week in Sydney – the heatwave knocked me for six and I went home sick on the day of this visit to The Malaya. I love Malaysian Food, love what Sydney Festival is doing with their Festival Feasts and love Darling Harbour. This venue is win win for me. Luckily and conveniently my back-up writer for Spooning, Arvin, was available at short notice and it worked out really well for everyone. Arvin is Malaysian and his family live in Malaysia – he knows his Malaysian food. If Arvin says The Malaya's food is awesome, trust me, it is AWESOME.

"The Malaya really know their Malaysian food! An amazing venue with amazing food and staff. I really would recommend bringing a group of friends and give their Sydney Festival special a shot. I do wish they would add dessert to the Festival Feasts specials though."