Kaya Piccadilly

Very disappointing Malaysian food from here… Roti canai is quite bland and lacks the fragrance you would get usually Char kuay teow also is lacking distinct flavours you would expect from the dish, no heat/spice at all, noodles still quite firm, not cooked in lard or chicken fat, and just overall quite bland. It’s somewhere between a Chinese Hor Fun and an actual char kuay teow but misses the mark on both. I suspect the wok was not hot enough when this was cooked Beef Rendang was basically inedible. Very very dry and lacking any of the spices or flavour you would associate with rendang, no lemongrass, no coconut, no galangal, no discernible flavour that is from Southeast Asia. If you’d told me it was a completely dried out scouse I’d have believed you. At first I thought they had given me the wrong dish since the taste and visuals were so outlandishly different to what I expected. I came with a Singaporean and Indonesian (myself being Malaysian) and none of us had tried anything remotely like this before. I sent a picture to my family in Malaysia and they were also very confused about what the dish was. The staff insisted that this is how they have always done it but unless I have been lied to my whole life about what rendang tastes like this was not it at all. I’ve attached pictures of all the food I ordered. Please look up beef rendang and see how different it looks. I had to send it back. Overall very very disappointed in the food I had and wouldn’t dream of bringing my family here. The only reasonable explanation I can think of for this is that the chefs themselves are not Malaysian or any kind of southeast Asian to be honest.

There appear to be mixed reviews, but my experience was actually great. I tried the mee mamak and really enjoyed it — the flavour is closer to the East Malaysian mamak style rather than the typical KL/West Malaysian version. Overall, it’s definitely satisfying if you’re missing the taste of home!

Very much enjoyed the food, fast friendly service. We ordered the chicken and rice and thought the ginger sauce could be a bit more generous. Enjoyed the drinks, toast and roti, good authentic Malaysian food.