PappaRich, new Malaysian at QV

Is there anything Melbourne loves more than a new Malaysian restaurant?  PappaRich is at the old site of Old Kopitiam Mamak at QV, and despite its somewhat secluded location, it's already jumping.

This is a big chain in Malaysia.  The ordering is really streamlined (see below) and there's a big open grill where you can spy your satays and roti coming to life.

It's a big menu with loads of glossy pictures, which I love.  There's a big section of things with super-soft Asian-style bread, which is very interesting!

To order, write your numbers on this funny little pad that feels like something out of a board game and press the buzzer.  A staff member whizzes past to grab the docket, before returning with your bill stapled to the order form.  It sounds impersonal but all the staff were very friendly.

Char kway teoh, $11.90

Unfortunately this char kway teoh was a confoundingly huge BA-BOWWW fail.  The thin noodles were wrong (someone correct me if I'm wrong about this), there was no wok hei and the sauce was incorrect, being too sweet - it tasted almost like pad Thai.  The whole thing tended towards glugginess.  Such an odd thing to stuff up!

Roti, $5.50

This roti plate was excellent though - the roti is made in house on a big flat plate and is super delicate inside with gorgeous crispy edges.  Included in the price are tastes of wonderul yellow split dea dal, full of earthy popped mustard seeds; a little chicken curry-style gravy, full of warming cardamom and sweetly cooked onion without a hint of bitterness; and jammy, spicy sambal.  Total bargain light lunch at only $5.50!

Teh, $3.90 and barley drink, $3.50

The tea wasn't quite right - it wasn't tannic enough, as good teh should be.  The barley drink was new for me and surprisingly good, warm, sweet and almost viscous.  Apparently they do organic soy milk drinks too (they were out that day).  Don't bother with this anchovy sambal if you already have sambal in your meal - the anchovies were almost nonexistent anyway.

The roti win outweighed the CKT fail, and I'm keen to try more at PappaRich.  They have a vegetarian section with mock meat dishes (including a few yum cha-style items) that definitely looks worth trying.  Satays look good too.  Check out Urbanspoon for a staggering amount of user reviews - it's certainly captured Melbourne's attention.



NOTE!  Gurney Drive in West Melbourne was previously highly recommended on these fair pages.  It's now turned into Kari Leaf and from two separate reports from trusted sources, it's very disappointing.  Proceed at your own risk!

PappaRich (Facebook)
Shop 11, QV Square, QVB - cnr Lonsdale and Swanston (one level up from the food court)
Hours:  Lunch and dinner 7 days



View Footscrayfoodblog reviews in a larger map

Two great bloggers I know, Bryan (@fatbooo) and Winston (@winceeee), are stepping up and doing "Live Below the Line", a challenge in which they live on a meagre $2 worth of food per day for 5 days, to raise awareness of extreme poverty and raise funds for the Oaktree Foundation.  Have a read about it on their blogs and perhaps even consider sponsoring them.  Bryan's even going to take it up a notch, giving up an extra western-world luxury like hot water or electronic gadgets for each day of the challenge - culminating in no food at all on the final day.  I'm really looking forward to reading how their experiences went.