This is a franchise chain for Malaysian food owned by A Malaysian started in 2006. It now has…read morebranches in Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan, China, South Korea and even in the USA. So can a franchise chain have good Malaysian food? Well this one is not bad for a franchise business. We tried their Hainan Chicken Rice, the Nasi Biryani Special with fried chicken, roti bom (sweet version for desert) and prawn Mee soup. All were very tasty except that the Penang Prawn Mee soup was somewhat watered down. As we would say... the taste was too adjusted for the western palette. Needed more "heako" or prawn paste! The unfortunate thing was that when I picked up our order, I did not check to package and found that I had taken Bill's take out order! Called the restaurant and they apologized for the mix up and remade my order at no extra charge. That left us with Bill's dinner choices as extra! He ordered the roti with chicken tandoori, seafood curry Mee or laksa noodle soup and paparich special Nasi Lemak. Wow! We were set with Malaysian food all the way through the next day. Food was just great! Thanks Paparich!

Although I would give the food a 3-4 * the customer service past the front manager, with the…read moreyounger employees was so disrespectful that I am wondering why I did not leave before eating my food! Knowing that the restaurant closes at nine we arrived at 8. No mention or any feeling of rush by the possible manager of the facility. Afterward it all started! As we hand over the list of the food request this employee tells us the dessert i.e. ice cream will be in with your food as the kitchen closes at 8:30. Okay we agreed. Desert comes in within 5 minutes (after two back to back inquiries of the ice cream flavor). We finish the desert. 10 minutes into it food is still not on the table but the bill has been sitting there! The other employee goes after our food when he sees the empty dish... Food comes in finally, satay was not the best but the chicken curry was okay... not a great experience even tho the employee who noticed the mix up of the order tried to be apologetic! Next time I'll need to observe negative reviews on Yelp!

I ordered the curry laksa and coconut rice for dinner after a windy and rainy day roaming around…read morethe city. The reviews I saw were relatively good so decided to give them a try. The laksa flavor was decent but it didn't seem as authentic as the Borneo restaurant I had back home in the States. There were only a few pieces of chicken, and fish balls sliced from maybe 2 whole pieces, mostly tofu and egg. At the end, when I paid with cash, I was surprised by a 15% service charge. So far in the restaurants I have been to across NZ, there hasn't been a surcharge stated on the receipt. I did not expect it and a NZ$30 meal came to NZ$35. I don't recall seeing the 15% surcharge written anywhere in the menu. I would appreciate a notice in advance so I am prepared to pay more. Anyway, NZ$35 for mediocre Malaysian food. Maybe it was an off day since business is slow. You can take a chance on them if you feel adventurous.

We are still fans of this venerable Indo Malaysian restaurant in the Courtenay Place entertainment…read more/ restaurant district of NZ's capital. We usually stop by when in Wellington. Now celebrating their 25th Anniversary, Istana Malaysia continues to put out very tasty authentic NON dumbed down meals. Chili levels were exactly as ordered, no surprises, and spices were PUNGENT strong and balanced. A couple of classics; a Nasi goreng and coconut based chicken curry acccompanied by their ALWAYS yummy FRESH made to order flatbreads (garlic) satisfied. As friendly as remembered, staff were lovely: prompt; water for the table, ordering process, food to table all GOOD. Unhurried, we enjoyed a leisurely meal, free street parking all day Sunday a bonus. Clean and tidy venue, spacious seating. Prices have crept up over the years, but QUALITY is still right UP THERE, & for those interested, a BYO wine policy allows for a relatively affordable evening out. Recommended, and we'll be back on our next trip. solid 4 stars in the Asian restaurant class. pics to follow in due course

Early dinner for two 5 pm Saturday was a tasty experience…read more Over the years, Little Penang's been on my rota when I'm in NZs capital city. Mom n pop shop, so to speak, limited hours, all prep in house no central commissary keeps to their basics hasn't changed much in 15 + years in my experiences. Maybe more employees and fewer family members on site than in days gone by? Dependable for authentic Chinese Malaysian cuisine, no frills, right price, quality at the price point = no complaints. May have slipped slightly from a 5 to a 4.2, new chef, someone retired, even an ownership change ? Still better than average; our two dishes: nasi goreng & seafood pork bones soup with rice noodles (daily special)accompanying a shared pot of Chinese tea@ 34 bucks = value in this market. Queued, ordered, paid, find own seating model, food and beverages follow in a short time. No personal attention. Self Serve water. Carry teapot to counter ask for boiling top up. Reasonable standard of cleanliness / comfort. Staff attitude is okay, no idle chitchat, just the facts mam, not a place to hang about; eat n go type o experience. Overall a 3.6 rounded up to 4 stars for authenticity/ value. Suggest y'all try several menu items as I've never been disappointed. Recommended.

Are you tired of the same old bland food? Do you crave something that will make your taste buds…read moredance ? Look no further than Rasa, the Malaysian gem of Wellington. Also, one of the only places that are open later in the night.. This tiny restaurant is a hidden treasure that you don't want to miss. We were fortunate enough to grab a table without waiting for hours. The service was impeccable, and the staff were very friendly. Now, let's talk about the star of the show: the curry Laksa. The Laksa was perfectly seasoned and just to the level of spice that I wanted. . The broth was so flavorful that I wanted to lick the bowl. Great find!

Their lunch special was a hard deal to beat. It's a small, cozy restaurant right off Cuba street…read moreand it's pretty unassuming. We were immediately seated and looking at the menu, I think they were more of a Southern Indian than Malaysian restaurant in my opinion. I got the Ayam Panggang, which tasted nice, but the peanut sauce accompanying the dish was gritty. Quick service for a cheap meal though, so we were glad we ducked in for a nice lunch!

Delicious food and frienfavorable in a prime downtown location. The food came very quickly and was…read morevery flavorable.

I have been regularly visiting for the last 20 years since I was in Uni, and it has never…read moredisappointed. The Mee Goreng is amazing and always has friendly service to match. Highly recommended

Came here with friends who recommended this place. There weren't any dining tables left so we were…read moreseated at a table by the bar which we didn't mind. Service was a tad slow here but picked up as more people started sitting at the bar. We ordered the following: -combo platter (summer rolls, peppered squid, krishna pakhora, three cheese naan, and SFC) - all items were pretty good and my favorite was the krishna pakhora vegetables and SFC chicken which is surprising since these are usually not my favorite meats/veggies -firecracker slider - friends said it was very spicy and I had to try it. This was the right amount of spicy for me and I wish I had ordered it as my main -nasi goreng - good amount of meat but not really extraordinary -lamb curry - good, doesn't come with rice but my partner just ate it as is since he's allergic -krakatoa fire bowl - love the fire element to the drink and it was tasty and didn't taste very alcoholic (even though it's made of a lot of liquors) but it's pricey -bartender's choice - THIS is what I would 100% come back for and surprisingly very affordable. I told them that I like whiskey/bourbon and love yuzu citrus (the more citrusy the better) and they made me a drink that tasted amazing! According to my friends, the food has less spice now compared to when they've had it previously. Overall, I would come back here at least for the drinks and the firecracker chicken.

This place was a surprise since I was expecting much less in terms of flavour profile but the food…read moreturned out to be amazing! The service was quick and efficient and we arrived for an early dinner. The ambience is good enough but a felt a little dingy to me. We tried multiple dishes and they were all very flavourful, especially the beef main dish on the menu. Would definitely recommend trying this spot in Wally!

Satay Kingdom was recommended by my Kiwi friend for their roti chanai. After checking out the…read moreWellington Museum, we decided to check them out. They're across the street from Oriental Kingdom Cafe (which they also own). We dropped in on a Sunday afternoon (around 2:45pm). The place is pretty small inside but there's a couple tables outside (with rain cover). The menu is split into starters, Malaysian curries, fried noodle and rice, stir fry, laksa & noodle soup and chef's specials. - Bundaberg ginger beer ($3.50 NZD) - finally got to try the infamous Australian ginger beer. Super refreshing. - Roti chanai (#4) ($7.00 NZD) - with lamb curry gravy. You get about 7-8 pieces of roti canai but they weren't what we were expecting. Lacked any flakiness or crisp. The sauce needed more flavour but it came with some potatoes and lamb pieces. - Curry laksa (#19) ($10.50 NZD) - fresh egg noodle with chicken, mussels, tofu, fish ball and bean sprouts in a rich creamy curry soup. The broth was decent but lacked any sort of spice. Creamy but it was missing depth. - Foil wrapped grilled sambal fish ($11.00 NZD) - fish fillet wrapped in tin foil and cooked with traditional Malaysian spices, sambal sauce and seasonal vegetables. The sauce was really tasty. Fish was light but again, we wanted more depth in flavour. They need to use a banana leaf to keep all the flavours together. - Beef rendang ($11.00 NZD) - beef in spicy dried curry blended with desiccated coconut. Served with steamed rice. The rendang wasn't too tender but the coconut crumble/coating was interesting. Decent Malaysian but with so many other Malaysian spots in the area, I'm not sure I'd be coming back here right away.

I came here on a rainy day to try the roti chanai. It is affordable and served with a generous…read moreportion of roti! However, the menu says that you can choose the type of curry, but I was not asked and simply given chicken. I found the curry watery. But the peanut sauce was delicious!! The restaurant is very divey and lacks atmosphere, but if you want cheap eats, it fits the bill!

As a 20 year old student living in Wellington, I can say from personal experience that it doesn't…read moreget any better than Cinta. We lived in an appartment just down the street and i can genuinely say we came here basically every weekend. Being a student and going out drinking every weekend can be tough, but a BYO like Cinta makes it pretty easy. The definition of cheap and cheerful. The staff are so friendly, treating us like family (probably because we were such regulars), rembering our orders and putting up with us as we got gradually louder throughout the night as the wine started slowly disappearing. I always ordered the vegetarian curry with tofu and a side of coconut rice, and it was just as delicious every single time. Have shared so many wonderful memories in this place and will 100% be returning as soon as I start studying again. Definitely recommend!

True Wellington gem. Incredibly friendly staff and delicious food, of course. Unlike other similar…read morerestaurants not all dishes taste the same :-) The Beef Rendang and the Grilled Fish would be my two standout recommendations.

I had veggie laksa and roti. The food came out very quickly and it was extremely tasty. The space…read moreis a bit bare bones but the food was great.