Chaozhou Malaya Bistro Cafe — Restaurant in Melbourne

Heart of Teochew Homecooking 😋

Surprising find in the heart of Balwyn North - an authentic Malaysian/Teochew eatery run by sisters and assisted by one of their daughters on service.

Taste-wise, this reminds me of what my in-laws used to cook and serve - unpretentious soul nourishing fare.

Not all dishes were hits though - the highly recommended pig stomach pepper soup was underwhelming. Stock lacked body and pepper though the offal was cleaned and cooked perfectly. The or chien (oyster omelette) was flat-pan style and pricey, in my opinion, at $25.

Things looked up when the braised duck platter with tofu and pig intestines arrived. Braised expertly with a light hand on the soya - letting the lean duck meat and aromatics sing on the tongue. Probably the best version we’ve had outside of a private kitchen offering.

The winners for us were the prawn rolls (hae chor) and mixed veg platter (more of that later). Prawn rolls were exceptional - fresh prawn, pork, water chestnuts, yam and five spice rolled and fried in bean curd skin. The fresh ingredients could all be tasted distinctly yet went together like fireworks. Their version is lighter on the yam filling which I thought really let the prawns shine. Would've been nice to have been accompanied with a sweet sauce dip.

The highlight was surprise the mixed veg platter. It didn’t look like much but man, this is the dish that I’d really miss on cold nights. Organic caulilini expertly tossed with preserved napa cabbage for that fermented body and oomph, plus tomatoes for that sweet tart umami. This on hot white rice is a last meal candidate and absolutely what I’d liked to have opened this meal with. What a stunner.

Service was understandably slow (just cook and daughter) - we even had to wait to pay. That said, this eatery deserves love for what it does. Be kind. Will definitely be back to try the rest of their...

I came back again because the food was good, however, was extremely disappointed in the food this time round. The stirred fried rice cake was overly sweet, the char kuay teow was too wet, the vermicelli rice noodle soup was bland, and the worst dish of all was the Bak Kut Teh soup. When it was served up, it didn't look right. The colour of the soup was very light and not the usual dark colour when we ate there last time. There was no meat or pork rib, there was no pork tripe, there were only 4 pieces of tofu floating on top and a few shreds of lettuce. It was nothing like the BQT that we had land enjoyed ast time. Suspect that they've sold out of the BQT during lunch service and had a little bit of left over broth which they had reboiled with added water then served it up to us. When we prompted the waitress, she apologised and came back with 4 slices of boiled pork. One can tell straight away that the pork was not cooked in the BQT soup because it was white, it was so fatty that you can hardly eat it. For $19, this is a total waste of money. A dish like this shouldn't even be served up to customers. I would give a zero star if I could. Terrible food and service,...

My husband and I stumbled across this inconspicuous little hide away. Honestly if you didn't know it was there you would never find it. Tucked away in a little arcade. We saw a small sign on the main strip and decided to give it a go. We were starving and this tiny place was all but empty, it was 8.45pm and they do close at 9pm, so not surprisingly. Anyway, my husband ordered the Nasi Goreng and I ordered the cha kway theo (excuse the spelling)........both dishes came with a good spice hit. The taste, texture and ingredients were all fantastic. My husband went as far as to say that this was the best Nasi Goreng he has had outside Malaysia. He considers himself to be a bit of a Nasi Goreng expert! I did try it and loved it too. My noodles were cooked perfectly and were loaded with flavour, we enjoyed it all and even polished it all off. We also had the satay chicken to start with and that was also very good. I wish we lived closer because the food was authentic and tasty. Definitely give it a go if you are in Balwyn. Not a fancy place but they are not pretending to me. Just good honest food and service and at...