Malabar Indian Restaurant — Restaurant in Sydney

A calm and cozy south Indian (Kerala) restaurant at Crows nest! As we walked in we were greeted by soft instrumental music and a good ambience. They have plenty of seating and a couple near the entrance if you fancy watching the street. They also have a bar in the house and well maintained washrooms.

Items we ordered :

Entrées - Papadum with mint chutney. Papadums had cumin seeds on them. They were thin to my liking but not too bad. Quantity - 4.5/5 Taste - 5/5

Chicken tikka. 3 pieces with a spoonful of salad, lemon wedge and mint chutney. Tasted good but the quantity could have been a little more. Quantity - 4/5 Taste - 4/5

Paneer Kali Mirch. 6 succulent pieces of paneer served with a bit of salad, lemon wedge. The pieces were really soft and fresh. Quantity wasn't sufficient. Quantity - 4.5/5 Taste - 5/5

Main course - Chicken biryani. A bowlful of biryani served with raitha. The chicken pieces were boneless and were marinated well. The rice had a good spice to it and went well with the raitha which was well seasoned. Although the quantity of the raitha wasn't enough for the portion of biryani. We had to order another serving of raitha. Quantity - 5/5 Taste - 4.5/5

Kerala Parotta. Nice and flaky parotta. Went well with the butter chicken masala gravy we ordered. Quantity - 4/5 Taste - 4/5

Butter Chicken Masala. Too red on the looks. We expected it to look more orangish with cream swirled over it. It tasted sweet and the quantity was sumptuous. Quantity - 5/5 Taste - 4/5

Dessert - Gulab Jamun. 2 pieces of jamun served hot. Actually it's hot so be cautious, especially when serving for kids. Quantity - 5/5 Taste - 5/5

Pista kulfi. The best kulfi we had tasted after a long time. Good quantity and served with a half portion of fresh strawberry. Quantity - 5/5 Taste - 5/5

Beverage - Lemon lime bitter. Orangish drink served with a slice of fresh lemon and ice cubes. Quantity - 5/5 Taste - 5/5

The overall experience was good and we thoroughly enjoyed our lunch! The price was on the higher side but we believe it comes with the place.

A must try Indian restaurant...

IF MALABAR IS THE LAST INDIAN RESTAURANT LEFT IN THE ENTIRE NSW, I WOULD STILL NEVER DINE IN THERE. (READ IT AS 0 STARS)

I am an active contributor to Google Local Guide where my submitted photos have over 300 thousand views. I like exploring restaurants and have visited Malabar too in the past. Yesterday we had a few friends accompanying us and we thought of having South Indian Cuisine for dinner. We drove from Watson's Bay to Crows Nest (Over 20KM) as I recommended them to try Malabar for South Indian cuisine. I went there checking for a table, and to our shock, the response was preposterous. All we asked was "Can we have a table for 5" and the response we faced, we have never experienced by anyone anywhere ever. The manager was so rude that I can't express it in words. On enquiring further on why is he responding so rudely, he pointed a finger at one of our friends and said "Because she was looking desperate for a table". I should sue him for this behavior. He literally behaved as if we were some people with no money who came begging for food. We understand, that sometimes the restaurant is busy and you might not find a spot. It was a miss from our side as well as we should have reserved a table before visiting. Everything is understood but the way you treat your customers shows your class. I am happy I did make any booking as I do not want to contribute to a place who are in the HOSPITALITY business but lacks basic etiquette on how to treat your guests. Can't believe we drove 20+ KM with a 4-year-old Kid for this. An experience we will never forget. I assure you none of my friends or acquaintances would ever dine in...

This place was a mixed bag of sorts for us. Some of the dishes were incredibly tasty, while others were just alright. We went for their banquet menu which helped us in tasting a variety of dishes from their menu. The quantity of food was a lot for two people and we hardly finished the three curries and the basmati rice on offer. Their Mini Dosa and sambhar were undoubtedly the best I have had in Sydney, and was reminiscent of the Bangalore style dosas I have eaten. Crisp and delicious with a very tatsy potato filling. I felt like I should have had this for my main rather than an entree. The Lamb Pepper curry was also delicious with balanced flavours and not too hot. The pepper shown through but did not overwhelm. The butter chicken and veg curry was okay, and a little sweet for my taste. The naan was incredible and the dessert of Pistachio Kulfi was amazing. The kulfi was rich, with a generous sprinkling of nuts and saffron in it. So why the 3stars, heres why, the patti samosa was absolutely flavourless and lacked seasoning. The service was slow and well sort of weird. After the first round of entree' we asked for our plates to changed for the dosas, as we had chutney all over it. We were informed by the waiter that they normally keep one plate for the entrees' and do not change it, and one for the main, but however, he will change it for us as a coursey! I am not a fussy diner, but I felt this was uncalled for. It was just a plate and not and extra dish that we requested! Other than that an overall...