Satu Lagi — Restaurant in Montreal

WOW.

Would you believe chocolate-durian pudding works? Do you want to taste flavour combinations that North Americans rarely get to try? Satu Lagi is the place to go.

We decided to go over and try it on the 2nd night after its soft opening on Valentine's Day 2023. We are SO glad we did.

Indo-Malay cuisine is fabulous. This place does it proud.

I tend to write reviews only when I am incredibly impressed by an establishment. I've been guilty of being overly enthusiastic before, so I will try to tone down my hyperbole here, just to say that Satu Lagi is really one of the best new restaurants in town. Owners Kimberley and Kevin have already created the best SE Asian takeout place in Montréal (Krapow), nearby. In the Malay language and in Bahasa Indonesia "satu lagi" means "one more" or "another" and whether this is a play on words (it's "one more" restaurant for this couple), or just an indication that they presume customers will want "one more" dish, it's a very appropriate name. Why? Because after every meal, I can guarantee you will already start to think of the next visit to have "one more" serving of your fave dish.

Portion sizes (served tapas-style) are perfect for individuals or sharing. Presentation is immaculate. The service is really warm and inviting; staff are super-friendly and attentive to detail. The kitchen is semi-open, next to the bar. The decor is simple, clean, and tasteful. There is a warmth to the place, in the wooden tables & chairs and the bright walls, and the small spots of greenery all around, that evoke Asia, nestled among the many cafes and shops on Avenue Mont-Royal. And we did get a chance to say hi to the owners and congratulate them on this new venture.

I couldn't give Satu Lagi a higher recommendation. And as shocking as it might be, the durian-infused chocolate mousse pudding for dessert was UNBELIEVABLY GOOD. Just try it.

Do not pass up this restaurant. It is a gem, and deserves to flourish and become an icon of the...

One of the very few (if not only) Indonesian inspired restaurants in Montreal, Satu Lagu was a nice place to enjoy Asian style food but of a particular savor that you would not normally be accustomed too...it's certainly not Chinese, nor Vietnamese (although closer to the latter than the former) with a lighter set of flavors and with an emphasis on umami-like essences.

Located on Mont-Royal East, the décor of the restaurant is clean, bright with hints of the cuisines' cultural roots (monkey light fixtures, rattan ceiling details, etc...) while the meal service is more tapas style than anything else. For our meal we asked our server (a very friendly and helpful Juliette) for the best-of options and went from there. We had the Ayam Goreng (plain and Manis (which is very spicy)...essentially fried chicken drumsticks but with an excellent batter), Belacan Satay (simple chicken skewers with a gritty shrimp flavored peanut sauce...good), Tauhu Telur Asin (a fried tofu dish...excellent), Kailan (a spinach/broccoli style dish with oyster sauce flavoring...good) and the House (Jasmin) Rice with Coconut flavoring (very good). For dessert we had a surprisingly excellent Pandan Creme Brule...very, very good. Finally, we paired the meal with a surprisingly appropriate beer called Doux Bisous which had a light citrus flavor and really worked well with this style of cuisine.

The food portions were on the smaller side (like tapas) however the service was done one dish at a time with the rice at the end. This was not how we eat typical meals as we prefer rice to be included and used as a base for the dish. We didn't realize this until the end but, now that we know we would have asked for the dishes to be served in quick sequence and especially for the rice to be brought earlier.

Service was very good and, as mentioned, our server was knowledgeable and helpful. Tired of the same-old Chinese and Vietnamese dishes then certainly give Satu Lagi...

Although most of the food was good, we did take issue with the portion size. When we ordered the chicken wings, it said 5/ch and 6/ch, which we assumed would mean we got our 5 and 6 pieces respectively. What ended up happening was that we only got one big chicken wing, one of them lathered in a very spicy sauce. We do know that in the menu it said it would be spicy, but we do feel as if it was too spicy. When we commented lightheartedly on this to the waiter, he said that he should have warned us. The sauce on my friend’s plate, which was placed on the side, was not advertised as spicy either.

Although the ingredients were clearly listed on the menu item of the chocolate pudding, we did not know that it would leave a bad taste. My only question is why would you make a chocolate pudding with durian, a fruit that’s supposed to taste like cheese, almonds, garlic and caramel all at once? Maybe it wasn’t for me, but I found the taste to be very unpleasant.

Our last complaint is how they will have a 2 groups of 2 people share an outdoor table of 4 without warning. I made a reservation for 2 at the counter but our hostess asked if we would prefer eating outdoors without letting us know of the possibility of being sat with others later on. We did have 2 people sat with us, however, one of them showed and verbally expressed discomfort and decided to eat somewhere else. A minute later, another 2 people sat with us without asking my friend and I any sort of permission. We understand that other tables may be reserved, but we feel as if the 2 connected tables should be separated in order to create space and privacy. It was awkward for both parties, none of us talking at all and when we did we were able to hear everything. The last group of 2 people did ask for the tables next to us, but the hostess said that they were...