Little Penang
Where? Little Penang (Te Aro, Wellington, New Zealand) Map Menu
When? Saturday January 14, 2023
Who? Me
Food Style? Malaysian
LP is one of my favourite places in Wellington. They’ve established themselves as one of the city’s top casual eateries, serving home style Malaysian fare. Uncle Keith and Auntie Tee have been at this for over 11 years; I remember their small little stall on Manners St where they first opened, and now, they've got a larger restaurant. The pandemic has really been difficult for them, with staff shortages and closures that have been prevalent throughout the hospitality industry. Still, when I came to visit, the place was busy and full of people wanting to taste the delicious food, and I was genuinely touched when Uncle Keith recognised me in the queue and came over to give me a hug. Today, I’m by myself and I’ve ordered my favourite dish, the char kuay teow.
Mains
Char Kuay Teow: Flat rice noodles fried with prawns, Chinese pork sausage, chives and beansprouts
It arrives quickly. Spicy, peppery and with generous servings of Chinese sausage to give it that extra smokiness, this is just how I remember it. It’s been long enough since I was in Malaysia that I’m craving good Malaysian food again, so this has definitely hit the spot.
To be honest, I love a lot of their menu items. You don't often see otak-otak on Malaysian menus in New Zealand, and here it's served with beautiful aromatics like lemongrass and ginger in a banana leaf pouch. I love Auntie Tee's claypot rice and hokkien char as well. And when I'm feeling particularly in the mood for sweets, the pandan cakes really hit the spot too. I genuinely wish them all the success in the world because they deserve it. Their food is some of the best Malaysian I’ve had outside of Malaysia and I’ve always raved about to anyone that will listen.
Posted by Jeremy at 2:36am on Sunday October 29, 2023 :: 0 comments :: 