I love the Roti Canai from Banana Leaf and seldom dream of floating away in a parachute of a giant roti...
So i was like. i had to have it. and looked up the closest Malaysian place from work to try out. Google located me to Villa Malaysia, which... got 4 stars out of 2 reviews on Urban Spoon so... that's... promising.
I got Chris to go with me, it's, it located in that plaza on East Beaver Creek and Hwy 7 in Richmond Hill.. or if you like specifics: Villa Malaysia 140 York Blvd | Richmond Hill | Ontario | L4B 3J6
It was the day before the blizzard, and it was also like 5:30... so we were the only people there.... it's a ginormous spaces, with private rooms with flatscreen tv's. I guess they promote it as a lounge as well.
According to their website, they also own another Malaysian restaurant, Restoran Malaysia ‘www.Restoranmalaysia.com’.
It looked kinda trendy, and i'm always skeptical on trendy asian places, cause sometimes the attention goes on the decor than the food... however, i was most impressed with the food, given that, we were the only people in a huge empty restaurant (that wasn't a good first impression), but the food was really good!
Gado Gado $6
Beansprout-jicama-cucumber-fried tofu-boiled egg-peanut dressing
I had a roommate from Bali during undergrad, and she would bring back these packages of peanut sauce for gado gado, and she and her bf made it for me once and it was ammmaaazzzing... and i'd been in love ever since, so when i see gado gado on the menu, i order it. This version was great! I've never had it "chunky" style, but its the sauce that makes this dish. The Jicama, not sure if i've had it before, but it reminds me of a cross between a water chestnut and turnip, very crisp and refreshing. You finish this meal feeling satisfied and guilt-free, which is satisfaction in itself.
Roti Curry Chicken/Beef $8.5
Two pieces of crisp and soft roti canai
So my whole raison d'etre, for that moment at least, was to satisfy my Roti craving. I got the Roti Curry, with the 2 pieces of roti canai, and i was not disappointed. I love the Malaysian roti, I also love the Indian curry, but with this roti, there's this sweetness to it that i can just eat on my own, but when i pair it with the spicy curry, there's a flavour circus in my mouth. I basically mopped up my entire bowl clean with my roti, it was that-good. I didn't take a picture, but they offered a home made chili sauce that was tangy and packed a hidden punch... which i think was also a pokemon skill.......LOL
Banana Fritters with Coconut Ice Cream $6
Now, i was satisfactory full when I finished my curry, but the attentive waiter came by and offered a dessert menu, and Chris had been staring at the giant poster on the wall, featuring the deep fried bananas. so why not. Love deep fried bananas, combined with the tropical flavoring of coconut. When it came... i was kinda... put off by its ..... shall i say, phallic resemblance... but totally amused by its resemblance to also another animal of dark brown skin flaps...
It was pretty good, the banana was fried through, so it melted in your mouth, and the coating was super chewy, but added to a resistance in texture when combing the ice cream and soft banana together, so it wasn't just all mush. There were coconut bits in the coconut ice cream, though i thought it could have been more coconutty.
On a side note, there was a tank of fishys that kept starring at us the whole time. they kept following you wherever you went... here's a pic of one smiling at me. I'll come eat you next time.
