Yum Malaysian @ PappaRich [Joondalup], Perth

It's no secret that I'm a fan of PappaRich. Obviously not the PappaRich restaurants in Malaysia itself, where the authentic food is so readily available on the streets for cheaper, but internationally. I think PappaRich is doing a great job introducing reliably tasty Malaysian dishes to many people outside of Malaysia. I've so far been to PappaRich restaurants in three different countries, and they were all sufficiently good representations of Malaysian cuisine. Of course, nothing compares to the real authentic experience of eating Malaysian food on the streets of Malaysia itself, but beggars can't be choosers! When we were in Perth a couple of months ago, we had the opportunity to try out PappaRich in Joondalup twice. It's located close by to my parents' and siblings' homes in the same suburb, which made it an easy and convenient choice of meeting point. The food was, as expected, delicious. Service was friendly and helpful, especially given that our family is really big with lots of kids and my elderly parents.

Horfun:

Laksa with seafood:

Chicken Rice, always a good one for kids:

Biryani with Rendang and Sambal Prawns:

Mixed Satay to share:

Ais Kacang:

Second trip with a friend, I ordered laksa again (because it's so good):

Congee with steamed chicken:

Shop T226, Level 1
Lakeside Joondalup
420 Joondalup Dr
Joondalup WA 6027
Australia
Tel. +61 8 9301 4516

Average Malaysian food @ PappaRich [The L. Place], Hong Kong

Having been happy with the PappaRich franchise in five branches in three different cities across Australia and one in Malaysia, I was pretty happy to find out that PappaRich was finally in Hong Kong! For such a big and culturally diverse city like Hong Kong, good decent Malaysian food is hard to find here. I had high hopes for PappaRich, because it represented Malaysian food so well in Australia, showcasing the robust and delicious flavours of Malaysian cuisine in all its glory. While the food we had at the PappaRich restaurant at The L. Place was enjoyable, I will be honest and say that the flavours were a bit flat. I understand that the franchise would have had to adapt to the local tastebuds, and judging by the rave reviews on the local restaurant guide website, PappaRich have succeeded in winning over the local crowd. PappaRich remains a reliable place to try Malaysian food in HK. But I'm still in search for good authentic Malaysian food in HK.

My Teh Tarik (HK$25), the taste was right but it was not frothy:

Chicken Rice (HK$88), always a hit with the kids:

Char Kuey Teow (HK$98), which was tasty but lacked the charry wok hei flavour:

Nasi Lemak with Fried Chicken and Beef Rendang (HK$90). The sambal was neither spicy nor pungent, though the fried chicken was good and the rendang passed in the flavours test:

The Ssatay sticks (6 chicken, HK$68; 6 beef, HK$128) were good. The meat was tender, and the sauce tasty:

[The above prices do not include the 10% service charge.]

PappaRich [The L. Place]
Shop A, UG/F, The L. Place
139 Queen's Road
Central, Hong Kong
Tel. +85 2 2114 1689

Delish Malaysian @ PappaRich [Chadstone Shopping Centre], Melbourne

Long-time readers will know that I'm a fan of the PappaRich brand. I love how it's bringing good Malaysian food to the rest of the world, and having had the PappaRich experience in three Aussie cities and one Malaysian oulet, I can vouch for the reliably consistent quality of the food across the different locations. When we were in Melbourne just before Christmas, we had dinner at PappaRich in Chadstone Shopping Centre with my younger sister and her family. As to be expected, the food was delicious and service was efficient. A wrong order was quickly corrected without any fuss from the staff. PappaRich has proven once again to be a reliable source of delicious Malaysian food at Chadstone.

Popular choice for dinner (mostly Asians, likely Malaysians):

The open kitchen, where you can watch the roti chef in action:

My sister's Iced Teh Tarik:

Hubby's Coconut Paradise:

My Hot Teh Tarik:

Roti Telur with Beef Rendang - the 10-month-old really liked the eggy roti, and the rendang was fantastic:

My sister's Ipoh Koay Teow Soup with Hainanese Chicken. It must be good since she often orders this:

My BIL's biryani with some curry and fried chicken (sorry, I don't know exactly what dish this is on the menu, but it's his regular order):

Mixed Satay (beef and chicken) - always a good one for sharing:

Hubby's Nasi Lemak with Fried Chicken was awesome:

PappaRich has made quite a name for itself globally. It has arrived in Hong Kong, and I can't wait to give it a try!

PappaRich [Chadstone Shopping Centre]
Shop F029
Chadstone Shopping Centre
1341 Dandenong Road
Malvern East VIC 3145
Australia
Tel. +61 3 9568 3323

Delicious Malaysian @ PappaRich [Carousel], Perth

Whenever we travel to Australia, I shamelessly fill up on good Malaysian food. The PappaRich brand in its own home country of Malaysia is considered pricey - and that is true because the same dishes are so easily available and very cheap on the street - hence it is not so popular with the locals. But in Australia, this is where we can get reliably good delicious Malaysian cuisine. I remember going to the very first PappaRich restaurant in Australia, shortly after it opened in 2012 in Melbourne. Since then, the franchise has proliferated throughout Australia. We tried one PappaRich restaurant in Sydney last year and loved it. When we were in Perth last month, we had the opportunity to dine at PappaRich in Carousel, after an impromptu playdate with a long-time Perth friend and her kids who were visiting Perth at the same time as us! It was the month of Ramadan at the time, and this is a very popular spot for iftar, also known in Malay and Indonesian as "buka puasa", which means to 'open the fast' at the end of the day. The place was packed, with Muslims (including my friend and her boys) having their first meal after a day of fasting, and non-Muslims just enjoying a Malaysian meal. Service was great - staff was friendly and efficient. The food was delicious! It was a fantastic first Malaysian meal of the trip!

This was at 5:30pm on a weekday:

Pappa Fried Rice Noodles, i.e. char kuey teow. Tasty fried noodles:

Pappa Chicken Rice with Steamed Chicken, i.e. Hainanese chicken rice, always a good choice for the kids:

Roti Canai with Beef Rendang - another delicious choice:

Friend ordered Pappa Fried Chicken Wings for the boys to share:

Satay is always good at PappaRich:

Hubby couldn't pass up the opportunity to have Ice Kacang with a scoop of ice cream on top!

Thumbs up! My family also frequently visit the PappaRich in Joondalup.

PappaRich [Carousel]
Shop 1173
Westfield Carousel
1382 Albany Hwy
Cannington WA 6107
Australia
Tel. +61 8 9458 7866

Malaysian @ PappaRich [Chatswood], Sydney

In October, we went to Sydney to meet my younger sister's firstborn baby. It was really good to see my sisters and their respective families again, and for our first meet-up, we chose a reliable Malaysian restaurant chain, PappaRich. To date, we've only had three experiences with PappaRich, and each has been in a different city. Our first PappaRich experience a few years ago was in Melbourne, newly opened at the time as the brand's very first international franchise. We tried PappaRich again, this time in its homeland, Malaysia. It was expensive by Malaysia's standards, but still a lot more affordable than its Australian counterparts. PappaRich is popping up in more locations around Australia (including three branches in Perth!), and it is proving popular with Malaysian expats and the local population alike. After trying PappaRich in yet another city, I'm pleased to say that the food quality is rather consistent, even on different continents. Now I just want PappaRich to expand to Hong Kong so that we can enjoy reliable good Malaysian cuisine on a regular basis!

Nice clean interior at PappaRich Chatswood:

There is even an outdoor dining area:

And an indoor play room for the young ones to run amok as they please:

Pappa Wat Tan Hor (or what we know as Hor Fun) - wok-fried thick rice noodles with prawns, fish cakes, chicken slices, choy sum and fried shallots in egg gravy. This was delicious, but not the best hor fun we've had:

Pappa Char Kuey Teow - wok-fried flat noodles with prawns, fish cakes, egg, bean sprouts and chives. CKT is hubby's favourite Malaysian dish, and we almost always order it at Malaysian restaurants when available. This plate could do with more egg, but it was seasoned nicely and the fresh ingredients used made it a worthwhile order:

Younger sister ordered Curry Laksa - Hokkien noodles in spicy coconut curry soup with chicken slices, tofu puffs, foo chok (beancurd skin), bean sprouts, eggplants and fish cake. I had a little taste, and it was yum:

A combination of Chicken and Beef Satay - cannot go wrong with satay at PappaRich, especially with a large group:

Roti Canai with Beef Rendang - the PappaRich roti range are good, and roti canai with beef rendang a good choice:

We could not resist ordering Ais Kacang. A delicious ice treat:

All the young cousins playing in the play area:

I like the facilities at this PappaRich the best out of the three PappaRich restaurants I've been to. Very kid-friendly with delicious Malaysian food.

PappaRich [Chatswood]
63A Archer St
Chatswood NSW 2067
Australia
Tel. +61 2 9411 3207

Cheerful Malaysian @ PappaRich [Taipan USJ], Subang Jaya (Malaysia)

We spent the morning of our last full day on our trip to Kuala Lumpur swimming in the pool at my parents' apartment complex, and then going out to lunch at the nearby Taipan USJ where we already had a couple of meals on this trip. We considered briefly going to one of the hawker centres, but the idea of eating steaming hot (and most likely spicy) food in the mid-day heat and humidity did not sound very appealing. We parked near the hawker food court we ate at a few nights prior, and saw a PappaRich restaurant opposite. This popular franchise has expanded overseas, and my first experience at a PappaRich was in fact in Melbourne. The setting was more comfortable than the hawker center opposite the restaurant, and we could enjoy a good variety of Malaysian dishes. Sure, it was not as cheap, but you cannot put a price on comfort when dining out with an infant. Besides, it was cheaper than the equivalent in Hong Kong (but not as delicious), and definitely more affordable than the PappaRich in Australia! Orders are placed using the form and pencil placed on the table, and I assume this is to make the ordering process plain and efficient, but we needed to call a waitstaff over due to allergy and other special dietary requests (that was when we noticed that there was an order form and pencil on the table!). Service was good enough, but we found it difficult to get staff's attention at times. The food was tasty, but both hubby's and my curries arrived cold at the table - that was easily corrected presumably with a zap in the microwave (cooking curry is a lengthy process, so I understand it has to be pre-prepared and not made-to-order). The timing that the food was served could definitely be improved, as some of the dishes were served 5-10 minutes apart. The drinks were pretty good, with a good variety of classics, fusions and other interpretations on the menu.

Hubby's Lychee Iced Tea (or perhaps it was longan?), and the 5-year-old's Milo Dinosaur with an insane amount of heaped Milo powder on top of a Milo drink base - at least Milo is fortified with minerals and vitamins:

Barley Cincau combines two of my favourite Malaysian drinks into one:

Muhibbah Satay - chicken skewers with a delicious satay sauce:

My younger sister's Ipoh Koay Teow Soup with Chicken Slices, plus extra serving of Steamed Chicken and Fried Chicken Wings for my brother-in-law who has to adhere to a strict diet due to his IBS:

The boy wanted the fried chicken in the menu photo of the Nasi Lemak with Fried Chicken + Sweet & Spicy Sotong - steamed coconut rice served with fried chicken whole leg, sweet and spicy squid, curry potato, hard boiled egg, cucumber slices and sambal. The other two nasi lemak options on the menu have the usual fried ikan bilis and fried peanuts, but peanuts are not safe for the boy:

Hubby ordered Roti Canai with Curry Lamb lamb cutlets and potatoes served with canai, cucumber & tomato slices, papadum and achar. The roti canai was crunchy and not fluffy, and hubby did not like how the roti could not absorb the curry when dipped into it. The lamb was tender and the curry was delicious:

I ordered Roti Canai with Curry Chicken + Potatoes. This was actually supposed to come with roti stim (steamed white bread) but the kitchen was gracious enough to swap it with roti canai, which was also crunchy like hubby's. Curry was nice, but no other chicken curry can compare with my mum's:

I think one of my parents ordered the Nasi Rich with Curry Chicken + Braised Beef + Sweet & Spicy Sotong Aromatic Nasi Rich served with curry chicken, tender braised beef, sweet and spicy squid, curry potato, hard boiled egg, lady finger, papadum and sambal. It was one of the prettier looking dishes on the menu:

Dining out with hubby will almost always guarantee that dessert will be ordered, even though that was a lot of food consumed already. He requested the ABC Special with Ice Cream. This was a pretty good version of ais kacang (literally "ice beans", aka air batu campur ("mixed ice") or ABC), with generous amount of topping ingredients:

Tau Foo Fa King with Gula Melaka - I love this Malaysianised version of tau fu fa with gula melaka (which was served on the side)!

We all enjoyed the food which filled our bellies well. I must say that I'm quite pleased that this brand is bringing good quality Malaysian food overseas.

PappaRich Taipan USJ
No. 1 Jalan USJ 10/1D
47620, Subang Jaya
Selangor, Malaysia
Tel. +60 3 8011 2203