Ashfield Cafe

9.7 Highly Recommended

Food  10      Ambience  9      Value  10     

Great overall, will come again!

Mar 19, 2011 

9.5 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  10      Value  10     

After being intrigued with all the reviews, and my husband having had the opportunity to eat here a few times since his office is close by, I finally had a chance to pop in for lunch this arvo.

This is a humble little Malaysian cafe that very much reminds me of the typical corner Chinese hawker-style coffee shops in KL - bustling, unassuming and great food cooked from scratch. Although most may rate ambience high only for fine dining, my reason for the high ambience is because this place feels very much authentic Malaysian hawker/coffee shop.

My Aussie husband has only had the beef rendang on all the occasions he's been here and saying it's the best he's had in Sydney. Ordering it again today, we looked at the curry and when we saw the little bits of chilli seeds and skin, and paste, we knew it was definitely "homemade". The beef fell apart in strands the way rendang should, and the taste was to the mark!

I was excited to see that they had the KL-style Hokkien noodles on the menu, and ordered this with extra "chu yau char" (the infamous bits of crispy pork lard garnishing) when I had half as takeaway. Too big a serving for me, but it was too good to waste!

We began to regret not ordering the Hainanese chicken rice as we saw other patrons who came in before and after us ordering that, and discovered it was a special only on Mondays and alternate Saturdays. We're definitely coming back to try the specials!

Nov 22, 2010 

8.3 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  7      Service  7      Value  10     

Great little gem in a suburb with great culinary diversity but devoid of good Malaysian food except for this place.

It must be said that the decor is humble. The place is just like your old fashioned milk bar. The menu is written on a chalk board. The cutlery is all in a container and you get your own tea. It feels like your in Malaysia eating hawker style.

The food is where it is and that's where this place has success. Laksa's are authentic and not too sweet and stuffed with herbs. Har mee is very tasty, char keow teow very flavorsome, sambal nice and hot and the White sauce ho fun is just the way it should be.

Definitely recommended but get there early for lunch on the weekends as the locals pack this place out.

Oct 01, 2010 

7.8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  6      Service  8      Value  9     

Went here again today, had the lamb curry and it was so huge I had to take half of it home! If you are in Ashfield you must eat here. They are open roughly 10-3 pm ..

Original Review 2009 - Had lunch there a few weeks back, I had the beef rendang, portion was huge and the taste was great. My friend got some noodle dish and it was pretty good too. Don't be fooled by the look of the place, the food is great!

Sep 29, 2010 

6.3 Average

Food  8      Ambience  5      Service  7      Value  5     

What a surprise, love the beautiful laksa and also the fried Hokkien Mee. Even though I am not a fan, thought it was good! Everything self service.

Feb 26, 2010 

7.8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  7      Service  8      Value  8     

I have to admit I was fooled by the appearance of the cafe. I know the existence of this cafe but never really want to give it a try until I read the good review about the cafe.

Tried a few dishes here and have the following comments: Mee Goreng, it is quite authentic and taste great. It has the required "wok" smell, big serve and good value for money, costs $8.5 I think. One weak point is the prawn is not that fresh, well, just like what you get from Msia hawker (haha). The quality is not consistent too, so good luck!

Hainan chicken rice, my favourite. Home made chilli, feel free to get as much as you want, self service. Chicken is freshly cooked, not like those you get in Msia/Singapore hawker (frozen and reheat). Big portion, price is about $8.5 also. Not to forget the rice, nicely cooked and good aroma.

Char Hor Fun, if you are looking for the Msian's style of char har fun, this cafe has it, except it was not fried with soy sauce in advance! So glad that it is not the HK style. Good "wok" smell and provided with green cut chilli. Too bad the green chilli is not made with vinegar. Curry puff - $2.4 each. A bit pricey and taste ok only.

Sambal fish, average. Use fillet (e.g. basa fillet) rather the type of fish that you will use in Msia. It is understandable cos I guess it would be more exp. Got the feeling that the sauce is not home made though. Guess it is prob made by using package or can sauce.

Nasi Lemak, it did not let me down. The sambal is great. I love the squid and anchovy sambal. The beef rendang is ok only. Good value for money, less than $10. Archar, $5 per container. Average. I personally think that it is not sour enough.

Overall, it serves good msian food and it is not exp. Good service as well. Msia dishes only start to serve at 10:30 am. Hainan chicken rice and Nasi lemak only available on alternate Sat. I am going to try more dishes and update my comments in the next few weeks.

Sep 11, 2009 

6.8 Recommended

Food  7      Ambience  5      Service  7      Value  8     

Nice little place on the corner of Hercules St and Brown St. Had a nice quick lunch with friends and really enjoyed their fried noodles and sandwiches. There coffee was also surprising good!

Jun 29, 2009 

9.3 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  9      Value  10     

Every Saturday is simply a day of luxury. My tastebuds get a workout with each and every visit to Ashfield Cafe', with the delicious heart warming Malaysian food on offer accompanied with the friendly chatter of Kevin and Gary. I have made my way to Ashfield almost every Saturday with their authentic exquisite specials of Nasi lemak and a tasteful Malaysian styled Chicken Rice.

With a variety of food ranging from curries, rices, noodles, (Aussie) burgers and the yummy satay sticks available everyday of the working week, I guarantee food satisfaction!

May 24, 2009 

7.8 Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  3      Service  9      Value  10     

Cheap and very good malaysian food here, in a little corner deli shop, the ambience is very basic, but for a casual meal it's great!

Mar 27, 2009 

8.3 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  5      Service  9      Value  10     

Having said that the ambience here is pretty basic I have to say that the food is superb. The curries are flavoursome, the rice is always just right, the raw vegetables on the side are fresh. The cost of the dishes on the Malaysian menu (I have not tried the Australian menu) is very low and must be about as good value as could be had in the area, which is famous for low priced food. I recommend this to anyone for a quick and delicious lunch.

Dec 21, 2008