Amanda Annie, left, and Robin Annadass want to bring the Malaysian Mamak dining experience to New Zealand. Photo / Jason Oxenham
Amanda Annie, left, and Robin Annadass want to bring the Malaysian Mamak dining experience to New Zealand. Photo / Jason Oxenham
From just $4.99, you can have a fairly satisfying Malaysian street food noodle, rice or roti meal at this new "mamak" styled eatery in the Auckland suburb of Three Kings.
Add a few more dollars, and get a combo meal that comes with teh tarik - the popular Malaysian "pulled"milk tea, or a rice meal with a selection of meat, vegetable or curry dishes.
Malaysian street food at "Malaysian prices" is what restaurant owner Robin Annadass, 30, is aiming to offer at his new eatery Kedai Mamak at Three Kings Plaza.
Two rotis with dhal curry and sambal are priced at $6.99. Photo / Jason Oxenham
Annadass said he grew up "hanging out" with friends at mamak stalls in his native Kedah, a northwest Malaysian state bordering Thailand.
"If you asked me what I am homesick most for since moving to New Zealand six years ago, I'll tell you straight that it's not being able to hang out at mamak stalls," he said.
Mamak stalls, found particularly in Malaysia and Singapore, serve a type of Indian-Malay cuisine quite unique to the region, at very affordable prices, usually in open air casual dining places, walkways or even on the street.
Yogi Kumar, left, and Prasanna Kumar with baby Eeshan Kumar dining at Kedai Mamak. Photo / Jason Oxenham
Annadass, whose mother runs an Indian restaurant in Kedah, said he felt Malaysian food here was "way overpriced", even in food court stalls and takeaway stalls.
"It's in our Malaysian way of life that we hang out at eating places just like how Kiwis like to hang out in pubs, but with prices close to $20 for a nasi lemak or mee goreng here, we just can't afford to do that," he said.
So when a cafe spot became available next to his barbershop business at Three Kings Plaza, Annadass seized the opportunity to negotiate a good lease and launched his new business.
Nasi Lemak are priced from $6.99 at Kedai Mamak. Photo / Jason Oxenham
"The concept is simple, we offer good and cheap affordable mamak-style food and this attracts customers who will come again and again, and bring their friends too," he said.
"If you don't take the exchange rate into consideration, then five Malaysian ringgit is about what people there pay for mee goreng and $5 is what we're charging here. So it's really offering these at Malaysian prices."
Wife and co-owner Amanda Annie said the eatery, which started just a week ago, was currently offering a limited menu - but working towards offering the range of dishes typically found at mamak stalls in Malaysia.
Amanda Annie, left, and Robin Annadass says their restaurant offers possibly the cheapest priced Malaysian street food in Auckland. Photo / Jason Oxenham
Kedai Mamak's current offering include mee goreng and bee hoon goreng at $4.99, nasi lemak or roti canai for $6.99 and nasi kandar or rice combo with dishes for $9.99.
A typical mamak stall in Malaysia will offer a range of roti and curries, rice dishes such as biryani, nasi kandar and nasi lemak and Indian-style fried noodles.
The word "mamak" comes from the Tamil term for uncle.
Annie said although the business targeted Malaysian customers who were familiar with the concept, they were also eager for others to get a feel of the mamak experience.
Curries feature on the menu at Kedai Mamak. Photo / Jason Oxenham
"We now open from breakfast to 3pm, but if things go well we will open like the mamak stall in Malaysia, till late at night," Annie said.
"We are now trying a limited menu, but hopefully we can gear up to a more complete menu soon."
Customer Prasanna Kumar, who went to the diner with his wife Yogi and their 6-month-old son for the first time on Wednesday said he loved the concept.
"Yes it's correct to say we Malaysians love to eat out often, and it's great to have somewhere affordable to go to as a regular," Kumar said.
Pricing aside, Kumar said there were still some "hits and misses" at Kedai Mamak, but believed these were teething issues and things would only get better.
Kedai Mamak is at 540 Mount Albert Rd, and opens 7am-3pm Monday-Saturday.
