Rohani Esa says Malaysian food is about freshness, taste and the ingredients.
Mrs Esa and her family opened the Curry Puff Cafe in Wanganui's Victoria Court in December and serve traditional authentic Malaysian cuisine prepared and cooked fresh every day.
The meat is halal, meaning a Muslim halal butcher kills the animal
according to Muslim rituals.
Customers from neighbouring cities and international visitors come to Wanganui for the food which they say reminds them of the authentic tastes of home, Mrs Esa says.
Her mother taught her to cook when she was 7 years old, part of a custom that all girls help in the kitchen from a young age, she said.
The Curry Puff Cafe takes its name from a delicious puff Mrs Esa makes. She is emphatic that the freshness gives the puff its crispness when eaten hot.
The curry puff was a trademark, sold from their red and white caravan seven years ago at the Racecourse markets, at Putiki and the River Trader's Market when it first began.
But they decided to have a more formal setting and found the Victoria Court ambience and undercover dining ideal for the Curry Puff clientele.
The children - Aliff, Shafiqh, Suffian, Aiysah and Gazi - wait respectfully on the tables when they are not at school. Aliff has put off his university study for a year to help his parents in Curry Puff.
Each of the other children attend Wanganui secondary schools and Gazi is at Wanganui Intermediate.
Opposite the Curry Puff Cafe Mrs Esa's husband, Mason, has an authorised professional test centre where he holds exams for medical and IT professionals for the Australian, American, Canadian, UK and Irish medical councils.
The Curry Puff Cafe is simple but the food is delicious and very affordable, and the family is welcoming and friendly.
The cafe must pass three gradings from: the Wanganui District Council, the New Zealand Halal Meat Management, the Federal Islamic Association of New Zealand and also, eventually, the Malaysian Halal Department.
Opening hours are Saturday-Thursday 9.30am-8.30pm. Takeaways and phone orders on 348 4317.
