Friday, December 14, 2012
Food Chain / Food & Drink The region's best (only) Malaysian restaurant is in the burbs
Posted By Mike Sula on 12.14.12 at 03:30 PM
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- Mike Sula
- Curry laksa, Asian Noodle House
It seems strange that two of the most iconic Malaysian dishes aren't even listed on the menu—though maybe that's because the ones here aren't particularly stellar renditions. Curry laksa, pictured to the left, is the most common member of the Malaysian family of rice-noodle soups. This one has two varieties of noodle, thin rice vermicelli and a spaghetti-bore wheat noodle, both of which come swimming in a thick, spicy, coconut-based broth with shrimp (mushy), tofu, fish balls, bean sprouts, and shredded chicken. The broth's lack of depth is considerably improved with the addition of some shrimpy, spicy sambal, so be sure to ask for that.
- Mike Sula
- Roti, Asian Noodle House
Asian Noodle House's roti canai—as friend of the Food Chain Nab Uddin has already noted—is terrible. Stale, lifeless, reheated flatbread served with a cup of spicy gravy. Just don't do it.
- Mike Sula
- Prawn mee, Asian Noodle House
The prawn mee contains the same noodle formula as the laksa and the same add-ins plus hard-boiled eggs, but has a thin, sweetish broth that belies its angry red aspect.
- Mike Sula
- Hainan chicken, Asian Noodle House
Hainan chicken, a Chinese dish in origin, is big in Malaysia, and Asian Noodle House's version is about the best thing I tried. The steamed bird is silky tender, and served with the standard ginger-scallion dipping oil, though the rice is missing the chicken schmaltz essential to this dish.
Asian Noodle House also serves Malaysian-style chow fun; the dry stir-fried rice-cake dish char kuay teow mae; and on weekends, the pork rib and mushroom soup bak kut teh, which in totality and by default makes it the region's only Malaysian restaurant. It ain't much, but it's what we have. Once again, suburbia wins.
Asian Noodle House, 844 N. Roselle Rd., Hoffman Estates, 847-882-9650
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