Rich Maha @ Vermont South, Melbourne

I may have only one picture out from the meal but it has been one of more memorable ones in Melbourne to date. The best part? It was not at some fancy hatted restaurant, didn't involve live lobsters, wagyu beef or foie gras but at a humble eatery in the compound of an old shopping centre serving southern indian curries. Not to mention almost 30km out from the CBD.


The Wife had a friend visiting in Melbourne and that meant catching up over a meal. Without travelling too far, we were told Rich Maha was around the corner from he was living with his relatives and we might as well just eat there.


No regrets.


Walking into the place, you get that familiar whiff of spices you find in southern indian curries. The layout is almost what you would find in a typical "mamak" or a place that sells banana leaf rice in Malaysia. On one side, you have a selection of curries and the open kitchen at the back that caters for the roti, thosai and noodles. The dining area is exactly the same too, rows of long tables to cater for communal sharing when it gets busy. Luckily that night, we were one of the few tables and could sit comfortably without having people stare at my food.


One of the first thing that pop to me was the mee mamak. Essentially fried noodles done Malaysian Indian style, its a little spicy and comes with pieces of potatoes, tomatoes, tofu puffs and vegetable. It's obviously not the best I had but certainly very close.


That night, we feasted on beef rendang, goat curry, fish curry and some eggplant masala accompanied with thosai as well. The curries were all spicy and fiery, obviously no attempt was made to cut down the chilli content for the locals. We like our thosai crisp but this came out slightly soggy but hey, I am amazed they even sell thosai compared to the more common roti.

!
IMG_2178-001


It really reminded me of home and for a second I almost thought I was at home in Malaysia.

Prices are average and you shouldn't be paying more than $15 a meal but don't expect excellent service, just remind yourself you are here just for some curry loving.

Address and contact details:

Rich Maha on Urbanspoon

Verdict: 4 stars out of 5 stars. Worth the 30km drive for some food that reminds me of home.

No comments:

Post a Comment