Malay Momma, Southbank

The National Gallery of Victoria has reopened but admissions are only through booking so that they have some sort of control over the number of people in the gallery. It was probably the first time we had a nearly empty gallery to ourselves, where we could take photos and stop by exhibits for as long as we wanted without getting in other people's way. It was quite a pleasant experience! 

The arts sector is bearing the brunt of Covid19. Many performers and artists do not qualify for the Jobseeker payments. Arts is a luxury, but at the same time a necessary part of life. It really is too bad that some universities may seek to decrease the cost of job-ready courses such as Economics at the expense of Arts courses. What kind of society would we become without beauty in our lives? 

After our visit to the NGV, we were hungry but wanted to avoid going into the heart of the city. Luckily, I had heard of this new restaurant nearby. It was a 5 minute walk and the restaurant was empty so we could dine in without worrying about the social distancing rules. All of their orders while we were there was for takeaways or deliveries.

I found it thoughtful and hygienic that their cutlery came in a prepacked sleeve containing fork and spoon or spoon and chopsticks with a napkin. Common cutlery boxes should be out the door by now, but many restaurants still retain this pre Covid19 habit. 

We ordered the Curry Laksa ($14.90) - with chicken, fish cake, tofu puffs, green beans. The broth was creamy and lacked a little spice but I have no complaints. There were plenty of chicken, tofu puffs and fish cake in the dish. I was really happy about that, because no one likes eating just noodles.

I had the Beef Hor Fun - flat rice noodles with beef in silky egg chiffon sauce ($14.90). I could smell and taste the breath of wok in this dish. The flat rice noodles were cooked really well, so was the beef slices. It was tender and there were lots of them. I can see that this restaurant does not skimp on the ingredients that matter! I really dislike restaurants that serve big portions of carbs but you'll be hard pressed to find any proteins in the dish. 

The prices are probably a little on the high range but I understand that the rental and location may be contributory factors here. There is also a lack of good Malaysian restaurants in the area so if I was living nearby I would be happy to pay these prices.