Kiasu

[Andy Lynes]

A couple of weeks ago, I had the opportunity to check out Kiasu, the recently opened Malaysian restaurant in Bayswater. I was so impressed that I returned yesterday to celebrate my wife's birthday with the kids and my brother and his wife. It turned out to be his third visit that week. A former resident of Kuala Lumpur and Penang, he was quite impressed by the authenticity of the grub. We had an excellent lunch of satay, otak otak, nasi lemak, nasi goreng and much else.

If you fancy paying the place a visit however a couple of things you should bear in mind. Avoid the table directly in front of the serving hatch. They serve huge, and I mean huge bowls of laksa that are filled nearly to the brim. We were amazed that only one got spilt down the back of an unfortunate diner. Another was delivered safely to a nearby table only for the the diner to move the bowl on the table and trigger a minor Tsunami of spicy soup.

Communication can be a problem. Our waiter failed to understand that we wanted three plates of satay despite being told on five seperate occasions. We eventually got two but could easily have polished off the other expected plate.

I was really looking forward to the roti pratha but this had sold out by the time we ordered just before 1.00pm and there were no ice creams available. On the plus side, gado gado, which is not currently listed on the menu is actually on offer and is absolutely delicious.

Still definately my favourite new casual restaurant in London, but be prepared for some minor frustrations if you go. Our bill for 6 people including starters, mains, 4 desserts and two rounds of soft drinks came to under £100 including 10% service charge.

[Jon Tseng]

Worth going to

Early reports from Malaysian ex-pat banker mafia were mixed on first opening.

I went there a month or two back with friend though and we thought it was very good. The Eis Kacang (Malaysian dessert - basically giant slush puppy with extra condensed milk on top) was excellent and will make a wonderful restorative after a warm summers afternoon stroll in nearby Hyde Park.

IMHO the food definitely "kiasu"

Another place along Queensway worth checking out apparently is Gold Mine, which has allegedly nicked Four Seasons' duck chef (have heard that story from two different sources now).

ta

J

[muichoi]

I understand that also. The roast meats are glorious, but don't order anything else!