You don’tbrneed a passport to enjoy authentic Thai and Vietnamese cuisine. You don’t evenbrneed to go to Dallas—anymore. Braden and Yasmin Wages opened the Southlakebrlocation of their Vietnamese/Thai-inspired restaurant, Malai Kitchen, earlierbrthis year, modeling it after their successful Uptown Dallas location. If abrpacked house is any indication, the Park Village eatery is living up to thebrbuzz, serving tantalizing tastes from around the globe.
Everything atbrMalai Kitchen is the real deal. Even the srirachi and coconut milk are madebrfrom scratch in-house. That’s the only way the Wages will have it. Since theybropened the original Malai Kitchen in 2011, they’ve been committed to capturingbrthe intense, fresh and bright flavors of each region’s cuisine.
We visited atbrlunch and were whisked away to a comfortable booth. The space is chic and
upscale, with a relaxed, sophisticated vibe. The décor incorporates thebrSoutheast Asian angle with plenty of warm, tropical woods and bamboo. Our mealbrbegan with a complimentary starter of sticky rice, which was wrapped in abrbanana leaf with a savory dipping sauce. It was gooey and sweet, and a goodbrsign of the food to come.
Next up tobrarrive at our table was the Malai Favorites Sampler. It’s served with two ofbreach: Grilled Chicken Satay, Imperial Rolls, Spring Rolls and VietnamesebrMeatballs. The fried Imperial Rolls had a satisfying crunch, and filled thebrpalate with a rush of flavors. These won us over, but we were hungry for thebrmain course.
The menu isbrdivided into specialties such as the Jungle Curry Hot Pot and Chilean Sea Bass,bras well as classics like Lemongrass Chicken and Drunken Noodles. There are evenbrmenu items that are exclusive to the Park Village location. Dallasites aren’tbrfeasting on the Panang Curry Duck; that’s something you can only get at thebrSouthlake restaurant.
We happenedbrto enjoy the Khao Phat (Vegetable Jasmine Fried Rice). It was hard to spot thebrrice beneath a generous serving of wok-seared vegetables and giant, juicybrshrimp. We loved every bite. The Pulled Pork Banh Mi was another favorite at ourbrtable. A Vietnamese baguette is loaded with pork, pickled carrots, daikon and cucumbers.brThis is fusion food at its best. Nothing fancy; just good.
MalaibrKitchen’s drink menu doesn’t disappoint. You can sip beverages such asbrVietnamese iced coffee, sake and Singapore Slings. The restaurant also has itsbrown beer program, with five house-brewed, Asian-style beers on tap.
There’s nobrdoubt about it: A visit to Malai Kitchen will transport your taste buds andbrsatisfy your craving for something new and original. Bring your appetite and yourbrsense of adventure, and enjoy the ride.
Malai Kitchen 1161 E. SouthlakebrBlvd.
817.251.9141
malaikitchen.com