After spending a couple of weeks in Malaysia recently, we weren’t quite ready to let go of the taste of Malay food. So we decided to return to Café Sambal, one of Shanghai’s few Malaysian restaurants.

We began with Vietnamese-style spring rolls (RMB38) and a hot bowl of tom yam soup (RMB40). Both were popular items on menus in Malaysia, and while the spring rolls were too light on fresh Thai basil and too small in portion to be impressive, we found the soup to be delectable. The broth, rich with the flavor of lemongrass, galangal and kaffir lime leaf, packs a fragrantly spicy wallop on the first bite. Add to that two sizable prawns and we’d say this version was better than many we tried in Malaysia.

An order of four-sided dragon beans with cashew nut sauce (RMB55) and kapitan chicken curry (also known as the Nyona chicken curry, RMB68) arrived next. Surprisingly rare on menus around town, Sambal’s dragon bean dish is one of the tastiest you’ll find. Not too salty and with just enough cashews to enhance the delicate flavor of the beans, the dish was quickly devoured before we even turned to our chicken curry. The latter dish, composed of skinless, boneless, succulent meat coated in a nutty, mildly spicy curry with hints of tumeric, was similarly licked clean soon after.

Unfortunately, we can’t say the same for the beef rendang (RMB78). While the sauce was well spiced with hints of lemongrass, coconut and chilies, the meat was unevenly heated throughout and too tough and dry for a dish that is supposed to be slow cooked. Luckily, an order of tapioca with palm sugar syrup and coconut milk (RMB30) provided a positive end to an overall tasty meal.

DETAILS

What: Café Sambal

Where: Bldg. A, No. 37,Jiashan Market, Lane 550 Shaanxi Nan Lu 陕西南路550弄37号A楼嘉善市场

Tel: 3368-9529