Pinang Malaysian Restaurant

 

5

46

Jamie S.

New York, NY

This is a great alternative to all the thai options around here. The food is more interesting and so flavorful. They have many choices with veg/tofu options for a lot of the dishes- noodle dishes, curries, etc. The roti canai is prepared so well; I love the  chunks of potato and chicken in the sauce. The honey squid is intense, I recommend it as an appetizer. The beef randang is on the menu somewhere, its very good and extremely filling- similar to the dish at fatty crab. The restaurant itself is very cute. Parking is a bitch in this area, and the valet service comes in handy.

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1

3

joe g.

Rego Park, NY

One of my favorite spots for this kind of thai fare. The service, though not perfect, is quite acceptable and the food is served fresh, hot, and tastes  fantastic. If you order the roti canai (a flatbread with chicken curry dish), the crispy spring rolls and a chicken pad thai or chicken basil you will have a great meal. I go as often as i can, which isn't often, but i plan on going soon.

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Elite '08

38

143

Irene H.

Middle Village, NY

My parents refuse to leave the borough of Queens for a meal so we're relegated to Queens and Queens only.  If they only knew what was out in the real world!

This family run joint is similar to the Penangs in the city but is different on many levels.

It's quieter, being that it's located in Forest Hills and yes, there's even parking in the area.  No need to circle around the hood for 20 minutes to snag a spot even remotely close.

It doesn't have the hustle and bustle feeling but that's also because there's no need to hustle.  It's quiet and dark in this location.  I welcome it to have a meal that I can converse at.

The appetizers are the best part of the menu - I wished there were more but the ones we choose were great.  Being huge fans of roti canai, it would either make or break the meal.  For 4, we had 3 orders.  This light, airy but crispy Malaysian "bread" is accompanied by an oily chicken curry which is a perfect dipping partner to the bread.  It was fresh and delicious.  The beef satay was also good; tender and beefy.  However, we wished they made it a bit crispier, instead of chewier.

The entrees were ok.  Nothing to brag about and nothing to be ashamed of.  The klong klong vegetable dish was simple -- sauteed greens with garlic.  Nothing fancy needed to be done to exemplify the taste.  The flat noodle dish (first on the menu under Noodles) was oily but pretty tasty.  Lastly, the lightly fried squid was not to our liking, being small pieces of fried squid with peppers.

Overall, we were satisfied with the food.  Service was a different tune.  The waiters were slow and unresponsive.  Don't expect anything but decent food in the Queens area when visiting here.

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0

2

Irene L.

Forest Hills, NY

The food in this place doesn't even come close to Malaysian food, nor even the best that New York has to offer (and that isn't saying much if you've ever lived in Malaysia--the only one that approximates the real thing is the restaurant in the little alley walkway between Bowery and Elizabeth, just below Canal).  
We ordered a sambal dish with fish, and it came out with heavy orange-color sweet and sour sauce, like a typical run of the mill Chinese take-out (i.e. yuck!).  The Roti Canai is chewy, which is puzzling because even if you use frozen roti from a bag, it would at least be flaky and light (the real thing won't be flaky but at least it won't be rubbery).  I've tried this place twice (just to make sure I wasn't just ordering the wrong dish in a bad day).  But now I'll never go back again.

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0

9

T M.

Forest Hills, NY

I love this place, and live 2 minutes away, so i have them on speed dial on my phone.  I have only eaten there once and i remember the decor surprising me a bit, but i order out for delivery at least once a week.  The restaurant is family owned, so that definitely gives it a nice touch.  I recommend the roti canai, which is on the appetizer menu and pretty much anything from there entrees except the mango chicken, which i found to be a little to sweet for my taste.  

I order from them all the time, and have yet to have a situation arise, which hardly happens to me.

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2

6

Shaun H.

Long Island City, NY

My girlfriend and I went here not too long ago on a Monday.  The table was sticky, and the place we sat smelled like chemicals from the bathroom.  Their nam was great.  Soup was fair.  Their beef was ok, very salty but bearable, but the Budhist Delight that we ordered had western broccoli, white mushrooms, baby corn and the whole thing looked blackish brown and tasted like a whole bowl of salt fell in it (where as Buddhist Delight normally are made with a variety of asian vegetable with a light refreshing taste).  My girlfriend was so disgusted by the dish after eating several bites that we had to leave immediately.

They were nice enough to not charge us for the Buddhist Delight, so I did the only nice thing I could do in return and paid half anyways.  I don't think we'll ever go back there however.

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Elite '08

20

46

Angela C.

Forest Hills, NY

I love the roti canai here - one of the top 5 in the city I would say. I've tried many dishes here and most are pretty good. I like how the menu is set up for some of the dishes - choose your sauce, choose your meat (or veggies). I like the Pineapple sauce and I usually get it with chicken - that's my favorite sauce. Their Mango sauce is good too, but a little on the sweet side. Their curries are okay, not spectacular. Last time I went, I tried the Crispy Honey Squid, which was tasty, but next time I would share this with someone because the breading and the sweet sauce is too much for one person to handle. And, lastly, I know this is a really generic dish, but their Beef Chow Fun is really good. Weird, but trust me on that one.

My gripe is this - their service is really not good. It's not from a lack of trying, though, because their staff is friendly and would be willing to do what you want... if they only understood what you were saying. I've always encountered some language barriers while dining here, but no harm done. In fact, me and my dining buddies just have good laughs about the communication issues we've had.

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11

145

Ani V.

Maspeth, NY

I know Thai food is vastly popular right now as it should be. A good Pad Thai is heaven.  However something that is not as popular which I am happy about because its not trendy yet is Malaysian cuisine.  Pinang is nestled between a Japanese and French restaurant on Queens Blvd.  You would walk past it if it wasn't for the beautiful way it is decorated. The decorations may be what catch your eye but the food makes you want to stay. From slurpy noodles to warming rices Pinang has lots to offer. Besides lovely dishes they also make wonderful drinks. I would recommend the Lime Juice.

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8

20

Adam V.

Brooklyn, NY

I love the food at Pinang, but I really really love the decor. The restaurant walls and ceiling fuse a traditional and colorful Malaysia with clean angular industrial design. Its all about the exposed steel beam and the birdcages.

One of these days I'll have to order some Pinang to go, to see if the food really is that good... or if the atmosphere is making my taste buds biased.

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34

75

Adrienne Y.

San Francisco, CA

you can't go to a malaysian restaurant without ordering roti canai. it's just a given, like getting fries at in-n-out. i'm not a roti expert, but i personally like it a bit flakier than the way it was made here. still, i could eat a whole order myself. the curry dipping sauce was delicious and had a nice consistency. it would be nice if they gave a little bit more curry with the roti. loads of vegetarian friendly dishes. the mee siam is one of those dishes that i'd probably crave on my way home after work (if i lived in forest hills) making me detour for take out. it's gooood. queens prices, manhattan decor. street parking kinda sucks around here though...i know, it's nyc, so you can just take the train.

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4

26

Shreya M.

Forest Hills, NY

How did I get so lucky to live a block away from this Malaysian haven? This is Forest Hill's best kept secret. If you're getting a little tired of Thai food, this Malaysian-Thai fusion cuisine could be a nice little change of pace. I'd start out with a fresh appetizer of their succulent Roti Kanai, a flavorful chicken curry dish with Malaysian syle roti. Make sure you order either a refreshing Lychee or Coconut drink to wash your food down. Water just won't cut it, since you need a little bit of sweet to balance out the spices. Then for entree, there are oh so many glorious choices. Vegetarians will be just as deeply satisfied as non-veg folks. For vegetarians, I recommend the bean curd dish in thai curry sauce. For meat eaters, my absolute favorite is the Mango Beef Curry. It adds a little fruity kick to your palate.  If you have room in your stomach after all that, the fried ice cream will surely be a great end to such a wonderful meal. Or maybe you'll find, that it's just the beginning of many more trips to this restaurant to come!

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