My Malaysian Epicurean Adventures: Neptune Palace

Being the third week of the Malaysia Kitchen Summit, I thought it was time to visit one of the “institutions” of Malaysian cuisine in Sydney. While visiting restaurants over the last three weeks there are a few places I have been told I “must” try. One of these was a Malaysian restaurant by the name of Neptune Palace, at Circular Quay in Sydney.

Arriving at Neptune Palace the first thing I noticed is the size of the restaurant, with the main restaurant downstairs as well as a function room below. My “date” and I were seated at a perfectly positioned table with views from our window overlooking shimmering lights and the beautiful Sydney harbour.

The menu at Neptune Palace is extensive and, since opening, has won a number of awards for both their food and wine. Chef Michael Lam is to thank for having so many varieties on the menu (separated into both Malaysian and Chinese options) that I was slightly disappointed that I had to limit myself based on the amount of food I could consume
in one sitting.

Opened in 1993, Neptune Palace is tucked away in a side street behind the quay. While being slightly more expensive than the other restaurants I have been to so far, I was told that Neptune Palace was worth the price, and decided to check it out.

We tried to cull down our must-haves based on the staffs suggestions (which didn’t help as much as it should have with all the staff pointing out their different favourite dishes) but we managed to do so at the expense of our entrees – and only ordering the one dish Otak Otak to keep space for mains.

Otak Otak is grilled (Queensland) Coral Trout Fish pieces in Banana Leaves. In Malay, Otak means brains, and is derived from the look of the dish when steamed in a pandan leaf. However, in this instance, the Otak Otak took inspiration from the south of Malaysia, and was wrapped up using banana leaf, resulting in an end product that was reddish-orange, drier and with a more distinct smoky fish aroma. Now one of my new favourites, Otak Otak is amazing, light and delicious,
and was the perfect start to the evening. After all our umming and ahhing over our main courses they were finally beginning to arrive, and it was time to find out whether the choices we made were the right ones.

The first main to be served was Fried Butter Milk Prawns (or Mentega). Mentega means butter in Malay, and the prawns were sauteed with butter and fresh curry leaves, along with chilli and spring onion. The taste of the fresh curry leaves fried in butter is amazing and I loved the fresh taste mixed with the chilli. So far it was looking good, and I couldn’t wait for more dishes to arrive.

Next to the table was the Assam Scallops, that is, scallops served in a hot and spicy tamarind sauce. Assam (or assam jawa) is the Malay word for tamarind, which is commonly used to give the stock its sour flavour. Scallops have always been a favourite (hence why I ordered this dish) and I was glad I did. The scallops were gargantuan, yet still moist and juicy and perfectly cooked. The assam sauce was the perfect balance of sweet, sour, salty and heat from the chilli, yet by no means was it a spicy dish.

My highlight of the evening was the Kelantan Chicken in a coconut shell. The Kelantan Chicken arrived served in a coconut shell, and apart from looking fantastic, the smell was amazing. Kelantanese dishes are influenced by nearby Thailand, and therefore have dishes that are rich and creamy. Sugar is also paramount in a Kelantanese kitchen, and therefore most dishes from the area are sweet.

The Kelantan Chicken was made with chicken breast fillets combined with turmeric, fresh chilli and coconut milk. Wonderful and flavoursome, this tasted even better than it looked (if that is possible) and the creaminess of the coconut milk mixed with the chilli was heaven.

The Roti Channai, home-made Malaysian Bread, was served with a curry sauce. This was delicious, light and fluffy and whether dipped in the curry sauce that it was served with, or used to lap up the extra sauce from all the other amazing curries.

Daging Rendang (otherwise known as beef rendang) is stewed diced chuck beef with herbs, chilli and coconut cream. Rich with coconut, candle nuts and lemongrass: this is a signature dish of the restaurant – as told to us by the waiters. The rendang was creamy, and you could taste the crunch and thickness from the candle nuts with every bite. This rendang was luscious and heavenly, tempting me to eat more.

All the dishes I tried were at least on a par with the other restaurants, the Char Kway Teow, however, was fantastic and the best I have tasted. The serve of fried rice noodles with squid, prawns and Queensland coral trout fillet cooked with egg, garlic, chives, bean sprouts and chilli. The “Wokhei”, or taste of the wok, was fantastic. Just from only tasting the noodles, you could taste the flavour of the whole dish in your mouth, and this dish was truly sensational.

After all those wonderful savoury dishes it was now time for dessert, and as much as I love savoury dishes, sweets are something that I adore.

The dessert menu at Neptune Palace consists of a number of desserts, mostly Malay and Chinese. The choice was immense and I could quite easily have eaten half the list if my stomach allowed it. As it was we limited ourselves to the two desserts of the Pandan Crepe and Ais Batu Kachang.

The Pandan Crepe, a wrapped crepe made with Pandan essence filled with warm palm sugar coconut, and just writing about this dessert is making me crave it. The warm and sweet coconut was incredible, both comforting and reassuring, and mouth-wateringly delicious with a little lingering palm sugar, leaving you wanting more.

Finally, we demolished the Ais Batu Kachang (also tried at the Malaysia O’Town Kopitiam) – a dish consisting of sweet corn, red bean, grass jelly, and topped with shaved ice and rose syrup. This was more heavily flavoured with rose syrup than the last one I tried, however, this was definitely not a problem for me as the rose flavour was incredible and sweet and meant that there was a taste of rose was in every mouthful of ice at the top of the bowl, and as you ate further down, the more savoury elements of the fresh corn, red bean and grass jelly came through to harmonise beautifully.

After all this wonderful food it is hard to deny that Neptune Palace is an incredible Malaysian restaurant. Whether it is the fantastic harbour views, wonderful staff, or the array of dishes to choose from, there is little doubt that Neptune Palace is one of the big hitters in Sydney Malaysian food.

These last few weeks have taught me so much more about Malaysian food that I am a little sad that my four week Malaysia Kitchen Summit journey is drawing to a close. With one week left, I will be leaving the best for last, so come and have a look at all the wonderful offerings that will be on show next week.

Natalie Manning dined as a guest of Malaysia Kitchen.

Neptune Palace
Level 1, Gateway Building,
Pitt Street (cnr Alfred Street),
Circular Quay, Sydney NSW, 2000.
+61 2 9241 3338