Motormouth From Ipoh – Asian Food & Travel Blog

Aussie style of roast chicken with a generous portion of blanched greens and baked potatoes; hearty yet not to the point of burning a hole in your pocket.

Weekend! Yay! Before Motormouth ventures off to a back to back getaway (one for travel, another for work), allow me to clear some backlog off my erm, back.

Oz Restaurant has been running full steam almost half a year ago now (or it could be a good 3 months, for all I know, restaurants in Ipoh have been sprouting up like nobody’s business lately), situated a few doors away from Spices of Penang; and down the same road as Hokkaido Japanese Restaurant.

Aussie Outback Roast Chicken (RM17.90/USD6) with a choice of gravy – in this case we picked the Herbs bread sauce instead of mushroom sauce, garlic mayo, outback BBQ or onion sauce. You can also choose 3 sides from a selection of 8. 

Initially skeptical (many Western/fusion restaurants failed to impress during the first visit; a pattern so routine it bothers me a lot), I was thrown off my guard after chancing upon good to rave reviews on my Facebook wall; and hearsay from fellow foodies. Read on to find out my thoughts.

Fremantle Fish & Chips (RM14.90/USD5) was also pretty impressive, while the Special Coffee with Cointreu & Cream (RM12.50/USD4) had a pretty neat shot of orange flavoured liquor.

The dining environment was one that commands for attention; a barrier-less doorway to a space cordoned by fiery orange-painted walls, Aussie-inspired motives and aborigines paintings and arts, with somewhat cheesy staff running around in cowboy hats. You almost fall immediately into the Aussie outback dining mood; save for the fact that this is in good old Ipoh after all.

Outback King Chicken Wellington (RM18.90/USD6) – Chicken breast with mushroom pate encased in puff pastry served with potatoes and BBQ sauce

Thankfully, the ‘fusion’ side of the restaurant did not feature too prominently in their menu. You know you can only have so much Western fusion in a small town like Ipoh. Let’s drop all the cream and cheese for something REAL, please.

Of course, if it’s your first time here, don’t give the roast chicken a miss. I don’t see any doubt as to why almost every single patron was gleefully tucking into their portion of whole chicken thigh; roasted to juicy, tender perfection and topped with your choice of sauce; in our case, the herbs bread sauce came highly recommended.

Infused with an overkill (almost) of herbs and spices, the sauce actually complemented the chicken really well. Retaining that moisture in spite of what could be a mount of gravy, the sides of onion rings, coleslaw and potato salad played out really fine.

The other interesting options on the menu include Aussie Beef Burger, Manly Beach Chicken Kiev, Rockhampton Hotpot Beef Stew and Aussie Braised Lamb. Certainly worth a revisit, given the relatively generous portions and quality cooking.

We ended our meals with small bites of desserts; complimentary as part of the opening promotion I believe. The cheesecake and yam pudding were nothing to shout about though. A meal for four came to slightly over RM70; a reasonable price to pay for a family-style Western cuisine restaurant in an area packed with popular food choices. Very near to Festival Walk too (where Sushi Zento‘s at), so this can be an alternative if your Japanese meal plan goes awry.

OZ RESTAURANT (non-Halal)
Aussie Outback Roast Chicken & Fusion Cuisine
No. 26, Jalan Medan Ipoh 1D,
Medan Ipoh Bistari,
31400 Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia.
Tel No : +6016-565 3565
Same road as Hokkaido Japanese Restaurant, and a few doors away from Spices of Penang

“Happy Weekend Dear Readers, and Let’s Compare Food Notes?”