Love Mamak is one of those places that you've probably walked past a bunch of times on 2nd Ave but never actually went into. I met up with Aarti, her brother and Will late on a Saturday night and Love Mamak was pretty crowded with the NYU kids. It's smack in the middle of the East Village and is typical of the restaurants in the area where you can load up on quick, casual, tasty and cheap food.
The menu is a mix of Thai, Vietnamese and Malaysian food. Normally I don't like places that mix and match cuisines and while I still don't love it, it works here because it wasn't all fused together but separate sections of the menu. Plus they don't go deep into each cuisine - it's pretty much a line up of the basic standard hits of each region. We got the Uncle Plumb's Dumplings ($6) from the Vietnamese appetizer section, the Roti Canai ($6) from the Malaysian appetizer section, a standard veggie Pad Thai ($10), Mee Goreng ($10), Cashew Smoked Chili ($11), and a Vegetarian Clay Pot ($11). In true Asian style, everything comes out super fast. Uncle Plump's dumpling was the only meat based dish we got and it was a yummy combination pork and chive but what was unique about it was that it was doused in smoked chili oil and peanut sauce. Yum. The roti was a nice fluffy dough that was easily used to sop up the dal lentil dipping sauce it came with. As for the main dishes of pad thai, mee goreng and veggie clay pot, they were all your run of the mill, solid neighborhood Asian noodle dishes. There was nothing flashy or fancy about our meal here but on a late hot summer night, all these dishes hit the spot.
If Love Mamak was in my neighborhood, I could see myself ordering take-out or delivery a lot from here. It's one of those places that you need when you to satisfy your Asian food craving at a very affordable price point. Total bill: $25/pp with tax and tip
Photo Credit: Yelp
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