Cili Padi Restaurant review
Cili Padi is a Malaysian restaurant in Bangkok, Thailand specializing in Malay cuisine. The name is Malay for Bird’s Eye Chili which is a key ingredient in its prime dishes. We arrived to be personally met by the co-owner himself, Fahmi Sabri. The restaurant is a joint venture with his aunt, Noriza Mohd Tahir, and he has been running Cili Padi since 2007. Conveniently located near the business district of Silom and Sathorn on Narathiwat Road, it is easily accessible by public transportation through taxis and the light rail transit station nearby.
Cili Padi is a Malaysian restaurant in Bangkok, Thailand specializing in Malay cuisine. The name is Malay for Bird’s Eye Chili which is a key ingredient in its prime dishes. We arrived to be personally met by the co-owner himself, Fahmi Sabri. The restaurant is a joint venture with his aunt, Noriza Mohd Tahir, and he has been running Cili Padi since 2007. Conveniently located near the business district of Silom and Sathorn on Narathiwat Road, it is easily accessible by public transportation through taxis and the light rail transit station nearby.
The greeting we received from the Cili Padi camp was a lot like meeting an old acquaintance. While we were there to measure up the food, it was also for a laid back dinner. Good enough, the place is a no-frills restaurant and reminiscent of a rather common Malay restaurant ubiquitous back home. This is indeed the concept that Cili Padi likes to maintain.
Step inside the restaurant and you will find that the interior exudes homeliness through its wall decorations inspired by Malaysian arts and crafts. The Wau kites and the traditional food coverings called Tudung Saji are some of the pieces on the wall. There’s also a sense of patriotism with the Jalur Gemilang, the Malaysian flag, proudly displayed in the store’s front. It’s a relatively small venue with long tables, suitable for dinner with family and friends. The beverage station is also located next to the window so passersby can watch the preparations of the drinks available in the restaurant like the Teh Tarik being “pulled”. Outside, there’s a table or two with simple plastic stools under an umbrella much like a Warung or a hawker stall setting that you can find in Malaysia. There’s also a small outdoor kitchen in front of the entrance where the Roti Canai, Murtabak and street burgers are cooked.
Now let’s talk about the food. One thing to surely highlight is that the food here is Halal. This is a plus point for local and traveling Muslims in search of this requirement when looking to eat. The food here is also made with genuine Malaysian spices and products brought in from the homeland. It is rather difficult for them to import the ingredients into Thailand but Cili Padi tries its best to keep its kitchen well stocked to ensure authenticity. The Bird’s Eye chili itself is also imported from Malaysia since Thai chili is not a suitable substitute for it.
Cili Padi offers two Mix Rice Sets, the first with a choice of 3 different side dishes known as Lauk for 130 Baht and the other set includes the choice of 2 Lauk for 30 Baht cheaper. The variation of Lauk differs from day to day and includes the likes of Asam Pedas Fish, Chicken Gulai, Squid Kerabu and Steamed Vegetables. You can also order off the ala carte menu which has an array of mains to choose from. We ordered the Nasi Lemak, Mee Goreng, Asam Pedas and Beef Rendang.
Chef Mat Gemok is the restaurant’s resident Malaysian chef in charge of cooking most of the food served here. We watched as he demonstrated the making of the Mee Goreng. The end result was a plate of golden yellow noodles stir-fried with soya sauce, prawns, chili and vegetables. It came to be a tasty well-balanced dish.
The Nasi Lemak reminded us of the simple authentic taste of the ones sold at the morning stalls back home. But the best of the best had to be the Asam Pedas and the Beef Rendang. Eaten with rice, the flavors were just spectacular and the usage of Bird’s Eye chili was to its advantage. We highly recommend these two dishes.
For dessert, we ordered the ABC. A sweet concoction of shaved ice added with a mixture of jelly, corn kernels and cendol, drizzled with red syrup and evaporated milk and topped with ice cream. It was a refreshing treat after the pleasant punch of chili in the main dishes. We also tried the pink Bandung, a pretty beverage of red syrup diluted with milk and a thin layer of foam on the surface. All and all, it really was a satisfying Malaysian feast.
The place has garnered quite a number of popular visitors since they’ve been opened. Even the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia and other delegates have eaten here. This is not mere name dropping to promote the restaurant because the food here is tasty enough to speak for itself as we personally discovered. Malaysia Kitchen recommends this restaurant for authentic Malaysian dinning in Bangkok. They also offer catering services for events.
