The Kauphy Place, Willetton

I am appalled at the service of this place. It is a disgrace to even call it a place for eating. I ordered a meal and I waited for over half an hour whilst everyone else finished their meal at my table. During this time I approached the waitress twice and asked what the delay was, she told me that it was a busy time during the lunch period. I then approached a waiter and he told me that I had in fact not ordered the dishes and accused me of not paying the full amount for my meal even though I had a receipt. He then said I had ordered other dishes which had already been delivered to the table even though I hadn't eaten. After that he said he will go and check again with the kitchen and he didn't appear for 10 minutes. I approached the waitress and she apologised and said she'd make sure that my meal came as she's the one who took my order, even though she said she would check before, obviously she hadn't. Later the waiter told me that the docket had been missed. I will never step foot at this place again and I advise others not to come to this place as there are so many other places around here that are better, unless you want to be accused of lying and bad service. The food that came out was cold and I had to ask for my food to be heated. Biriyani was too dry. All the condiments for Wada and Dosa's are the same. I saw another table return their Dosa due to it being a wrong order. The place is chaotic and unorganised.

Trinco Star, Willetton

This is a local restaurant hidden away in Willetton just off High Road which sells Indian and Sri Lankan cuisine. Don't make a judgement on the vicinity as the food is one of the most authentic Sri Lankan places that you will find in Perth other than meals that you can order from private home businesses. The prices are reasonable as well.

Depending on your threshold for spicy food you should ask for the level that you require. Some meals may be more spicy than others in which I found the Kothu Rotti (Sri Lankan dish made from a Sri Lankan roti called Godhamba roti and vegetables, egg, and/or meat, and spices) extremely spicy and I almost couldn't eat it! I'm not sure whether this has changed now but if you like it very spicy then order this dish as you wont be disappointed.

 Sri Lankan Rolls & Medu Vada

The above were light and crispy and made fresh. They were all sold out by the time we finished our meal around lunch time so if you want want one you need to get in quick. The rolls were spicy and contained mutton and some potatoes. The Medu Vada which is made mainly from Urad Dal (split black lentils) had the right level of ingredients and was a great snack for later on.

We ordered 20 String Hoppers with the Coconut Sambol, Chicken Curry and Kiri Hodi between the two of us and it was too much which they sell between 10am to 1.30pm. I suggest about perhaps 6-8 String Hoppers per person depending on your appetite. You have to pre-order these about a day or a few hours before as they make them from scratch which is time consuming. Apparently, you can have these for breakfast but we had it for brunch and it was so tasty and filling. I would definitely recommend this if you're not sure what to order. Otherwise, there is a vast range of curries you can order with rice or naan bread which is what I would normally order for lunch or dinner.

The noodles were so light and fluffy which you mix with the curry and sauces. The Coconut Sambol worked well with the flavours and the chicken curry had the right mix of spices. I used the Kiri Hodi (meaning milk gravy which is made from milk and spices) to reduce the spiciness and it actually worked!

String Hoppers (made with red rice flour) 

 Coconut Sambol

 Chicken Curry

Kiri Hodi

The meal put together

Falooda

For dessert I had Falooda which contains rose syrup, basil seeds and vanilla ice-cream. It's my favourite drink and the best I've had in Perth so far. At any age I'm sure you will appreciate this drink and it was a great way to end a fulfilling meal. I wanted to sleep after this meal but it was worth it.

http://www.trincostar.com.au/

http://www.trincostar.com.au/images/files/SriLankanMenu.pdf

http://www.trincostar.com.au/images/files/TrincoStarMenu.pdf

Shikara, Mindarie

This restaurant has beautiful views of Mindarie Keys Marina. The décor is slightly better than other Indian restaurants around Perth. When we initially arrived it was very warm inside on a cold night.

The menu contained various sections based on the meat type and extras to accompany the dishes. There was a large variety of meat types with detailed descriptions of each dish. Each category had an average of five different types of curries under each meat type and hotness ranging from mild, medium and hot.

For entrées we had the tasting plate for two which contained beef samosas, vegetable pakoras, prawn pakoras, chicken tikka and seekh kebab served with a yoghurt and mint dipping sauce. The samosa pastry was very hard and it was difficult to cut through. It had been cooked for too long. The rest of the elements were tasty and had the right amount of spices without being too overpowering. The yoghurt sauce was really tasty and went well with everything on the plate.

Tasting plate for two

For the mains we had the butter chicken and the lamb and spinach curry. On the side we ordered basmati rice, parathas and papadums. 

The butter chicken had strong flavours of cardamom and contained authentic flavours; the most authentic that I have tried in a fine dining restaurant. I could not really taste the butter which I tend to prefer for butter chicken and had a more standard base flavour. It was creamy and had a generous proportion of chicken. The gravy had low levels of spiciness.

I did not like the lamb and spinach curry as much as the meat was tougher than usual which was disappointing. The meat was lean but dry and the gravy was moderately spicy. Both these dishes lacked vegetables and I felt that they needed to add some to balance the flavours. I would recommend a vegetable dish to be ordered in addition to the meat dishes when dining at this restaurant.

The basmati rice was cooked well and were balanced out with the right amount of spices. I expected the parathas to be soft and flaky but instead it was tough like bread. The papadums were really tasty and are recommended.

By the time we received our mains we were already very full from the entrée. The mains are very substantial therefore, only bread or the paratha alone would be enough but we always get both bread and rice. Towards the end of the night the restaurant workers turned in the air-con and it was freezing cold. I even heard comments from other customers who felt the drastic change in temperature. Therefore, you should take along a jacket just in case. I felt they did this when they were near closing hours to make the customers leave. However, overall I really liked it here and believe it is worth visiting.

 Lamb and spinach and butter chicken curry

 Basmati rice

Paratha

Papadums

Maya Masala, Stockland Riverton

This restaurant is not overly large and is very open to the outside seating area. It is located at the front of Stockland Riverton Shopping Centre. There is a wide selection of curries available which can be seen from the bain-marie. The owner is very helpful in describing the spiciness of the curries. It is a good place to go to if you're hungry and feel like a substantial meal.

I can highly recommend the Chicken Dosa. You need to pre-order this dish as it's freshly made. It also comes with a yoghurt dipping sauce and vegetarian curry on the side. The Masala Dosa is also great for a vegetarian option which is filled with potatoes, onion, curry leaves and mustard seeds. You will not be disappointed!

http://www.mayamasala.net.au/menu.php