Merah

Bringing contemporary Malaysian street food to Northcote’s own High Street, the sleek and minimalist Merah aims to give patrons a touch of spice with their authentic home-style inspired menu that will leave you licking your fingers and asking for more.

Merah, meaning red, pays homage to chilli sambal, a traditional Malaysian condiment found in street food that accompanies the majority of the restaurant’s menu. Bringing together a variety of ingredients, including local produce, to add a depth of flavor to every dish, sambal represents Merah’s defining ethos of combining flavours and ingredients to create complex and memorable dishes.

Merah is best enjoyed with company with large tables populating the light and modern dining room and the menu consisting predominantly of dishes to share. For starters, look out for the pork dumplings served in a chilli oil sauce as well as the popiah goreng: bite-size chicken spring rolls plated with carrot, butter lettuce and wood ear mushroom. Both dishes prove a masterful blend of elements as the first bite creates a burst of flavour from the seemingly disparate ingredients.

For your main, you cannot go pass the Merah fried chicken, served with lemon and a Kelantan mayo. Again, blending each element together, squeezing the lemon on the chicken and dipping it in the light, pinkish sweet and sour mayo, produces a fantastic array of flavours that will have you rolling up your sleeves as you lick each bone clean.

While the menu is small, there is a variety of dishes to complement modern tastes. Vegan options include tofu nugget and the Java Jungle Curry Laska, a plant based laska soup with green soba noodles and brussels sprouts. There is also a wide range of fresh seafood options at market prices including spiced crab and king prawns cooked on Merah’s own traditional charcoal grill.

For a casual night out and a taste of Malaysian cuisine with a bit of bite, Merah is sure to be another popular destination on Northcote’s continually expanding culinary map.

Merah 
238 High Street, Northcote
Open Tuesday to Sunday, 5.30 to 10pm
merah.com.au