Aunty Franklee has been around for while and it’s known for its authentic Malaysian dishes. With two stores located in Hawthorn and Melbourne CBD, you know it’s good when they just keep popping up around Melbourne. The Hawthorn venue is located on the busy Burwood road and it is a tad difficult finding parking as they are all time limited. Pushing through the doors into the venue, you’re greeted by friendly staff and the delicious aroma of food cooking!
Tomato mee goreng. A tomato based mee goreng with eggs, cabbage and chicken and oh my gosh it was freaking magical. A touch of acidity, a touch of saltiness, a touch of delightful-ness, I absolutely loved this dish.
Tomato Mee Goreng – $10
Tomato based stir fry noodles with free range eggs topped with cabbage & tofu puffs
For those who have a bigger appetite, check out the Sambal blue pea flower rice (yep, the rice is BLUE!). The dish is filled with shrimp sambal, fresh veggies, eggs, beef ribs and grilled chicken skewers, it has a little bit of everything.
Sambal Blue Pea Flower Rice – $19.80
Blue pea flower, coconut & pandan infused rice with homemade shrimp sambal, toasted peanuts, tomatoes, cucumber, crispy anchovies & hardboiled egg with grilled ‘Bakars’ beef ribs & grilled chicken skewers
Chicken wings, chicken wings, chicken wings. Who doesn’t love them? The coco chicken wingettes were grilled and slapped on with coconut sambal sauce. It was oh so delish! Oh, a word of warning though, it does have a kick to it BUT it was quite pleasant.
Coco Chicken Wingettes – $6
Grilled & slathered with coconut sambal sauce
I love myself a good char kuey teow, especially when there’s that amazing charred flavour that can only come from being cooked in a wok. Aunty Franklee makes a mean char kuey teow with prawns, Chinese sausage (anything with Chinese sausage is AMAZEBALLS!) and of course eggs. The charry flavour was a given it was something I would definitely order again.
Char Kuey Teow – $16
Flat rice noodles, wok fried with prawns, fish cake, Chinese sausage, egg, chives, beansprouts
I’ve never had a Bak Kut Teh before and was so excited when it was placed in front of me. First impression? It had a very herbal aroma to it (not surprising since it contains 23 herbs in it) and you will need an acquired taste. It tasted very healthy and I can definitely see my mumsy bear loving this dish.
Old Fashioned Bak Kut Teh (sharing) – $24
23 herbs pork broth, aniseed, cloves, cinnamon, liquorice, pepper, garlic, dried squid, pork ribs, pig stomach, tofu and mushroom
Thunder Tea Rice! What a cool name! So in a bowl you’ll get a mixture of rice, veggies, anchovies and omelette and on the side you’ll get a herbal tea. Pour the tea into the bowl and BAM you get a filling, delicious rice mixture. I would definitely get this again!
Thunder Tea Rice – $17
Wok fried greens, leek omelette, toasted ground peanuts, sweet radish, black beans, crisp anchovies & dried shrimp on rice, fresh herbs tissane
I’m a massive fan of soups and the mother hen soup has four kinds of mushrooms and is four kinds of delicious. It was light, it was subtle and it was very mushroomy (great for mushroom lovers!). I would definitely recommend this soup!
Mother Hen Soup – $15
Slow cooked chicken soup with four kinds of mushrooms and a hint of squid
There is also a dry bah kut teh and I quite like this version better than the soup version. The sticky caramalised sauce was so rich in flavour and the braised pork just fell off the bone.
Dry Bah Kut Teh – $19
Pork meats braised in a 23-herb broth, then wok-fried to caramalised in a dark, sticky sauce of dried squid, garlic & chili
Aunty Franklee serves up authentic Malaysian dishes with a twist and I for one will definitely be back. I had dishes that I’ve never had before and I was blown away by them. Aunty Franklee, you make me feel warm and fuzzy and I’ll be running to you for them Malaysian eats.
Verdict: 🍷🍷🍷🍷
Food: 🍷🍷🍷🍷
Service: 🍷🍷🍷🍷
Value: 🍷🍷🍷🍷
Disclaimer: I was invited to dine by Aunty Franklee and First Chapter Agency and all opinions expressed are my own.
64 Burwood Rd, Hawthorn VIC 3122
Tel: (03) 9818 6719
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