By Helen Ong

Situated so near to the Thai border, it would make sense that here in Penang we have good restaurants serving up the Kingdom’s delicious cuisine. The Maa Roy at the top of Abu Siti Lane in town is one such.

Started by the enterprising Palita Piwkham from Bangkok because, as a student here, she missed good Thai food, this friendly little eatery is not somewhere you’d go for an elegant ambiance: it is just a typical no-frills café-style restaurant, but what it has become known for is its food.

Popular dishes include Mien Kam, the unique Thai starter with dried shrimp, desiccated coconut and other ingredients wrapped in a Daun Kaduk leaf, chewed in the mouth till a burst of delicious, different flavours are released.

The Thai Seafood Otak Otak served in a young green coconut, and there are various styles of fish; fried till crisp then a 3-flavour sauce is poured over; or steamed then served with sliced garlic, ground fresh coriander stem and chillis with a good squeeze of lime. Result? A delicious, mouth-numbingly sour and spicy dish ... and that was just the “local” version of it. However, if you think you can handle spicy, then go for the what the Thais like: extra hot. But be warned: when it comes to chilli padi, the Thais beat us hands down!

The hot and sour Glass Noodle Salad is a case in point. It’s served with little bits of hot green chilli and seafood, but is also available with minced pork. Other Thai pork dishes they do are Fried Leg of Pork (Ka Moo), Curried Minced Pork and Kra Praw, Minced Pork with Basil Leaf.

You can also order the deliciously refreshing Coconut Flower Syrup there, which is brought in direct from Thailand every week, as is at least 70% of their ingredients.

So popular is it that in 2009, Palita set up another outlet in Krystal Point, Bayan Baru, with partner Patricia Phannluck Lim to cater for the office and factory crowd there. Both menus are practically identical except the one in Krystal Point is halal-certified, and as they require faster service, value sets are served during weekday lunch times.

Literally translated, “Maa Roy” means “riches come” – I think it’s going to live up to its name, certainly for the proprietors!