Satay on Charcoal

Trying their food for the first time at the Unilocal botanical balcony party, i enjoyed the beef satay. Nice to find a eatery that doesn’t smother food in chilli

Took-​away some Chicken Satay. 5 sticks/​skewers, which came with a side of nasi ketupat and peanut dipping sauce. The chicken satay tasted authentic and true to the Malaysian recipe but the ketupat was dry and seemed like the ready-​made kind. The peanut sauce was a bit too sweet and lacked the tanginess and heat which is how its made in the Indo-​Malay countries. However, id say its by far the best satay I had in a restaurant setting in Perth. Will definitely return for more.

With so many new places popping up and with an expanding wishlist, it is often hard to make a decision on where to eat. Recently, my family and I had a craving for satays and immediately I knew where we should go, that is, Satay on Charcoal! It’s a hidden gem located in the heart of South Perth at the back of an alleyway. If you have tried the satays at Twilight Hawker Markets, you would find the satays familiar. Yes, it’s the same crew that runs the pop-​up stall at Twilight Hawker Markets.
You can’t leave Satay on Charcoal without ordering their signature dish which are satays! We had the Chicken and Beef Satay ($ 9.90 for 5 sticks) which is served with rice cakes (Nasi Impit), slices of onions, cucumber and homemade peanut sauce. The satays at Satay on Charcoal is cooked on the traditional charcoal grill to give a smokey touch to the satays, just the way we Malaysians like our satay done. It’s very tasty and the meat was not too dry. The peanut sauce was a hit — it’s authentic, chunky and nutty in flavour. Could this be one of Perth’s best satays? Yes, I definitely think so.
Apart from satays, we shared a serve of Mee Goreng ($ 8.90). It was very delicious with a slight charred flavour. It’s hard to find a decent mee goreng here but we thought that the mee goreng at Satay at Charcoal was authentic. Truly brings back good memories of late night treats at mamak stalls during trips back to Kuala Lumpur.
We also had a Nasi Goreng Special with fried chicken and fried egg ($ 11.90) to share. It’s a hearty serve of fried rice with chunks of chicken and vegetables. Fried to perfection, the fried chicken was crispy with a flavoursome tumeric flavour.
For drinks, we ordered a Teh Tarik ($ 2.90) to complement our meals and to keep us warm on a cool night. Overall, we enjoyed our food at Satay on Charcoal. For a reasonably priced menu with authentic Malaysian food, we will definitely be back again.

This hidden is not easy to spot. The address says 16 Mends Street, South Perth but you won’t be able to see it from the main road. It is tucked away behind Pizza Express, at the back of an alley way. Satay on Charcoal looks and feels more like a takeaway shop than a restaurant so don’t expect anything fancy pants!
The drinks came first and I literally sculled this within 2 minutes. I was soooooo hungry! Work has been a little cray cray of the late and I’ve been forgetting to eat lunch.
I preferred the beef satays over the chicken satays. They were both cooked perfectly, smokey and not dry, but I just found the beef flavour to be tastier. I haven’t had good satays in Perth for a while so this really hit the spot. I want to try the lamb too! Next time, next time…
The char kuey teow wasn’t charred enough… don’t get me wrong it was super tasty and it had the right amount of flavour but I love it really charred. Like almost burnt charred. Come to think of it, I should have eaten it with some sambal.
Overall, a really satisfying meal! Really happy Mr Pigeon told me about this place. I had a little chat with the owner and he said that they’ve been open for a year since June 2014. How did I not hear about this earlier?! Definitely will be back to try the nasi lemak and lamb satays.

If anyone knows me, they know my favorite food of all time is satay. Not just any old kind of satay, but Malay satay. And these guys do it best!
You’ve probably already seen them at local food fairs such as the Friday night Twilight Hawkers in Forrest Chase. It’s even better now that I can visit them at their South Perth store, tucked behind the alley way off Mends Street.
They offer chicken, beef and lamb satay as well as a variety of rice and noodle dishes. The lamb satay is absolutely off the chain and I dream of it often… I once ordered 30 sticks for takeaway and some friends happened to go there for dinner only to be told the lamb satay was all sold out. Oh well, you snooze, you lose buddies!

Satay Sticks in South Perth.
This business that originated from the Hawkers Markets in the city during the warmer months now has a shop front in the parking lot area behind the Windsor Hotel off Mends Street. It is a bit hidden from view from the street and you will have to Walk down the alley and around the Pizza Express to actually get there.
The satay sticks cost $ 2 each for chicken and aside from this there is a reasonable range of other traditional Malaysian cuisine on offer. The place has been operating for around a month and seems to be reasonably busy.