Ho Jiak is now open in Melbourne inside a mega three-storey venue
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Malaysian-born Junda Khoo 's Ho Jiak has four iterations across Sydney, including the hatted Town Hall restaurant. Now, Khoo has brought his thrilling brand of Malaysian cooking to Melbourne with a three-level, three-in-one venue on Rainbow Alley in the CBD.
The first two venues opened in late May: fast-casual Da Bao, serving home-style Malaysian dishes on street level, and beer hall Ho Liao, doing Malaysian classics with a twist on the top floor. But the jewel in the crown, Ho Jiak – Junda's Playground, opened in mid-June on the level between them.
Here, tamarind-powered Assam laska comes not in a big steaming bowl, but magicked into an icy granita with slivers of raw kingfish. The green-chilli-based sambal ijo is mashed up with the herbs of chimichurri to make a fiery accompaniment for grilled John dory. And hand-picked Northern Territory mud crab crowns the smoky char kwai teow noodles.
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