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Since opening the wildly popular Ho Jiak in Sydney, now with four locations, Malaysian-born chef Junda Khoo has been sharing the food of his homeland and challenging expectations of what the cuisine can be. Now he’s brought the party to Melbourne, with a three-storey Malaysian mega-venue. The cherry on top is rooftop beer hall Ho Liao (Level 2, Rainbow Alley).

While the menu might read conventionally, Khoo puts his own spin on things. His signature char kwai teow is “not traditional, not authentic”, with more wok hei than you’d expect. The loh bak (five-spice pork rolls) use fatty pork jowl instead of the more common mince and add prawn mousse to the mix. The rendang curry stars braised wagyu shin for extra flavour.

All the rice and noodle dishes are priced at $15, but they’re moderately sized so you can order several. Want to splash out? Go fingers-first into the delicious mess of lobster or crab, with your sauce of choice including ginger and shallot or Malaysian chilli.

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