Ho Jiak, Strathfield

My girlfriends and I decide to catch up in Strathfield at Ho Jiak for a nice, cheap and cheerful dinner. WOW, look at their new signature dish above which is the floating chopstick noodles.



I arrive reasonably early on a Friday night at 6:30pm and there is a queue. It's way more busy than I thought. Hopefully this means the food is good (there's about 10 people ahead of me).

Ho Jiak is located in the Strathfield Plaza which is right outside of Strathfield Station. There are a few seats inside but I would suggest you eat outside where there are more tables (although they are shared with other eateries). 

You order at the counter and then get a number and they serve the food to you. Their new menu items look tempting (above photo).

 I also suggest you order a drink in preparation for those BOLD Malaysian flavours that are typically known for their spice and saucey flavours. I order the MJ aka Michael Jackson which is a pearl soy milk drink ($2.50, below). It's named MJ because it's black and white apparently. My other girlfriends order the lemon tea, logan with wintermelon and milk coffee (all $2.50 each, below). 

I quite like milk tea so I'm very happy with my choice.

I'm seated outside so this is the view of the shop front.

For entree, I order some chicken satay sticks and roti canai with beef curry.  Satay sticks, a very popular and is such a common share dish. 

The girls and I agree the the beef curry is delicious and is a highlight! The roti is nice but not as fluffy and soft as I'm used to compared to Mamak or little hutong. What a great way to kick off the meal though. I definitely recommend the beef curry with roti.

My friend Christina who has been to Malaysia several times, comments on the food in Malaysia and how the Nasi Lemak is a common dish eaten at breakfast, lunch or dinner like pho in Vietnam. It seems only fitting that we order the Nasi Lamek with satay chicken.

The mix of rice, sambal sauce, cucumber, anchovies and egg is a nice dish and suited to those who want a lighter dinner. I am a lover of noodles so I go straight for the noodle options.

I am getting hungry again looking at these photos.

Ho Jiak recently introduced two new dishes to their menu and they are AWESOME dishes. My favourite Malaysian dish has to be Char Kway Teow and I'm excited because they have a new King Prawn Char Kway Teow dish on the menu. This is the BEST dish for me. 

I slurp those saucey noodles up and munch on the chinese sausage, tofu, king prawns, egg, chives and all the deliciousness that comes along with this dish. I also get the thumbs up from my girlfriends for the char kway teow dish.This is a must order dish.

Naturally being a noodle lover, I can't get enough of the floating chopstick noodles below which is the flying hokkien har mee. I love hokkien noodles with the slight spice mixed in with prawns, tofu, greens, tomato and lemon. It's a bit spicey but when you add the lemon, the tang is more familar of those Malaysian flavours. This is another must order dish. You will love it!!! I won't give away their secret in how they get the noodles to float in the air with the chopsticks. Nice food theatre.

Dinny is a fan of fried rice so she's eager to try the Nasi Goreng. The spicy Nasi Goreng is delicious with fried egg, fried onion and spring onions on top. There are also prawns and cucumber. 

Summary: Ho Jiak has great food with bold Malaysian flavours!! As the decore is a food court, perhaps take away is better or if you don't mind casual decore then take a seat. Bring a few friends and share the food. Good company and food is such a great combination. My favourite are the noodle dishes but some of my gal friends prefer the beef curry or the rice dishes of Nasi Goreng or Nasi Lemak. A bit of everything for everyone.

Overall, Ho Jiak is a cheap and cheerful eatery with a menu that is reasonably priced and the portions are decent.

Prices: Most dishes are $10-13

Location: 11 the Boulevard, Strathfield, Strathfield Plaza (right near Strathfield Station, near Opporto)

Opening Hours: 10am to 9pm (may stay open later to 9:30pm on Thu-Sat).

Check it out if you are in the area. Yummy!!





Weekend Food Escapes dined as guests of one.social. All photos, opinions and words are my own. This blog has a mixture of photos from Dinny (the professional) and also Lisa.