Foodie Experiences
Kerala Coast Feast at Cafe Malabar
Air Canada Best New Restaurants longlisted Kerala cooking with a patio pointing straight at Victoria Harbour.
Old Town, Swift Street
More infoFoodie Experiences
Air Canada Best New Restaurants longlisted Kerala cooking with a patio pointing straight at Victoria Harbour.
Old Town, Swift Street
More infoMost BC Indian restaurants lean hard north, which makes Cafe Malabar's Kerala cooking feel almost radical. Chefs Kiran Kolathodan and Karma Tenpa grew up in southern India, and it shows in the curry-leaf-crackled fried chicken and seafood simmered in coconut. It earned an Air Canada Best New Restaurants longlist nod, and the patio looks out over Swift Street toward the harbour. Book ahead for a sunny evening.
This is South Indian, not the usual north, so lean into the coast: order the Kerala fried chicken (that curry-leaf crackle is the thing first-timers miss), a coconut seafood curry, and the biryani to split. If it's warm, ask for the patio facing Swift Street and book ahead, waterfront-ish tables go fast. Don't miss the appams or parottas for soaking up sauce; budget around an hour and three-quarters, and Old Town Victoria is right outside for a post-dinner wander.
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