makan

throwback to pre-covid19 when dining out was still a norm - 📍makan, one of my all time favourite asian fusion restaurants in the cbd. asian fusion can typically be hit or miss in my humble opinion, but this place never disappoints!

dishes:🍲🍟🍔
nasigoreng(fried rice) 🍛| wok tossed eggplants 🍆 rendang braised beef brisket 🥘| grilled beef ribs 🥩| lamb shank 🍖

value:💰💲
nasigorengis always a must order whenever i visit makan 😍 my fav mains would be rendang braised beef brisket (it’s soo tender and bursting with flavours - portion is slightly small though) & lamb shank (generous portion). eggplants are really good too and would be a good option for vegetarians. the grilled beef ribs were slightly dry, but still a pleasant dish.
price is pretty reasonable for the quality of dishes, also a good place for big groups (so you could order lotsa dishes and try them all out - that’s what i usually do)😆🙊
desserts wise, unfortunately it was a miss for me - personally did not enjoy the three that i’ve tried (do not recall the exact names too as i think it was a seasonal menu).

will i go back and overall score: ❌⭕️💯
yes - 9/10 but i would probably give the desserts a miss next time

fantastic service with friendly and welcoming staff. the restaurant had a great vibe and fun for a night out. the food was all absolutely delicious, the highlights were the meegoreng(thin egg noodle style) and the beef rendang! generous portions and full of flavour!

makan which means eat in malay is a bit hidden especially on the weekend, as you cannot enter from collins street. i had to go through the back and found it down a lane way.

i visited recently with my sidekicks and ordered a range of dishes. serving sizes were on the smaller side and we were prompted by the waiter to order a bit more.

chicken satay - this was neatly arranged and was reasonably tasty.
miegoreng- a fried egg came with the dry noodles. there was an effective use of various spices
gado gado - this consisted of cabbage, tofu , snake bean and peanut sauce.
cendol panna cotta - dish of the day! this was decorated with palm sugar, jelly, pomegranate, coconut foam, meringue and jackfruit jelly. simply fantastic.

service was very good. our food arrived quickly. overall the food was good in particular, the dessert. looking forward to returning soon for more makan time!

will come back for:
+ nasi goreng
+ ubud crispy duck

was here celebrating the end of year with a bunch of work colleagues over lunch recently. this modern indonesian eatery was bustling with activity and was catering to a fully booked lunch service. the food in general all carried authentic indonesian flavors presented very nicely. i particularly loved the nasigoreng(well spiced and balanced and totally moorish with their sambal) and the crispy duck (super crispy and fragrant and great just with steam rice). prices were reasonable for what you get and service was prompt and efficient despite the full service. will definitely be back to try out more of the menu soon!

overall score: 21/25 or ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
in 5 words: classy indonesian option in cbd
*
💬 review: housed in a sleek office building, makan is the place to go for an above average asian lunch. the modern exterior makes this establishment ideal for client / tourist meetups. the wide array of indonesian dishes made my stomach grumble as i looked at their lunch express menu. the dishes that caught my eye were gado gado and ubud crispy duck.

i eventually settled for mie and nasigoreng- just to gauge if they got their basics right. portions were just right for me and everything was cooked well. the nasigorengwas just slightly better than miegorengbecause it was less sweet and possessed sufficient “wok hei” or charcoal taste. the pickled carrots and crackers on both dishes were also addictive!

prices were above average at $17 per dish, but i think that’s valid because of the location, ambience, fantastic attentive service and consistent taste. will be back for a more elaborate meal.
*
taste: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
ambience: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
presentation: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
price: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
service: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

great place to grab nice and quick lunch. ordered nasigorengand beef rendang. portion is good for the value. beef rendang was remarkably soft and tasty. nasigorengwas great as well.

definitely will be back to try other dishes!

my partner and i went for my birthday dinner. as this is our first time to visit the restaurant as well as my partner’s first proper indonesian restaurant so i decided to go with the tasting menu instead for 2 people.

3 starters:

sate lilit (fish) which was good and brought back to my childhood.;

soft shell crab bun with saus padang which also good, a bit too spicy but again its saus padang so it has to be a lil bit spicy.

grilled corn that wasn’t my favourite as i am not a corn lover, unfortunately. plus, i dont really find this starter special and ‘indonesian’ enough?

i think it was 4 starters but i cant recall the other one.


2 main courses :

nasigorengchicken. this is so far my best dish from them. worth everything that you wanted. price, taste, portion. i’ll be back for this one for sure.;

last dishes for the main course was deep fried pork knuckle with balinese sauce and sambal matah. nothing will goes wrong for pork knuckle. delicious!

we had to missed the dessert because we were full unfortunately but will be back for sure to try the other menu options.

it’s actually 3.5 rating. i am an indonesian and a colleague took me here. i know it’s a fusion restaurant but i guess sometimes the indonesian-ness is not apparent enough in the dishes. we had some appetizers, such as soft shell crab bao, sashimi crackers, and fish satay. out of the three, the bao was the most memorable. the crab was crispy and the padang sauce is spicy and tasty! might be a bit hot for some people though. sashimi crackers have really nice sauce to go with it, and i don’t usually like sashimi but i enjoyed this dish. lastly, the fish satay to me was a bit strange and i wouldn’t order it again (i dont think i ever seen fish satay in indo itself?). for mains, we had oxtail stew, crispy duck, mie goreng, grilled fish and veggie stir fry. oxtail stew was cooked really well and the sauce was really nice. miegorengwas rather sweet but still nice. the stir fry was pretty good too. the crispy duck however, i feel lacking of flavour. we asked for a special chili paste and it was just how indo people like it so yeah that was nice. for dessert we had black glutinous rice and a pineapple cake (apparently special for valentines day). whether i was just too full, but the desserts were ok but not mindblowing. so overall they do have some really yummy dishes and some are just ok. the place has fancy atmosphere to it but still youthful. apparently if you go on the weekend, you have to enter via little collins street. waiters are friendly and very attentive, they never fail to fill out water glasses throughout the night without being asked. would like to try more dishes next time.

for so long i have been hoping that someone would fill melbourne’s niche of a decent contemporary indonesian restaurant and makan is more than perfect for it. i love the minimal concept of the restaurant, as the food just speaks for itself. i tend to doubt the authenticity of the flavours when a new ‘modern and hip’ establishment pops up but today i was proven otherwise.

we chose to order off the express lunch menu as we were limited with our time. i ordered the market fish (salmon) with balado chilli jam, white rice, bean shoot urap and boiled egg. my mum ordered the classic nasi goreng, chicken, cabbage, asian greens, fried egg and kerupuk (crackers).

it surprised me that the balado chilli jam was actually spicy! for me, it had the perfect amount of spicy and there was a subtle tangy after taste which was just beautiful. the salmon itself was cooked to perfection, moist, tender and slight crisp on the outside. the sides that came with the meal were fine but for me the winner was the chilli jam.

the flavours of the nasigorengwas perfect and that’s according to my born and bred indonesian mum. we were both raised on nasigorengso naturally, we’re experts and we can confirm the nasigorengwas indeed delicious!

staff were very friendly, service was great and we didn’t have to wait long for the food. the only thing i recommend is adding kerupuk (crackers) on the sides menu!

i can’t wait until round two, when i return for the share plates. to be continued..

makan is a new, modern eatery serving up balinese style dishes to melbourne. opened by tascia and gracia segar, two sisters who were the winners of mkr in 2016. we ordered the chicken satay, nasi goreng, mee goreng, opor tempeh with mild coconut curry, the bbq sticky ribs with pork, the ubud style crispy duck, the cendol panacotta and the mocha cake.
the highlights and standouts were:
chicken satay - these were tender, juicy and the sauce was really tasty
nasigoreng- flavourful and we loved the smokiness in the rice from a really hot wok
sticky ribs - finger lickin’ good and falling off the bone
the not so good / could be improved:
ubud crispy duck - just a bit too dry
mocha cake - again, the cake was a bit overcooked and dry
overall, makan has good vibes and the staff are super friendly. location isn’t the greatest as it’s a bit hard to find but food was generally good and great value for the serving sizes. 3.6/5

my friend and i came here for some lunch. she had heard portion sizes might be on the small side but nothing to fear here. this restaurant oozes generosity in both the food and service.

we had a booking which had only just been received by them, we were warmly greeted by the waitress and she could not have been lovelier. in fact all the ladies serving our table were bubbly, helpful, and attentive. the space is a modern contemporary and located in an office building.

then placemats double as the menu as the bright design on one side when flipped reveals all the dishes on offer. they also offer a lunch express menu which suited us today. we decided on the mie goreng, chicken, cabbage, asian greens, crackers, fried egg as well as beef brisket rendang on rice, bean shoot urap, boiled egg. they were both great portion sizes and both packed full of flavour. the were happy to bring us extra plates to share the meals. the meegorenghad tasty noodles combined with the other ingredients topped with an egg. the rendang is melt in the mouth and had a spicy kick that was lovely.

i booked this restaurant from website 1 week before. upon my arrival,the staffs greeted me directly and take me to the designated table.

food:
1. bbq sticky ribs with sweet soy glaze and sambal beef
2. pindang barramundi, thai eggplant, aromatic sweet & sour broth
3. nasi goreng,chicken, cabbage, asian greens,cracker & fried egg
4. cendol panacotta with jack fruit, pandan tapioca pearls, palm sugar & coconut foam

overall,the food was really delicious!!! its beyond my expectation. the ribs is spectacular! the meat cooked perfectly and seasoned well! the sambal was so good too! its not spicy but addictive!the barramundi is soft and the skin is so crispy. the broth itslef was full of flavours and spices. the cendol pannacotta is exceptional too(the best version of modern cendol im a glass)!. the nasigorengreminded me of the street food in indonesia that always open until midnight.

i’ve been missing this indonesian food since ages. and this restaurant really hit the spot and fit my tastebuds well (all the food that i ordered was really closed to what i have in indonesia and even better!)

the staffs was great,friendly and attentive. good food and great place to eat with your friends too.. will be be back again for sure!

#bhasfooddiary

i have been to this restaurant a few times since it has opened, both dine in and take away. i am happy to say that i have not been disappointed at all. the service here is great and the wait staff are so friendly. the dishes i have had here have all been flavourful and very tasty. my favourites would have to be the nasigorengand the soft shell crab buns. so delicious!

one of the best indonesian cuisine in melbourne that u can find !! the service is really good , kudos to all the friendly staff! ive visited for 2 times now

i did not give a perfect 5 star because the nasi goreng(fried rice) and migoreng(fried noodles) were quite salty, yes 2 times i went and i ate the same thing

but the satay and the pork with sambal matah was really delicious, highly recommended!

i really love the vibe of the restaurant as well, so modern and chill

food taste 8/10
food presentation 8/10
service 11/10
interior 10/10

rating more of 3.5.
makan has rich flavours that resembles those of indonesia, and takes on more of the traditional and authentic dishes from bali. the location is in an office building, so it's easy to miss, but once you're in the building, the restaurant itself is very modern and dimly lit but gives an overall hipster vibe. 

service was friendly and definitely wanted to ensure that we were comfortable. dishes are meant to be shared, but i give it 3 stars because i still find what we ordered to be rather small for the price we paid; that being said, depending on the dish you get, price can also be reasonable (i.e. their nasi goreng/ mi goreng) 

nasigoreng- rich flavours of umami in their fried rice with good chunks of chicken. you can taste the soy based rice and it wasnt too oily nor heavy. a little bit salty for my taste, but the rich flavours definitely brought out an indonesian flare. servings are good for perhaps one person, but to share you end up getting maybe 4-6 of their spoonfuls of rice, which isnt too much. comes with rice crackers which were nicely crisp, and a fried egg which was medium so the yolk ran through the rice, which is amazing! i would give this 3.5-4. 

chicken betutu - the betutu here is sous vide, and you can tell as the breast meat i got was still tender and not dry. can be a bit more juicy but overall better than many other restaurants where my chicken breasts are usually dry. the soup curry base was pleasant but again a bit on the saltier side, although you can taste a hint of lemongrass that peeps through the curry taste, which was nice. along with the nasigorengit was definitely a bit too much salt in my palate, so i would recommend eating this with a rice dish. came with 4 pieces of meat: 2 drumsticks and 2 breast pieces with a few veggies. i would give this 3.5. 

fish saate - the fish skewers came in 3, and it actually didnt taste like fish but kind of a chicken mince texture, which was really interesting. it had a little kick to it but also had rich flavours in lemongrass. overall good, but i think a little on the pricier side. i would give this 3.5. 

overall, i would like to try their other dishes and i would come back for their fried rice/ noodles as i think it was a good price offering. would love to try their other curries as well. i give it closer to a 3 due to the pricing and the smaller portions. that being said, i can see myself having a beautiful girl's nice out here and just chill and order shared plates!