As a kid growing up in Malaysia, I was always surrounded by the constant sights and sounds of food. My fondest memories are of busy hawker shops and street side food vendors where I would frequent with my Madam Mummy and Big Sis.
Whenever there was a family gathering, you can be assured that it would have had to involve food.
Food wasn’t so much as a means of survival to us (of course it was, that’s a given), but it was a centralised part of our lives.
We lived, breathed and loved food.
And so the saying goes, that “We live to eat and not eat to live”. And I think I can safely vouch for 80% of my fellow Malaysian and Singaporean counterparts of this saying.
One of our greatest loves and must-haves is seafood.
When you think of seafood, the usual staples of prawns, pi-pi’s (la la’s in Malaysia), cuttlefish, and fish is a given. But the main attraction in every seafood meal? Crabs.
And I’ve always found it difficult to find good Malaysian versions of crabs in Melbourne.
Now that I have, I don’t feel like I want to share it with you. Purely due to selfish reasons of course.
But I have to. And it’s only because I want them to keep serving this, so that I can keep coming back for more.
When Celeste was last back on her whirlwind visit, K organised a Crabfest at Omah’s in Port Melbourne.
To be honest, I wasn’t expecting anything much apart from a good catch up with friends over dinner.
To be really honest, all someone had to say was “crabs” and I was there.
They did even better, when they said, “Mud crabs. Malaysian style.” I was there. Enough said.
So the 5 of us arrived cold and wet (it was one of those Melbourne days) and hungry.
We had a quick glance at the menu, and ignored it all. All we wanted was crabs and crabs was all we were there for.
We put in an order for 4 crabs ($39.90 each). Yes… we were going to order 5 crabs to much amazement and surprise from the Restaurant.
And so, we were convinced to order just 4 crabs to share out between the 5 of us.
There were 5 flavours to choose for our crabs. We decided to keep it really simple and just opt for the two varieties we were really craving for.
Chilli Mud Crab $39.90
Salted Egg (Duck Egg) Mud Crab $39.90
And …. They absolutely hit the spot with a BIG fat X!
We ordered a plate of noodles as well. We had the Mamak Mee Goreng noodles $13.90, and I was expecting a really good authentic plate of noodles to arrive.
And boy was I blown away by the authenticity of the taste! It was really close to the ones in Malaysia. LOVE IT!
Omah’s is a rather trendy upmarket Malaysian restaurant. The fact that it is located in Port Melbourne really says it all. But the value of those Mud Crabs and the authenticity to its flavours really keep me wanting for more.
I would rather pay a bit more for the real deal. So if you’re thinking about going to Omah’s for a visit, my question to you will be, “Could I please tag along?”
*Disclaimer: All food ratings are purely based on my own experiences and how I feel about the service, food and quality at the time of visit
Food/ Cuisine: Malaysian
Dining Style: Restaurant
Overall Food Rating (Based on the Dining style): 7.5/10 (Based solely on Crabs & the Mee Goreng)
Restaurant ambiance: 7.5/10
Service/ Attitude: 7.5/10
Value for money: 8/10 (Based solely on Crabs)
Address:
136-138 Rouse Street
Port Melbourne VIC 3207
Tel: (03) 9676 9918
Omah’s is open
LUNCH – Monday to Sunday from 12pm -2.30pm
DINNER – Monday to Sunday from 5.30pm till Late
How to get there:
Omah, omah, omah, omah!! LET’S GO AGAIN!!!
We are we are.. I’ve already been back once.. then another one in June and then another when in July when you’re back!
Yay – glad you finally found some good crab!
Good crab is hard to find these days!
omg what a crab fest!!
Yup, next one is just only going to get bigger!
can’t wait till the next crabfest!
come to me salted egg mud crab~~~
The black pepper was really good too, we should do that the next round!
i live almost an hour from this bloody place. not fair. going to bring my parents there and get told off by them!
How is Port Melbourne nearly an hour from Flemington? Just jump on the train and tram it.. it will only take 30 minutes or so.. it’s only 10 minutes frm the city in a tram 🙂
Hehehe… I live just 2 mins away from Omahs. :p
Please ask me along if there is a Crabfest part 2. I recently disappointing chilli crabs in Singapore.
And I totally agree that we live to eat!!
Ooo… Okay.. will send you an email soon about the next one in June 🙂
I’m so envious! I love crabs (and similar delectables like lobster) but have almost never had the chance to eat them. In fact, I think I’ve only had crab once or twice as a really little kid in America… envy!
What? Noooo…. and you arrive in Melb right after crabfest II 🙁
Oooh, they look so good! My mum and dad love their malaysian food and love their crabs, will definitely have to recommend and try it out! 🙂
They really should. It’s really a close similarity!
Squeeee! Can’t wait to try it out at Part 2. 😀 😀
Wuhoo!!!
Oh wow, DROOL!
Uhuh! So good!
i’ve have to try the salted egg crab next time 🙂
I think food is central to most Asian’s lives. So much of our lives revolve around food. And those crabs, mmmmmm. I want more now reading about it.
Just got back from W.A, Perth to be exact. Did a lot of eating out mainly for breaky and lunch and at dinner we would eat what we caught various fish but mostly crabs. Perth is particularly well known for their blue swimmers aka manna crabs as the locals like to say. and that my friend brings me to your blog site. i was googleling what good places to crab down here as im still on holidays.
We’ve been to Omahs in Hawthorn twice only to have and average experience the second time around. they didnt have crabs!(we went on a cup tuesday) because of the long Melbourne cup weekend, with the suppliers and markets shut, and crabs dont last long fridge wise and foodies like yourself, i can understand why. its a good thing, at least the chef is thinking FRESH, or hes stuffed up and under ordered.
Sorry im ramping on,( im still in Perth time, my body clocks all messed up!) but what i meant to say was this place is sill awesome dispite what happenned. i ant to go back to OMahs and Perth!!!
Lol.. Omah’s has now switched name to being Opahs.. I think the crabs just aren’t the same anymore. I’d rather fly to KL for a quick crab fest than to Melbourne considering it’s not too pricey if you get cheap Air Asia tickets! A bit extreme though!