It looks like Richmond has a brand new BBQ pork stall to check out.
Just last month, we shared that Hao Chi Lai Shanghai Kitchen at Admiralty Centre’s food court had shut down.
The stall sat empty for a bit, and a mysterious new BBQ concept was spotted moving into the space.
Fast forward to November, and the shutters have lifted.
The new tenant is 88 Malaysian Crystal BBQ Pork and Food, and the surprise is that it is run by a team Vancouverites already know well.
After placing our order, we noticed the drink cup had the Malaysia St logo.
If that name rings a bell, Malaysia St was the beloved Malaysian dessert shop that spun off from Penang Bistro and once had its own Richmond storefront.
When we asked the staff at 88 Malaysian Crystal BBQ, they confirmed it is the same crew behind this new venture.
Penang Bistro itself closed earlier this summer on Fraser Street, so seeing this familiar team reappear with a new concept is a welcome surprise for longtime fans.
The menu at 88 Malaysian Crystal BBQ Pork and Food covers a full spread of Malaysian comfort dishes.
There are rice plates like BBQ pork rice, roasted chicken rice, Hainanese chicken rice, nasi lemak curry rice, and bak kut teh rice.
The noodle section includes wonton mee, curry noodle, mee goreng, char kueh teow, chicken noodle soup, and white pepper pork ribs soup.
For smaller bites, customers can grab roti canai, curry pork skin, fish balls, tofu, crispy shrimp rolls, Penang tofu, and assam mustard greens.
The dessert lineup features mango sticky rice, kuih lapis, kuih talam, cassava cake, cendol, and rainbow ice kacang.
During soft opening they are running a discounted combo set, which includes a rice or noodle dish, a finger food or a vegetable item, a drink, and a dessert.
While typing this up, we noticed that the soft opening combo set also includes a $2 gift voucher, but we actually never received that. They were slammed though.
As recommended by the boss, we got the BBQ pork rice, the tofu, casava cake, and Penang white coffee.
Our set also came with a soup, which wasn’t mentioned on the menu.
The combo set with the discount seemed decent ($19.95), but its original price ($29.95) would be a difficult sell in our opinion.
Service was a standout though.
The boss man was incredibly warm and enthusiastic, chatting up customers, helping with recommendations, and making the stall feel extra welcoming.
Fans of Malaysia Street and Penang Bistro will be happy to see some of their favourites return through this new concept.
88 Malaysian Crystal BBQ Pork and Food now joins the busy Admiralty Centre food court. It also adds to the list of recently opened Richmond food spots like Max’s To Go, Prunus, and Momo Tanghulu.
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Address: Admiralty Centre food court, Richmond BC