Chahaya Malaysia

Update: The owner has decided to stop serving alcoholic beverages now....since this was one of the complaints some reviews mentioned, I figured I will update with this information. For about 10 years now this continues to be our most favorite place to eat out in Ottawa...prices are a bit high, but very much worth it. Chef Special chicken (or shrimp) is definitely a must-have. The place deserves a better rating than it has right now on this website. Dont expect high level of sevice (been a hit and miss), but the food is the best indonasian/malay food I have tasted ever. Also, I have never tried their lunch buffet...so maybe its as bad as people say it is. Previous comment from October 2009: --- It has been our favoriate resturant for atleat four years now...with almost a visit once a month - to the extent that we no longer need the menu to order. The quality has gone down in recent past, serving portions have also been affected, and prices have slightly creeped up. However, it still remains one of the best places to dine out. Their service has always been flaky (the good food kept making us go back), but experience tells us that going there on a busy night results in poorer service and food quality. Going there on a relatively slow night, means best tasting food. If the food is not perfect in taste, they may agree, but not usually bother to compensate. So, set your expectations not too high for service, go there on a weekday, and you can get a great experience.

I would never go for the lunch buffet but for dinner its one of my favourite places in Ottawa. The owner is incredibly nice and polite and a cool guy to speak with. His wife is hit or miss. I've had amazing service from her and other times not so much - waited 10 minutes to be seated when the restaurant wasn't even that busy. Bali beef, Pepper lamb, 5 star chicken/beef, Malaysian Fried Noodles and Chef special chicken/beef are all delicious.

I went there for lunch buffet with my wife. We end up going some where else to eat after spending more than 25 dollars. I think this says it all.

I always find it unfortunate when Muslim owners feel they have to serve alcohol to be successful. Since when is doing haram a path to success? I would go if it wasn't for that.

The food here is ok. It's real spicy. Never saw the owner, but the lady who works there is pretty rude. She said she would charge us extra if we couldn't finish our food on our plate from the buffet. I won't be going back here.

After reading all the previous reviews I personally do not agree with any of them. Chahaya Malaysia is one the greatest restaurants in town by far. Excellent and amazing food and service all the time. "bad service" whats that about? Everytime my family and I visit its always service and a smile, and my family goes there for almost every special occasion so we go there quite often. Honestly the food is great the people who work there are also great, so i recommend to everybody to go check it out, its worth the it.

Will never go here again. The "lady" (owner's wife/waitress) pushed one of the customers entirely without initiation.

Too bad they serve alcohol. The owner is Muslim and is really nice. Their food is really good masha Allah but it is spicy. I have been for dinner not their buffet. The food is not only Malay but also Great Indonesian and Singaporean.

I have to say that the spice ratings on that menu are very accurate! We tried the spicy Thai soup and it was burning my lips so much i couldn't handle it! I was glad I had the pina colada. The waitress was really nice and she had asked the chef to adjust the spice level in the other food after she saw our reactions to the soup! The Beef Rengdang was amazing and so was the other stuff.

One of the best halal restaurants in town. The owner is muslim and all meat served is halal. Two of my fav dishes are "pepper lamb" and "chef special chicken/shrimp". Also love the "Beef Rengdang". Try the roasted spicy sauce, it is very hot but tastes awesome. The veggie and shrimp rolls are simply delicious, I've never tasted more sumptuous shrimp rolls anywhere! Definitely recommended.

very good food. The noodles are really good. And the spice level adds a very good touch to the food. The food seems authentic malaysian.

great food, not great on the price, and certainly wasn't happy with the waitress

the food they offer does not meet to my asian taste-bud. Some selective items were very good like the wings (when it serves hot) and the soto soup (I guess). the price is very expensive. I knew that they used to serve very good and delicious food but for the past 2 years, it gets kind of dissappointing. they serve halal food but they also serve alcohol as to accommodate non-muslim customers.

This is definitely one of my favourite restaurants in town. Definitely unique compared to all of the other Halal places. The owner is a really nice brother, and he's always smiling. For appetizers, their Fried Spring Rolls are awesome and so are the soups, especially the Tom Yum (hot!) and the Malaysian Chicken Noodle soup. Some of my favourite entrees include the Chef's Special Chicken and the Indonesian Beef Curry. I also like the Fried Noodle dish, however I find that sometimes it is great and sometimes it is only okay. The Shrimp Curry is also awesome, although it is a little bit pricier than the others. I also enjoy the Beef Rendang, however this may not be to everyone's taste. The lunch buffet is a great deal... too bad my work isn't close by, otherwise I'd probably be here once a week just for the buffet.

Amazing food, mashallah, they do serve alcahol there unfortunatley

It is always a pleasure to have a meal at Chahaya Malaysia. I grew up in Singapore, and the meals here reminds me of wholesome homecooked delicious meals. The hostess is always happy to make recommendations to those who are not too well initiated in Malaysian and Indonesian dishes. I've taken friends to the lunch buffet, and they've all loved it. The buffet is small, with tasty, select dishes that are always freshly prepared, never left sitting for long periods. There is always soup, crisp vegetarian spring rolls, a noodle dish, a chicken dish, a beef dish, a vegetable dish, and steamed rice. Try it...broaden your taste and be pleasantly surprised.

I have visited the restaurant several times a month. The food and service is excellent. The hostess is very friendly and quite professional. Whenever we go there is always a crowd of people from all different ethnicities. I highly recommed this restuarant not just for the food but service as well. It's nice to see Muslim businesses take pride in their work. Excellent Job Chahaya!

Excellent food, excellent staff, excellent environment. A must try for anyone looking for original Malaysian Cuisine.

Great Malaysian, Indonesian and Singapore food. Really authentic and we feel like being back home. Services are both personal and courteous. A must try!