Colonial Kopitiam

A friend of mine recommend the place and the review seems good, so I decided to try.
Came here on Monday for a late lunch around 2pm for a Malaysian treat with my two kids. The venue was nice and provides a good sitting place for family with young children. Good vibe with bright lights. Service was good, counter service.

Food.well.how should I start. I usually won’t go this low but the food is a disaster and a full disappointment. I ordered vegetarian Laksa.
To the owner- Please don’t call it Laksa because it is not. The supposedly curry soup based for Laksa has no taste but chili. It’s watery with no coconut milk taste in there, I don’t mind the not cook veggies but that’s unusual for Laksa.
My husband ordered nasi lemak chicken rendang. There is no Rendang in there except sweet so called curry if any. The sambal or the chili paste that usually companies the nasi lemak is also sweet. Everything is sweet as if the sugar is added in everything. The only reasonable taste is Taiwan Beef Brisket which is also sweet but can be taken.
Will not recommend it to anyone and will go back to my friend with the feedback.

Fantastic experience for us. Food was fresh and fabulous. Service was on point and everything so clean. We had dry curry noodles and had some curried egg sandwiches made to take away. Highly recommend.

What a beautiful cafe

Service was warm and friendly. Great location. Parking was easy.

Quaint, clean. I love the ambiance.
Great for solo diners too.

I had the beef brisket. It was so flavoursome.
We had coffee and Malaysian tea with sweets.
What can I say, Melbourne coffee is the best! And too many yummy sweet fresh treats to choose from.

The owner was super kind and friendly explaining what certain dishes were. Predominantly Malaysian menu with western fusion.

I can foresee this being one of my favourite cafes.

I can see why the locals love it

Will definitely come again to try the Malaysian Toastie. The one with the cheese

Amazing service! The owners are both great to talk to and deal with. I enjoy the coffee and my daughter always brings me their home made brownies they are amazing!

Saw this cute little cafe and decided to pop in and grab a quick bite for lunch. So glad I did, the food was delicious. When initally entering the restaurant my nose was delighted to the smells coming out of the kitchen. I ordered the Kaya butter toast to start and then the vegetarian spring rolls. The food came out nice and quick. Both the toast and the spring rolls were beautiful and crunchy and very tasty. I asked the owner for a drink recommendation. He recommended the Malaysian milk tea which I have never had before so I thought I would give it a shot. Such an interesting and very enjoyable taste. The staff - a husband and wife team were very friendly and attentive. The atmosphere in the cafe was warm and cosy and I couldn't get over the view that was overlooking the dock! Will definitely be visiting again!

So happy I found some traditional Malaysian cakes here, what's even better is that they are glutten free and vegan, thanks for making them!

Kopitiam on Bourke Street.

Lunch - Beef Brisket, Spring Rolls, Malaysian Tea. (and a toastie with cheese and jam)
(Some lovely sweets, croissants, cake for takeaway or eat in, on display)

The beef was flavoursome. A hint of aniseed over buttery beef portions served with side rice, egg and greens. The portion size was perfect. The spring rolls were so fresh and crispy. The price was so affordable!

Beautiful ambiance. Quaint. Clean. Comfortable. Lovely for solo diners too.

Service was exceptional. Friendly. Warm atmosphere. Lovely location. Easy access to street parking.

The Malaysian tea hit the spot. Perfect way to end the lunch for a clean pallet.

Would definitely recommend.
Will definitely visit again.

We visited this lovely place just before they close for the day. The owner & his wife were so warm and welcoming, and served us with delicious coffee and tea, the Malaysian style! We also had the super yummy brownies - too good to describe.

I'd never been before, but yesterday I enjoyed the most delicious Spicy Beef Noodle Soup. The broth had so much flavour with the perfect level of heat and there was a good amount of beef. It tasted fresh and just so good I had to tell the chef! He mentioned he just revised all the recipes last week. This little restaurant is a hidden gem! What sensational flavour!

Amazing people. 12 people wanting coffee near closing time. They stay open giving us all coffee with a smile and hospitality.
Amazing coffee too!

5 star coffee, food, service and atmosphere.

We just wanted a coffee before heading to the library but ended up finding an amazing place we will definitely come back to every time we are in the area:)

Service was great.friendly and relaxed atmosphere.great coffee, fresh food.served a larger group without a problem.we are super happy customers.

ORDERED:
  Curry Laksa - "Y Tofu": Hokkien noodles & vermicelli served with assorted handmade "stuffed" vegetables in curry laksa broth ($16.80)
  Honeydew latte ($5.50)

REVIEW:
I thought vermicelli was perfectly done in the Curry Laksa. For such thin noodles, it was cooked with great consistency. It wasn't fragile and there was still some bite to it. The laksa was spicy enough (good) but the broth wasn't clear as I would've liked (i.e. Lots of flavouring/lemongrass chunks floating on the surface).
I loved how the some of the tofu elements had a bit of a chargrill to it. That smoky flavour really added depth into the dish overall. Overall, dish was good for a lunch meal while winter's coming through Melbourne.

Honeydew latte was interesting. It was good at bringing forth the sweetness and it's just an interesting flavour to try if you don't need the caffeine, but just want an easy sweet drink to wash down your meal.

Colonial Kopitiam don't do the lunch set menu that's on the instagram. Turns out, they've had new ownership and he's still trying to get access to the instagram account.  
Wish him all the best - the Curry Laksa seems to be one of the main dishes that people have here.

Not a full 5 star because my colleagues had the Spicy Beef Noodles but they weren't a fan. The beef brisket was too soft, and the egg noodles were overcooked for them. Broth was also too bland for their preferences.

Tried to order multiple times over many different days, my order has always been canceled, or items ran out. Unsure why they are advertising when they aren't able to cater to delivery orders.

Terrible experience. Ordered the prawn noodle soup and couldn’t find any prawns. I asked about it and was told that they had ran out, so they substituted fish balls instead. 2 stars because the girl was friendly and offered a refund straight away.

Glad that they aren’t far from my office!
I like the prawn noodle (HarMee), at times not sure what to pick for lunch - just click on Colonial and fixed my cravings
Thanks you Colonial - you too have a great day

I'm disappointed that I didn't have the same experience as the others here.

I tried the dry curry noodle and it was a little bland. The roti with curry is better.

Honestly this place has the most underrated Mocha ever! So freaking good! Probably the best mocha I’ve had in Melbourne.

Ordered Ubereats because I got covid. It was still good after delivery. Would love to come and try it fresh some day.

The lunch set on weekdays is an amazing deal! You get a snack, main and a drink with an extremely reasonable price. Love the kaya toast?