Dale La Pau - The Rendang Specialist

Best rendang I’ve ever had! The shredded beef rendang is so delicious, they use really high quality meat and spices. Great coconut rice and veg too. Love this place

We love this place, can't believe how quiet it is. A favorite for us after camberwell Sunday market, dog friendly courtyard and tasty very reasonably priced! Love dale's big breakfast with cuppa and cake for $20!

My friend from Melb recommended eating here. We had a party of 8 and staff were happy to accommodate us. The food was good and everyone enjoyed their meals. Staff were friendly and happy to help with various dietary requirements.

Dale Pau used to be a place that left us with good impressions and it’s why I’m leaving 2 stars instead of 1. However a recent visit to the store left me traumatised. Firstly, the staff is incredibly inexperienced and obviously not trained. He was confused at the menu itself and had to double check again and again with our table. We ordered the rendang package meal thing but what we received was more like bland salad package with tiny portions of rendang. I have no idea why the owner gave us so much lettuce but it was very disappointing. I then ordered ayam goreng to give them a second chance but the meat has no flavour at all. I’m not sure if the management has changed but please review your staff, menu as well as your entire operation. The night we visited the restaraunt was completely empty, and I should have taken that as a hint. Anyways! Have a good day

One of my top dishes, beef rendang, since they specialize in rendang, I have to try it. I got their nasi lemak, peanuts, anchovies, and the crispy crackers on top adds a satisfying texture. Beef rendang is tender and packed with flavor. The chili sauce didn't meet my spice level. Given the cost, I expect an additional 50% protein in the dish.

Returning for the lunch special nasi rames with kalio sapi rendang and fried chicken. Although it's almost hitting the 30 bucks mark, it's all about satisfaction. The kalio sapi melts in your mouth, and there's no complaint about the fried chicken. The fried eggplants and sambal are also very good.

When I see the menu and price I was expecting very delicious food, iced lemon tea the taste not like lemon tea so plan, iced chocolate taste more water, food not tasty at all 1st and will be last time having lunch here…, not worth it, what we spend

Very good food here at Dale La Pau. Had the grilled chicken with coconut rice and as you can see from the photo, the serving size is generous. The coconut rice is very well balanced and the grilled chicken was flavourful, tender and moist. The green sambal was also very good. Their sambal is properly spicy! Staff were friendly and courteous, service was prompt. Great addition to the Camberwell/Hawthorn East location. Will definitely return

Best rendang I've had outside of Indonesia. Made in proper minang style and packed with flavour. The restaurant and courtyard were nice and comfy. Can't wait to come back.

I’ve been to Padang Restaurant in Indonesia for several times in the different places - cities, that was EVERYTIME I went there for holidays So I know exactly what the taste of original one. Only in dale la pau the meat size is so tiny. Feeling funny, but it’s OK at least I know that I don’t have to come to that place anymore. The waitress seem so moody. Funny place I’ve ever seen in my life. Got lots of Indonesian friends here but this time they are so unusual.

The food is amazingly tasty, and you are left with craving for more because the portions are extremely small.
Prices are not reasonable, and you question the value of money as soon as you get the dishes on the table.

I would love to go back, and I'll go there any day if I'm not paying.

Good food with some interesting courses. Great to see what seems to be authentic Indonesian regional food. Some offerings haven't seen before. Should try this place for some variety and fresh food.

Beautiful decor, excellent service, well presented meals, very understanding of my dietary needs.

Edit: The fact that you do not take ownership of your POOR CUSTOMER SERVICE CONFIRMS YOU ARE COVERING UP. LIARS! Do not bother responding and explaining as that wouldn’t change my experience and it wouodn’t change the fact that you NEED HOSPITALITY TRAINING.

No surprise their reviews are getting WORSE BY DAY. I’ve been coming here ever since they first started. The head chef (a gentleman) and other staff were great to deal with but what happened today has left me shattered. The chief chef lady from Indonesia who claims to be the owner needs to get an attitude check. She is RUDE without no ethics would be an understatement. They have been kindly making some changes to my order (no eggs etc) and as much as I understand they no longer can do it, the way she said it wasn’t right. SHE IS CLEARLY IN THE WRONG BUSINESS BECAUSE SHE USED ABUSIVE LANGUAGE AND THATS NOT HOW YOU TREAT CUSTOMERS WHO BRING YOU BUSINESS. She stinks and so does her behaviour. She refused to serve because I told her she was rude. Will never recommend to anyone.

Party of 6 booked in advance. 6pm. Only people in the restaurant. Told that only 2 people could have roti as they only had 2 left. Other orders knocked back as not available today. The roti that was served was dry and hard. The randang tasted nice but the meat was tough and the sauce stingy. Very disappointing. When I paid the bill, they asked me how my meal was. I told them it was so-so. She asked for more information, I explained. She jumped into defence mode and insinuated that I just didn’t understand Indonesian or Malaysian food.

Tasty and authentic - and great value! A massive plate of properly spicy rendang, but I'm only giving it 4 stars because they were out of roti the day I went!? !? ! How can I have rendang without roti? LOL I'll have to go again!

Summary: Incredibly overpriced, tiny portions, very dry and chewy meat, food was cold on pickup despite waiting in restaurant. Possibly due to visiting at off peak, unfortunately can not recommend.

Recently I’ve been enjoying exploring Indonesian restaurants in Melbourne and while trying find some for some friends in camberwell Dale La Pau stood out to me, good reviews, nice restaurant decor.

A major selling point was their tagline “The Rendang Specialists” for $35 dollars they offer a “family serving” of 9 different types of Rendang. Despite the price I assumed both quality and quantity would ensue or at least one of the two. Not only did the ordering experience make no sense and came with no sides or suggestions on how to approach a “family sized” Rendang, but the term “family sized” may have lost its meaning as my serving couldn’t feed 3 people.

The Rendang was prepared almost immediately and placed in my bag as they prepared the rice, roti and eggplant side I ordered. By the time I received the order the rendang was cold and had spilt oil into the bag.

On opening, I got to see the 4 small hunks of beef sitting in what I can only assume was once a tasty sauce. An overboiled rice portion that was easily enough to feed 8. And finally my eggplant dish that clearly wasn’t pre-made was under cooked to rush it out with the rapidly cooling rendang.

I don’t usually warn customers from trying a restaurant as this one seemed quite inviting and the employees were nice enough. However the gut punch was only worsened as I remembered handing over $70 cash to avoid their credit card surcharge only to realise that there was no change. I had paid $70 for a family dinner which was not even enough food to feed 3 people.

To add to how astonished I was by this, this is the only time I’ve taken photos for a review. With an additional video to show how hard the beef was.

I do wish the best to the staff and owner and hope this was a once off and perhaps lunch is a better time to come. But being open 7 days a week may be ruining your product and reputation if this continues.

Ordered a large takeaway order from the restaurant. Was quite disappointed by the food and the portion sizes given how much each item was. The biggest let down had to be the Rendang, the portion size was tiny and the meat was so dry it wasn’t enjoyable. The grilled beef ribs were tasty however some parts were too fatty. Other items were average.

Loved the Nasi Lemak which is served with the creamy beef. The beef was tender and fell apart.

Yes, the beef portion might be small for some people being 50g, but perfect for me with the egg/peanuts/ anchovies/sambal/crisp potato/ crackers/coconut rice…. Nasi lemak is traditionally served like this. Ordered some roti which was perfect. Will be back again.

Also has the coconut pudding which was delicious

Looking forward to trying the lunch specials

Brilliant food! Mostly empty (idk why. Everyone should be here) anyway, it was great for conversations.

Food was ok at best, some things were cold or just not appetizing. Portion sizes are tiny, especially for the price. I understand they mention how much meat you'll get so they're "upfront" about it but it really is not enough to fill anyone up. Really wouldn't recommend as the food isn't good enough to justify the high prices.