Menate is a popular halal steak hub with multiple branches across Malaysia. I’ve seen a lot of good reviews about the place, so when Hubs and I came across it during our visit to George Town, we decided to splurge a little on what we thought would be excellent steak.
It was the Ramadhan month, and most of the staff members were busy prepping the buffet spread for the buka puasa dinner later that evening. Unfortunately, no one attended to us when we walked in, and we sort of hovered around the lobby wondering where we could sit, despite the floor manager clearly seeing us standing there. He was attentive enough when a white couple walked in though lol. So not a good first impression off the bat. I ended up approaching a younger staff member, who led us upstairs.
The shop is housed in a refurbished colonial building and is tastefully decorated, with plush sofa seating for larger groups, as well as elegant wooden chairs and tables. We were given a menu, which is pretty extensive. Aside from steak, which is their specialty, they also offer pasta, appetizers, lamb, seafood, lobster, chicken, and more.
We ordered a pasta dish and an appetizer to start with, before I went downstairs to select our steak cuts. The beef, lamb, and lobsters were laid out neatly in freezers, with price tags on vacuum-sealed packaging. The staff here was much friendlier, as she explained what the different steak cuts would taste like, and which she would recommend. I picked wet-aged beef for myself as it sounded intriguing, and selected a sirloin for the Hubs.
Our pasta choice was a Soft Shell Crab Salted Egg Pasta, which came with broad tendrils of fettucine and a deep fried soft shell crab on top. It was decent enough at first bite, but eventually became cloying as the flavours were too rich and salty, and there was nothing to cut through the greasiness. Hubs had to finish most of this as I only took a few bites.
The fried calamari fared a little better. The squid was fresh and springy, although again, it felt greasy after a few bites. The batter was also very salty, but the tangy mayo sauce helped.
After the rather disappointing dishes, we had high hopes for the steak.
Unfortunately, they were just…okay at best. Not bad per se, but for a place specializing in steak, I was expecting more. Perhaps it was also due to me not knowing how to select the right cut, but my wet aged beef was very fatty, and not the good kind of fatty where its sublime and melts in your mouth – more the chewy, greasy, lump-of-fat kind of fatty.
The meat itself had an interesting taste, as wet aged beef is vacuum sealed in plastic so that it ages in its own juices, and the vegetables and mushrooms it was cooked with were tasty. The sauce, which I could not identify, had a tangy, citrusy-taste which went well with the beef and helped to reduce the greasiness.
N’s sirloin steak was also okay, but not mind blowing.
Unfortunately, the food did not really live up to our expectations, which was disappointing considering that I’ve had cheaper steaks that tasted better. In fact, the Hubs had to contend with me complaining for several hours after we got back to the hotel, because we spent RM350 on our meal here. Although by no means an extremely big amount, I just felt like we did not get the value we paid for, hence the repeated whinging lol.
Menate Penang has a whopping 4.8 star rating on Google, so….You could try it out yourself and be the judge. A one-off affair for me.
Food: 3/5
Service: 3/5 (floor manager nope. regular staff yes. Although I think they need a bit more training in attentiveness, they’re friendly enough)
Value: 2/5
MENATE PENANG
20, Jln Sultan Ahmad Shah, George Town, 10050 George Town, Pulau Pinang
Opening hours: 11AM – 11PM
PS: If you enjoyed reading this, please consider supporting my website via Patreon. This will go towards hosting fees and ensuring that I can continue to deliver authentic content for your reading pleasure. Or buy me a cup of coffee at paypal.com @erisgoesto. Thanks for stopping by!
PS2: All food reviews are paid out of my own pocket unless otherwise stated. Views here are my own and are based on my personal experience. They are not meant to endorse or disparage businesses in any way.
Eris Goes To 