We came back here a few nights later to get only dessert - I was really craving sticky rice with mango. Their sticky rice is not like what is served in the US. it was pretty thick and SUPER sticky and chewy. I enjoyed it, even though it was different from the usual! We also ordered the fried banana sundae AND the durian with black rice tapioca (yes, we're fatties). The durian flavor was not AS pungent as usual, I think bc it came out frozen. Although next time I think I would pass on the black rice tapioca... it was a little too soupy and the texture of the rice not that appealing to me. We still ate a majority of it though ;) read more

Banana Leaf - lychee mojito! - Malaysian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

We asked our hotel concierge about a good Asian restaurant in Vancouver and Banana Leaf was recommended among the many, many choices in the area. We were not sure what Malaysian was compared to other regions, but we found familiar items that we were interested in ordering. Nice comfortable ambiance with an upscale feel. Note, I did not see any indication about a "bribe for a good review" at this restaurant as others have mentioned but being a serious Yelper I could never consider or approve of such an offer. We ordered the Roti and it was delicious with the slightly spicy dipping sauce. If it had come out earlier than our entrees we would have filled up on this. Since prices were a little steep, I selected the special of the evening Kung Pao chicken. It was delicious, packed with peppers, peanuts, perfectly cooked chicken in a sweet and spicy sauce. My husband ordered mango prawns and enjoyed the prawns but felt the mango was not ripe enough. We were surprised that entrees do not come with rice so you have to separate. If we would have realized the size of the rice portion, we would have just ordered one to share. The server suggested the coconut rice for me and this was served in a banana leaf. Interesting but really not that much better than the regular jasmine rice my husband ordered. Overall a little pricey but nice meal. read more

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Came by for lunch and it was awful. Beef rendang had no flavour, curry sauce was bland and tasted like tomatoes. We ordered nasi lemak and they brought the wrong dish and we waited another 30 minutes for the right one.. still didn't arrive so we had to cancel it. Very slow service. Never coming back here again. read more

Gulai seafood pasta from Banana Leaf. I am so happy my co worker recommended this place to me, it was amazing! First off the service was great and the atmosphere was relaxed but kind of romantic and beautiful. I ordered one of their lunch specials, of which there were a lot to choose from, and received a much larger portion than i would have expected. The flavour was everything I had hoped it would be! Complex, creamy but refreshing and not at all heavy. There was so much seafood in this and it was all perfectly cooked. I also got their Monday drink special which was a Bourbon Smash because I've never had one before. Overall I would definitely recommend this place to every one especially if you are vegetarian as they had a huge amount of plant based menu items and for the price you can not go wrong! read more

Banana Leaf - Malaysian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

Yes, there is a sign that they offer a future discount for reviews, but if someone didn't like it, I suspect they wouldn't plan to return and, therefore, wouldn't care about a future discount. I don't live in Canada, so here's my unbiased review: Roti: 5/5 The roti is served hot and nicely flakey. There's a slight sweetness to it, but the dipping sauce really makes it delicious! Singapore Laksa: 4/5 Nice turmeric coconut milk-based soup with thin rice noodles. If I lived there, I would have saved the broth to make more dishes at home. It is not spicy. Char Kuey Teow: 4/5 Wide rice noodles with a good "wok-taste." This dish does have a spicy kick to it. Service was friendly--a good experience! read more

Unfortunately this is far from true cuisine of south East Asian. The fried noodle is way too greasy for my stomach to digest. The fried rice is too sweet and the flavor is just not right . I was so disappointed. read more

Stay away from this place! I am appalled this is the same chain as their Broadway locations as the food here is of much lower quality and taste. The other locations are definitely better in terms of food quality, quantity and service. We had the lunch combo at $13.99. Comes with roti, salad, rice and beef rendang. OMG the quantity of food is a joke. The salad came with two small piece of lettuce and one small chunk of tomato. The curry was cold and the rice was hard. I think they need to consult with the other BL locations and get this back up to par. Never coming back....unless it improves! read more

Tried the boneless curry chicken and instead of a side of rice, I went with an entree of rice -pineapple fried rice. The plan was not to eat all of it there at the restaurant, of course, but to use some of it as my side. However, the server then informed me it was also Happy Hour and the pineapple fried rice was on the BOGO buy-one get one ("free") list! So it was a rather fortuitous choice as I could then use the whole entree as a side and save the second one for lunch next day! The fried rice did not disappoint. The curry was good but the massive amount of sauce, I had forgotten, is more usual for Asian curries as I'm more used to West Indian/Caribbean curries which are thicker. Ambience is good. Server was pleasant but did not ask if I wanted any drinks (there was water to start but it was brought by default). I didn't actually want drinks so I didn't ask either, but I consider it standard to be offered the drink/beverage options. read more

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Our last foodie stop before leaving Van City, so I had to get some more Malaysian food in my belly! Banana leaf has several locations quite close to each other, but since we were in the area, we came in to this location. We were the first guests since we came in right after the opening time, so the service was prompt and the food was brought to us very very fast. We got some drinks to start off, the Virgin Lychee Mojito was alright, a bit too slushy/icy; the Calamansi Caipirinha was better, enough alcohol and plenty of flavor, very refreshing. We got beef rendand, which was great, jsut watch out for whole spices in the sauce; also, hainana chicken, which was ahhhhh-mazng, almost made me cry from happiness with each bite (a quarter chicken order is plenty for one person btw!). My only disappointment was roti canai, the bread was a bit too thick and chewy, and the curry was vegetable based and lacked flavor and that delicious greasy factor I've always tasted everywhere else. This is usually my go-to appetizer, but I wouldn't order it here again. At last, we ordered fried banana with vanilla ice-cream for dessert, and it was faaaaaaabulous! I am not a desert person, but I finished my share of this one. The portion is pretty large two, there are pretty much two whole (?) fried bananas with a scoop of ice-cream. I would totally go back just for that! Other than food, the ambience is relaxing, the restaurant is clean (including restroom), and they have a full bar to serve you fancy drinks. read more

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This restaurants is such a cute spot and great value! We got the 7 plant based course and wow! Everything was well prepared, delicious, and there was such a variety of flavors. I was so surprised that all the dishes were big portions. You are getting bang for your buck! I am not vegetarian or vegan but I love veggies and unfortunately the other tasting menu had lots of shellfish dishes and I have a bad allergy but we ordered the lamb curry as well which was remarkable. I would love to try other dishes as well! read more

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About a year ago I fell in love with Malaysian food when some friends and I went to Penang Delight. Rendang blewwwww my mind, and I was constantly craving it from that point on......like seriously it became a bit of a problem and if I didn't have self control I would have gone broke....... I'd always been meaning to go to Banana Leaf, just to try it out but Penang Delight was closer to home, and so that was my go-to Malaysian restaurant. As I now live downtown, I decided to give the Davie location a try. I had the roti canai to start, something which I love at Penang Delight. Unfortunately, I was quite disappointed with Banana Leaf's version. It just wasn't good at all. On the other hand the green papaya and mango kerabu was so delicious!!!!!! Though I do keep in mind that at the same price, you can get the same type of salad at Kaya Malay, another Malaysian restaurant. To add to my meal, I obviously had the rendang beef curry, and the singapore laksa. At both Penang Delight and Kaya Malay the rendang isn't quite on the spicy side, however Banana Leaf's was. Since I'm not a fan of spicy food, it was a bit more difficult to actually enjoy, as I was trying to control the heat explosions in my mouth from both the rendang and laksa. Prices at Banana Leaf are also slightly higher than those at Penang Delight and Kaya Malay. Overall I wouldn't choose Banana Leaf over the two others I have mentioned, as I feel like I have gotten better value and satisfaction from primarily Penang Delight, and next in line, Kaya Malay. Though I have heard from my Malaysian sources that Hawker's Delight is the real deal- this coming from a Malaysian born friend of mine. Next time I'm craving, I know where I'm going! read more

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If this review was based on deliciousness of food alone, Banana Leaf would get a five-star rating from me for sure. But let's start from the beginning. Having thoroughly researched all the restaurants participating in Vancouver's 2017 Dine Out Festival, I had noticed that Banana Leaf had quite the deal: 7 courses for $20 - papaya salad, calamari, chicken satay skewers, beef rendang, caramelized fish fillet, sambal green beans with rice, and panna cotta as dessert. Everything was absolutely delicious, and it's such a good deal for the price. My sister and I both ordered the Dine Out special, and the appetizers were served promptly afterwards. Here's where my issue lies. As soon as I bit into my chicken satay skewer, I saw that the inside of the meat was almost completely pink and quite visibly undercooked, borderline raw. So I called our server over and told her that I was concerned about the cook of my chicken. She took my plate and said she would check with the kitchen, but that the pink could just be because it was dark meat. I felt a little affronted at that comment, but she took my plate nonetheless. A few minutes later, she came back and apologized and yes indeed, it was undercooked, and said that the kitchen was making a new one. At this point, it would have been nice to see compensation of some sort, so I was a little disappointed with the service. Other than the chicken skewer incident, the rest of the food was absolutely delicious. So just based on taste, 5 stars, then minus one for the raw chicken, and minus one for no compensation. Hopefully next time I go back, the food will be just as delicious but a little more cooked through. read more

Banana Leaf is a really good pan-Asian restaurant with over five locations in Vancouver. We ordered the Laska (curry seafood rice noodle) and Hainan Chicken with a side of Hainan Rice (rice mixed with the essence of the Hainan chicken). The Hainan chicken was boneless and served with 3 sauces: ginger & oil, sweet & sour, and hoisen with soya sauce. My favorite with chicken is always the ginger & oil, but the other options provides interesting flavor. They also have really good happy hour specials for drinks. Happy hour here last till 10 on certain days, which is great! For dessert, we had the durian ice cream. There are 4 other durian flavor desserts here! Durian lovers will get their craving fixed here. The ambiance was cozy and convenience, on top of great service, good food, and affordable prices, hence the 5 stars. read more

Banana Leaf - yum, durian ice cream! (Must love durian to enjoy this.) - Malaysian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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Amazing Malay chain in Vancouver. This particular location is very nice inside and the folks who work here are really kind while also providing excellent service. I've been here with my mom as well as with my friends who live in Burnaby. The food is consistently good and service is great. read more

Finally! Despite living in Vancouver for decades and this restaurant's multiple locations, it took time away from Vancouver and a visit back home for me to have my first experience at Banana Leaf. What an experience. They had a great drink special the Wednesday night we went (Mai Tai singles for $4 and doubles for $6 - pretty great for the location we were at). ONE STAR We ordered the following: (1) Roti Canai / $7 Flaky layered bread served with coconut curry sauce ~ one of India's great culinary contributions to Malaysia. (2) Rendang Beef Curry / $15 No festive occasion is complete without this rich Malaysian dish, boneless lean beef stewed to melting tenderness in coconut gravy and spices. (3) Gulai Seafood / $20 A taste of the ocean: scallop, prawn, fish, mussel, clam, and squid simmered in spicy turmeric coconut sauce made of tamarind, galangal, lemon grass & ginger. Item (1) was our absolute favourite and I would have been happy with just that. I find myself craving this appetizer even now back in Houston. Items (2) and (3) were also delicious, but very spicy. That turned out to our advantage because when we mentioned it to our waiter, he gave us some ice cream to cool our palettes - on the house! Item (3) had generous portions of the listed seafood. There were two of us and we had leftovers! A great deal for the food, ambiance, service and quality level. Can't wait to return! This review is based on my personal experience and all statements made herein reflect my personal opinion only. Your experience may be completely different. read more

Just to clarify the BL has several franchise locations. The one in question is the Kits location in Broadway West side. It is well know BL has been around for years. Food choice are nothing special but at least most locations provide a consistent menu and services are mostly decent. Not so much for the Kits Broadway location and they are anything but. If anything else, I would give them a zero star if there is such scale. Not only its food quality control has gone to the sewer, This location is the worst when it comes to services....and this is not the first time around. We were in on a week night for a quick dinner and don't expect any dramas. No crowd and no traffic and the place was not busy. I was appalled by the lack of attention and poor attitude of the servers. In fact there were more servers standing around than all the customers accounted for inside the restaurant. And yet all the MEN were standing around, ignoring the customers and the two female bus girls were doing all the work for them. We repeatedly waived our hands and called out to get attention for water, drinks and food orders and even settling the bill. At no time any of these servers would check on or engaged with the customers. Worst yet and one was actually annoyed about us asking for a dish recommendation. Of course the food was so subpar and it was a shame and an embarrassment. Even their signature dish such as wings and roti was bland and taste like saw dust. Be aware to these surprises if one wish to venture in this establishment. This is one surprise for the BL ownership who enjoy a long standing history to allow this franchise run its reputation to the ground. A night and day comparison to the same BL in Broadway near VGH where their food and services remain outstanding.... so you go figure read more

Everything we ordered here was excellent. I love Malaysian food and don't have any near to where I live. Was super excited to see this place was a very walking distance from my Airbnb while vacationing in Vancouver. I had the 10 vegetables in 10 spices and was instantly in love. The listing of vegetables included pumpkin which I knew was not going to be what a typical North American would think of as pumpkin. I knew it would be one from Asia which I adore when I can find it in Thai food. My husband saw the dish had pumpkin in it before me so he knew what I would be ordering. My husband ordered his favorite Malaysian dish- the first Malaysian food we ever had- mee goreng! His was wonderful as we expected it would be. Loved the roti and the side of hainan rice to go with my 10 veggies in 10 spices. Both went perfectly with my dish. If I'm ever back in Vancouver, I wouldn't hesitate to come back and visit Banana Leaf! read more

Excellent food! I came here with my family and we got a Singapore Laksa, Mee Goreng, Boneless Hainan Chicken Rice and a Tofu Goreng. The Singapore Laksa was delicious, the soup was very creamy with lots of flavor. Mee Goreng was fantastic as well, packed with flavor. The tofu goreng and the hainan chicken rice were tasty but average. The portions were quite large so we all left feeling full, happy and satisfied! read more

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This is my 4th or 5th visit to the Banana Leaf chain, and very likely my last. I frequent another Malaysian fusion restaurant which you'll find in my other reviews, and almost always order the Rendang Beef there. There's simply no comparison between the two - the dish you get at Banana Leaf is watered down and tasteless in comparison. Ditto for the Roti Canai. Points to the Davie street location for server and food promptness. I ordered - or attempted to order - the lunch special in the window. Somehow this is NOT in their menu. WIndow sign says "BIG LUNCH SPECIAL" - menu says just "LUNCH SPECIAL" for their Rendang Beef, with very little difference between the two. Server brought me the latter, and I didn't make a fuss about the one or two things missing from the 'big lunch'. I did not enjoy the meal, but it wasn't bad enough to send back. Again, paled in comparison to my favorite Malaysian place. The bill came and I was charged the lunch special price - only a couple dollars difference, but I explained to the waiter that that was not what I ordered. He made a bit of a fuss before going to get the manager. The manager changed the bill for me, but the damage was done. I sent a letter to this BL location shortly after my last visit, and have not received a response. read more

I really wanted to like this place. As a Malaysian food lover, this would've been a great place to catch up with friends over a long extended meal. Sadly, a whole bunch of us Malaysians agreed that this place is mediocre at its best. The food lacked depth in terms of authentic flavours and spices. We ordered about 8 dishes and unfortunately none was memorable plus the portion sizes are definitely not the Asian 'large' standard. read more

We found this place on accident as it was right off a bus line. We were pleasantly surprised and the food was amazing. Great ambiance and good service read more

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I've never tried Malaysian food before so we opted for the 9 course tasting menu for $30. All the portions they serve are for two people and it was more than enough with leftovers to take home. I don't know what authentic Malaysian food is supposed to taste like but the dishes we got seemed like something we could get at a chinese/thai restaurant. Regardless, the plates were pretty tasty especially the green beans which were very crunchy in texture. I ended up getting food poisoning from this place though (I think it was the beef) so I will not be coming back. read more

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boneless chicken curry + rice was amazing! everything thing we ate was spectacular and service was great as well! will definitely be coming back! read more

Glass had black moldy sludge on edges and bottom. Good came fast and hot. Servers adequate but less than stellar on a slow early supper. Sampler menu for two was okay nothing special. Their fried calamari was bland. Satay bland. Shrimp.over cooked. Black rice dessert was a hit fried banana dessert was okay. Dishes are large enough to be shared, although menu does not state this, nor do the servers tell you so. My drink was remade but I was offered no apology nor comped for the gross glass. Overall... Nice food slightly high prices, might try again. read more

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The food was amazing and had a nice Thai and Chinese cuisine flavor! We came in with a party of 9 and everyone's meal was delicious! Very clean inside with a relaxing ambiance. 10/10 would recommend. All of the food, especially the noodle dishes, were so flavorful! read more

This store is decent size and servers were really nice and friendly! However, parking was really hard to find..but it is downtown vancouver so i guess that's to be expected. Food was really yummy! But my water smelled like chlorine and bleach..so I had to order a drink. Other than the water, service and food were read more

Banana Leaf - Malaysian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

We were walking in my neighborhood and we stopped at this place for a late dinner. This place have a decent size venue and spacious compare to other places on Davie Street. On that night, we ordered the Wok-Fried Eggplant Basil and Rendang Beef Curry. The eggplant dish tasted pretty good. The eggplant were cooked perfectly, soft and not mushy. As for the curry dish, it was good in taste but not much "Wow" in my opinion. Overall, the dishes were simple and tasted like home cooking with no much effect in preparation. I would go back again for a simple dinner but I would expect much. read more

Banana Leaf - Malaysian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

Banana Leaf serves Malaysian cuisine. The service is friendly. The food is not authentic, but flavourful and filling. It is a no thrills type experience. We ordered the 7 course tasting menu for $23 (per person). The 7 course tasting menu was great value. It came with the following: Asian Green Salad, Vegetarian Spring Rolls, Beef Lettuce Wrap, Assam Curry Seafood, Nyonya Pork Side Ribs, Spinach (in coconut garlic), Pandan Coconut Panna Cotta. If you looking for an inexpensive and flavourful dinner, try Banana Leaf. read more

When you finally get to go to a place that you have heard a lot about , your feelings are boiling with different emotions. In my case , its food emotions (i invented this term) I wanted to try everything on the menu so wished we were in a group so that we could try different options . Since me n my friend were only 2 people still we ordered 3 dishes. Roti canai ( as i had heard that its their signature dish) chicken ,shrimp n skid rice noodles with some of top ramen( blast of flavours) and chicken skewers Roti canai : yummy . Roti is little sweet but the canai gives it different flavour. Basically its maize flour Rice noodles : yummy again . very mild in taste but there is grounded red chilli sauce along , that you can add as per your taste . Chicken skewers : they come on 4 skewers n i must say that they were much much better then couple other places esp better then greek places. Chicken was thinly cut so finely done on a grill. Its served with a peanut butter mix sauce which doesnot compliment so i never had that ( even though i am a bid fan of peanut butter) Washrooms are clean but tiny. Ladies no tall mirror. Owners n servers are not that extra ordinary but not bad. Lovely music n ambience. read more

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Was here for lunch today. I usually try to make my way here about every two to four weeks when I'm craving South East Asian food that does not begin in Viet or Thai. This location has been here a few years, replacing Kam's Place, a Singaporean restaurant. Anyway today I had the Pineapple Fried Rice Combo which consisted of Asian salad, pineapple seafood fried rice, satay chicken, and a spring roll for $12.99. Imho it's a great choice when you don't really know what to order. You get a little bit of everything! The highlight was definitely the fried rice. The pineapples and scallops really make your taste buds dance! The last time I ordered the fried rice on its own, it actually came in a pineapple! Easy 4 stars. I'll be back in the near future for sure. read more

Banana Leaf - Pineapple fried rice combo - Asian salad, pineapple seafood fried rice, satay chicken, and spring roll - Malaysian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

Terrible. I used to love going to all the Banana Leaf locations but this one was atrocious. WTH?

This was my second time around. The last time I was here, I did not enjoy my meal because the whole place smelled like wet dog. That could've been from all the wet clothes but I did not come back till today. I actually enjoyed my meal this time. The place was not very busy but sometimes that's a good thing. I ordered the kung pao chicken alongside some jasmine rice, and my partner got the boneless curry chicken. Both meals were done well and quite tasty. The staff was polite and it's fairly priced for the amount of food you get. read more

Banana Leaf - Kung pao chicken - Malaysian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

Great experience at Banana Leaf tonight - Very obscure location on Davies street and it is a gem! Server was very friendly and informative helping us make our dish decisions. Everything we ordered was fantastic and this wasn't the hunger pains speaking for us cause we were starving. The eggplant fries were tasty and offered a bit of change from straight up French fries with a slightly healthier twist and this was just the start. The cooking staff delivered well thought out dishes that presented flawlessly. May consider going back again for lunch or dinner! Great job!! read more

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In from San Diego, had the 9-course tasting menu with wine pairing. Quick service, everything was fantastic. Going back for beef rendang tonight! read more

Banana Leaf - Malaysian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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Great food and atmosphere! I ordered the Char Keow Teow and Tofu Goreng and it has a spice to it which enhances the flavour. Nice music and clean restaurant. Great service and staff. read more

Banana Leaf - Tofu Goreng and Char Keow Teow. So tasty! - Malaysian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

I enjoyed reasonable and tasty lunch. I paid under $10. But I got satisfied. I went there by myself. The atmosphere was comfortable. I want to try another menu next time when I go to Vancouver! read more

Banana Leaf - Malaysian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

Came in here on a whim for lunch a little while back. Had only a small sample of the menu. Char kway teow Roti Both quite tasty. No complaints. Service was very friendly from a Persian guy who grew up in Malaysia and speaks Malay. Go figure! read more

food was fantastic! came in here on a rainy day and the vibes were on point. the music was soothing and the interior design with plants gave it a very earthy feel. the curry was very flavorful and would highly recommend! read more

5 stars all around. Restaurant was quiet until 10-15 mins of us being seated. Thank goodness we got there at the right time. But everyone was seated promptly. The waitresses work so hard i really appreciate them. I had lamb curry while the hubs ordered boneless chicken curry. Oh, we also had roti canai for appetizer. The roti canai was good but the accompanying curry was a little bit too sweet. For desserts (which I don't usually do) i had pisang goreng and again, it hit home. I'm a Malaysian and I approved! :) Btw Mango sticky rice was unavailable tonight so better check before u order (we were told before she handed us the menu so we are good.) read more

Banana Leaf on Denman is the bomb. I've been to a few of the other locations but this little gem is intimate and the food is outstanding. The staff are always super kind and attentive. Value for money this place can't be beat . Everything I've had here has been consistent in quality. read more