I walk passed Taste of Melaka on our first night visiting Byron Bay for the Easter long weekend…read moreholiday. It was packed full with diners at 11pm. I wished I had gone back for their food on our second night so I could come back a second time to try the rest of their menu. Unfortunately we only come back on our last night (the 6th) as I thought it was another coastal town Malaysian restaurant with disappointing subpar standard (westernised, everything tasted too sweet) much like Asia Joe's. Taste of Melaka turned out to be the best Malaysian restaurant in Australia! I do not say this lightly as I was born and grew up in Malaysia. Although I have lived in Sydney for the last 21 years, I go back to Malaysia frequently and I am still very familiar with the authentic flavours of Malaysian food. I had Taste of Melaka's Roti Kosong (plain roti), Nasi Lemak with Chicken Curry and Seafood Char Kway Teow. The roti and Nasi Lemak tasted just like what we get in Malaysia. They are 100% authentic! They are even better than a lot of the places I have tried in Malaysia as they are not as greasy. They are perfect in texture and taste, which is light, crispy and fluffy. The coconut rice is definitely the best version of what I have tasted in Australia. It is the Indian version made from basmati rice, which gives a dryer, lighter, fluffier feel and the rice have looser grains with just the right amount of coconut milk. It is perfect to be scooped down with the chicken curry sauce and the crunchy peanuts, ikan billis (anchovies) and sambal. The flavours of Taste of Malaka reminded me of the countless nights I had supple with friends till 2 or 3 am at the warong and Mamak stalls (small family own street food stall, warong is Malay own and Mamak is Malaysian Tamil Muslim) during my high school time in country town Malaysia. The Seafood Char Kway Teow was also wonderful. Although it is not the Penang style with dark soy sauce we are more familiar with. The flavour is undoubtedly authentic Asian packed full of "wok breath" and the seafood (tiger prawns, calamari and fish balls) are so fresh and generous. If you told me that the best Malaysian you have ever had was the ever so popular franchise Malaysian restaurant - Mamak, in Sydney or Melbourne, don't get offended if I laughed hard at your face and tell you that they are not even authentic Malaysian in my book! I'll say stand aside Mamak! You are so overrated! I wish I could take Taste of Malaka to Sydney and visit them at least once every week... If you are after authentic Malaysian food, I urge you to pay Taste of Malaka a visit. I only wish I discovered them earlier and have a chance to try more of their dishes. I would certainly come back though when I visit Byron Bay again. P.S.: Roti needs curry sauce for dipping. If you order the roti, you need to order some kind of curry as the roti is not served with dipping sauce. It is usually come with a curry sauce in Sydney, or at least two dipping sources in Malaysia.

It's a cozy setting and serving authentic Malaysian dishes. Friendly staffs and amazing food. We…read moreordered Sambal Udang Prawn. love the spice mixed in the Sambal Udang with Roti. We also ordered Laksa, Malaysian traditional curry noodle soup with coconut milk. It was great. This is a BYO restaurant and I would recommend to bring your own booze. It's a little treasure hidden in Byron Bay. I will come back again to taste Prawn Sambal Udang

Tucked away off the highway in Newrybar, this cute little historical village houses one of the best…read morekept culinary secrets. With amazing coffee, and a pork saddle I could make love to, lunch here on a summer's day is simply divine. Beautifully prepared food, sourced from local suppliers, you can really taste the difference. These aren't peas from a tin, but perfectly cooked garden fresh peas that burst with flavour. The street is full, the restaurant is busy, so I guess it's no secret after all. I've been meaning to come here for a while and am glad I made the trek. Check out the attached deli and bakery too if you have the time (make the time!)

The beautiful weatherboard cottage with big verandah and supersize windows set an airy and spacious…read morescene. We loved the relaxed and laidback country vibe of Harvest. In a way Harvest is quite similar to Three Blue Ducks, the restaurant we dined in on previous night, as they both source the freshest and best ingredients locally. If you have decided to come here, you are expected to pay more than elsewhere because of the care and love they have put into sourcing these fresh ingredients. We thought the quality of the food these two restaurants have provided were very similar. We have enjoyed the oysters, fish of the day for two, which was barramundi, and the grilled pumpkin and fermented onions. Harvest is perhaps slightly more creative with their flavours. However, we received much more professional and attentive service from Harvest. Harvest is definitely worth the drive from Byron Bay if you are prepared to pay more.

Overall a nice place to eat. It's never overly crowded so I see that as a positive. Manager is…read morealways super friendly. I've stopped in for a glass of wine. This was my first time having breakfast here. The Piadina was a nice combination. Perfect for hangovers but healthy enough for those wanting something in between. I'm not sure what kind of chorizo they used but it reminds me a lot of whole Spanish chorizo. My only less than average experience was the very slow coffee service. My cappuccino took some time to arrive before my meal. When I re-ordered a long black 1/3 of the way through my meal, it didn't come until after I completed my breakfast. I even took my time reading articles on my phone while eating, so at least 15 minutes which I think should have a faster turnaround. One star knocked off for that.

Ended up at Targa for breakfast after a poor experience at Bay Leaf - the place is definitely not…read moreas "hype" (At least at 11am) but the staff is sooo much nicer and the menu looked quite inviting. The room is a little dark and lacks a bit of cosiness...but the dishes were very Nice. Some Classic (banana bread, pancakes) but also more original options with a spaniards inspo. The plates looked beautiful and colorful too. The waiters were absolutely lovely and kind. Byron style :-)

We had a great time at The Lazy Italian! The food was delicious. I had to come back again for the…read morechicken schnitzel, because it was so juicy and perfectly fried! I enjoyed the combo with schnitzel and spaghetti bolognese. The bolognese sauce was full of meat and flavor! We also enjoyed the special Spaghetti Marinara which was chocked full of fresh seafood. Yum! Even the garlic bread impressed us. If someone in your party can't decide on an item, the restaurant next door (Mongers) is owned by the same people. So you can order from either place and eat where you'd like! Both places are BYO wine & beer.

Tucked away down Bay Lane, the Lazy Italian sits right next door to its sister fish restaurant…read more Bay Lane can be a lot quieter than restaurants on the main strip and therefore if queues are long at the main hang outs you may well find space at The Lazy Italian. If you don't fancy Italian, you can sit at the Lazy Italian tables and order from the fish restaurant right next door as they are owned by the same company. You could go all out and have a mix of both fish and Italian. It is not a big place but my experience of it was quite good. The Lasagne had a very rich tomato sauce and the Mediterranean Salad that I ordered with Chicken was very well sized and priced. My only piece of feedback was that the chicken was super salty. You can buy non-alcoholic drinks with your meal or BYO preferred alcoholic meal matcher. Pleasantly surprised at this place when the queues for the other restaurants on the main roads were crazy (it was a lovely day inbetween Christmas and New Year so Byron Bay so it was high season and chocka full of visitors).

Exceptional all round. Stopped in for a quick breakfast and it was great. Great choice of breakfast…read morefood - savory and sweet. Ordered at the counter - breakfast roll, Turkish bread - it was all good. The range of pastry is broad and also breads and buns - all the baked goods you can want. Coffee order in and the barista did a great job for a takeaway. Could not help it and ordered almond croissant and a danish for morning tea. Great value and the taste was great. This place is on my list to visit again.

I sort of felt as if this was the only bakery in town, which in fact I suspect it was. I guess the…read morecrowds swarming around it sort of tipped me off to that, but then again when I say town, I'm actually referring to what could be considered to be a suburb of Byron Bay, and there certainly wasn't all that much else around here. However, as a place to grab a coffee, or a cup of tea in my case, this place wasn't too bad. Just expect to be waiting for a little bit.

Understandably pricey given the location but the food is superb. Go there for the beach views,…read morestay for the food. The service is top notch as well

An interestingly named Indonesian place next to the beach in Byron Bay. Incense wafts over you, and…read morethe sign asks if you're thinking about Bali (in Indonesia). Since you're in Byron Bay, I struggle to imagine why you'd be thinking about some other beach. The menu is a mix of Indonesian and Australian brunch foods, and is reasonably vegetarian and vegan-friendly, though I preferred their breakfast options to their lunch. The pancakes I tried were indulgent and heavy on the coconut ice cream. A nice vacation-y brunch if there ever was one. Worth noting that they have a credit card surcharge; always good to carry cash.

The menu for actual food is pretty small-- there are quite a few options, but not many raw or super…read morehealthy food options. They're more along the lines of a more decadent vegan meal, but... every single thing I had was perfectly done. Delicious, well-flavored, and interesting. I started with one of their coconuts-- with milk thistle tincture and chlorophyll. It was good, perfectly cold. Enjoyed the olives for a starter-- generous portion but at $9 still scary. $21 for a very small Caesar salad was also scary. Yummy, but scary for how tiny the portion was. Enjoyed a turmeric latte-- delicious. And also a cacao maca latte-- even more delicious than the turmeric latter. Both were some crazy price as well. $65 for a dinner for one. Not much food. Luckily, I wasn't that hungry. Note: they DO NOT have free wifi or wifi of any kind-- which is disturbing given the touristy nature of Byron Bay, but alas. For whatever reason, nope. The waiter and manager were exceptionally nice-- really lovely people. I will go again, not look at the prices, and enjoy the food. :)

My partner and I had the best experience at elixiba!!…read more It was the first restaurant we went to in Byron bay and it did not disappoint! We're from central coast and there is hardly any vegan options so it was a great feeling knowing everything on the menu was vegan. The nachos and burger we had was absolutely delicious and the mock tails were soooo yummy. The staff was also incredibly nice and welcoming! Highly recommend!!!

This is a fairly small place with inside dining. Not the cosiest setting in an older corner…read morebuilding, but decorated well enough. We stopped in just for some (lunch) take-out. - Fried calamari was great (fresh). - The fried rice was fine but nothing special really. - The green curry, however, was fantastic. Not too fat or creamy, or with too much coconut. Just right, including spicy-ness. When back in town we would no doubt return to this restaurant, even if just for the curry.