Restaurant: Peninsula

I've been on a "I must try new restaurants" kick lately, so a friend and I sampled the new Malaysian place in town, Peninsula, last night. My only other experience with Malaysian food was very good: a place called Rasa Sayang in (of all places) Golden Valley, had a wonderful chef when they first opened. (Unfortunately but not surprisingly, the suburbanites never tried the place, or if they did, they did not take to it. Chef Chen left and the food just hasn't been the same since.) I've wanted to check out this new place ever since it opened in January.

Luckily, Peninsula opened in a part of town that gives it a good chance for survival. And after sampling the food and atmosphere, I'm confident in saying that its chances can be upgraded to excellent. We started off with Popiah, a Malaysian style steamed spring roll stuffed with jicama, egg & bean sprouts. The jicama and bean sprouts were tender and tasty.

For the main course, I tried Mango Chicken. Though not the most adventurous choice I could have made, it was wonderful to the sight and the taste. It was served in a hollowed-out mango shell and burst with fresh mango and sweet pepper. It was not designated as spicy, but I was pleasantly surprised that it had just the right amount of spice to give it a little heat. I also sampled my friend's Beef Redang, and it's wonderful combination of flavors made me want to return tonight! I don't expect much for atmosphere in ethnic restaurants, so the space was a surprising as well. The high ceiling and large room were balanced by warm, dark wood flooring and trim and just the right level of light. This combination made the space feel full of energy, yet intimate at the same time.