After the early dumping of snow the city received, I was in the mood to warm up by cranking the heat at home, burying myself in blankets with the TV on while devouring spicy Malaysian food from Cash and Curry on Duluth. I placed my order over the phone, and it was ready to pick up ten minutes later. Nantha Kumar, from the missed Nantha’s Kitchen, has been back for some time preparing the curries and mee goreng that Montrealers know and love so well.

Admittedly, I don’t know a whole lot about Malaysian fare. I do know mee goreng, however, and Cash and Curry gives you a great one. Yellow noodles stir fried with some of the tastiest shrimp I’ve had in a while. This dish packs a lot of heat without being an assault on the tongue, which I think many places end up failing at. The crunch of peanuts and the sweetness of onion and the sharpness of coriander combines to make this a satisfying and hearty noodle dish. It comes with what I think must be Chinese cabbage marinated in a coconut-type sauce, and it really a shocking and perfect topping for the mee goreng, adding a distinctive other taste and cooling the whole thing down a little.
The other dish I enjoyed was a simple vegetable curry with rice. This rice is simply wonderful, fragrant jasmine mixed with bits of lemongrass and basil. Paired with the curried zucchini, potato and chickpeas in a rich and spicy sauce, it really is a medley of flavours of the Thai variety. My next visit there will be for a whole different meal, the infamous pad thai with the miso-tom yum soup and samosas with tamarind sauce.

Cash and Curry is a tiny place, but the candles lit outside and the smells drifting from its door is unmistakable. Not much seating room is inside, but what there is, is warmly decorated and it looks like a perfect winter dinner spot. But pick-up is also available, and I don’t think it gets much cozier than hanging out in front of the TV with a big bowl of mee goring in front of you.

Cash and Curry
68 Duluth E.
(514) 284-5696