I recently wrote about a Malaysian restaurant I had discovered in downtown DC called Penang. I had, in fact, discovered a Malaysian restaurant — on the same block as Penang, even — but I realized today, after noticing Penang on the corner of 19th & M for the first time, that I had never been there before. So I stopped there for lunch.

The place I found earlier turned out to be Malaysia Kopitiam, a fine little hole-in-the-wall place that's only half a block from Penang — the reason for my confusion. You see, the awning outside Malaysia Kopitiam doesn't include the name of the restaurant, instead trumpeting their "Fine Malaysian Cuisine," or something to that effect. So I never noticed their name. And when I later searched online for reviews of the Malaysian restaurant on the 1800 block of M St., I found reviews for Penang. So I assumed that's where I had been eating. I just didn't expect there to be two Malaysian restaurants separated by a 15-second walk . . .

From the Washington Post's profile of Penang:

Penang chose to locate half a block away from Malaysia Kopitiam, a modestly set restaurant where owners Leslie and Penny Phoon have done yeoman work in demystifying Asia's least familiar but most interesting cuisine. The DC Penang wins the competition for setting over its M Street neighbor, but it currently doesn't match either the breadth of Malaysia Kopitiam's menu or the quality of its cooking.

I found this to be almost entirely true today — except I wouldn't say that Penang "wins" in terms of setting. It's high on "elegant" yuppie vibe (which isn't necessarily bad, but does nothing for me), low on usability (ridiculous tiny foam chairs) and service (I finished my water before I even started my appetizer, but no one bothered to refill it until halfway through the entree). As for breadth of menu, they didn't even have laksa noodles! What more can I say? And while my Beef Rendang was pretty good, the Satay Tofu (which I can't get enough of at Malaysia Kopitiam) was watery and bland, with only the peanut sauce to recommend it.

So, yeah, Malaysia Kopitiam is the place to go if you're on the 1800 block of M St. and in the mood for some Malaysian food. From another profile:

Back closer to Chinatown, near the funky Dupont Circle district, is the city's first Malaysian restaurant, Malaysia Kopitiam. The name means "coffee shop", and it is an unprepossessing place done up in village style to match its authentic, hearty food. Proprietors Leslie and Penny Phoon are respectively the business brains and talented chef, Penny having learned cooking through helping her mother at home. After three successful years at their first restaurant in Maryland, the Phoons sold up and moved into the city. Their top attractions range from intense coconut curries, perfectly char-grilled satays, and rich, fiery laksa noodle soups. Penny is particularly proud of her po-pia: fresh, handmade rolls filled with shredded vegetable, shrimp and egg. Daily specials are simple - Teow cheow rice porridge with mackerel in spicy sauce and Malaysian pickles, for example.

I'm actually kind of relieved about this confusion. The day after my original post about what I thought at the time was Penang, Michael Malice briefly critiqued the New York version:

I used to be friends with a crew of complete dorks. Though many of my kinder friends insist that I am not a dork, I at the very least speak it. The problem with dorks is that they are just the same as everyone else, in that they are nasty snobs. But unlike the in-crowd, dorks are bad at it.

So this crew used to hang out at this ghetto, TGIFriday's-esque Malaysian restaurant called Penang, which is a chain. What I found intriguing is that the Penang on 11th and 3rd closed, and was replaced by a Roll 'n Roaster--which is where the dork leader used to hang out in, in Brooklyn.

Why I mention this (besides the fact that coincidences are cool) is that Between Before and After has just posted about discovering this great Malaysian restaurant named Penang. Et tu, Dixon?

I'm not the kind of person to care much what other people think — especially when I'm already sure of what I like. But Michael's description didn't sound at all like the place I had been, and at the time I assumed it was largely due to regional differences. Now I know it wasn't the same place at all . . . and that Michael's description of the New York Penang holds up pretty well when compared to the DC Penang I tried for the first time today.