Maya at Bangsar - Maharaja Set Meal

I finally made my way to this restaurant for lunch, after months of delay. I’ve been hearing quite a lot about Maya of late, especially so in regards to their infamous Maharaja Vegetarian Set Meal (only available of fridays)

This meal, it has been causing quite a stir around town. Some say it is good, that you’d be able to taste a variety of dishes in one seating and that the higher price point is understandable given its location – Bangsar. Others complain that the high price point is not worth it. Some even go as far as posting their receipts online and venting out their frustrations at being overcharged. Well, when I see all this drama, my curiousity is piqued. A visit is certainly a must. If not for the food, then atleast for drama laaa 🤣🤣.

I arrived at noon and it was already fully crowded. No joke. More and more people kept coming in droves. Quite a number of large groups as well.

Based on my understanding, the Maharaja Set Meal includes 19 dishes, at a cost of RM 19.90. Some dishes are fixed while other dishes change weekly. You would not get the same exact 19 dishes this week as you did last week.

For instance, 👇👇

The both of us were also curious to see VISUALLY the difference between the much talked about Maharaja Set and a normal banana leaf set.

Maharaja Vegetarian Set Meal, RM 19.90 + Banana Leaf Rice, RM 11.90 + Chicken Varuval, RM 13

For me, the Maharaja Set Meal was unique. With 19 dishes served on a banana leaf, it certainly is fit for a king … but experiencing it once would suffice. Why?

First of all, I am a meat eater and the Maharaja Set is vegetarian, which meant that I had to add on a chicken dish. In this case, the combination cost me a grand total of RM 32.90 (RM 19.90 + RM 13).

Secondly, I dont mean to sound fussy but I don’t think I got serve 19 dishes. Based on my calculations, there were 3,4 dishes missing. What I was served on my banana leaf was:

1) White Rice

2) Lemon Rice

3) Mooru

4) Rasam + Curry of choice

5) Chili Tauhu

6) Fried Patola

7) Potato Varuval

8) Vegetarian Chicken

9) Winter Melon (if I am not mistaken)

10) Cucumber

11) Vadai

12) Spinash

13) Mango Chutney

14) Dry Chilli

15) Papadum

Chilli Tauhu, Fried Patola, Potato Varuval, Winter Melon, Vegetarian Chicken, White Rice + Curry

Cucumber, Spinach, Dry Chili, Mango Chutney, Vadai, Papadum, Lemon Rice

We did ask the waiters, 3 separate times on wether the serving was complete and we were told that it was, there was nothing more to add. So, where are my 3,4 dishes that seem to be missing?

Thirdly, the price difference between a Maharaja Set Meal and a normal banana leaf meal is Rm 19.90 to RM 11.90 …. is the additional RM 8 really that worth it? To me, nope. More often than not, I am a small eater. Half way through my meal, I was already stuffed and spent the rest of the time trying to force the rest down simply because I am paying almost 20 ringgit for it.

Don’t get me wrong, the Maharaja set was delicious and is worth a try if you do not feel strongly against paying more that average for a banana leaf meal. As a first time experience, I was more curious than anything and so, spending more money on it wasn’t that difficult. Now that I have tried it, I think I would rather go for the normal banana leaf meal next. After all, I am not a big fan of fried chili, lemon rice and mooru. Take those 3 dishes and add in the 3,4 missing dishes … that is 6 to 7 dishes I most likely will not eat. What is the the point of going for a Maharaja Set if I do not fancy more than a few dishes. In my case, paying RM 19.90 for it would be a waste. A normal banana leaf set is ideal for some one like me.

My thoughts aside, tastewise – food was good. Besides the few items that I generally did not like, the other dishes were delicious. I was in love with the vegetarian chicken. It had a slight sweetness to it and spiciness. It’s a good substitute for meat. The chili tauhu was appealingly spicy. I liked the fact that they cut it into small pieces which resulted in equal amount of tofu to chili sambal coverage. Fried patola was yummy too and the mango chutney, I slurped it all up on its own. I did not bother having any with the rice. It tasted like dessert to me, lol. The chicken curry was thick and flavorful. None of that watered down version here.

The chicken varuval was delicious. The chicken’s texture was soft and dense like chicken tikka. Tasted a tad different too. If I were to be blindfolded, I would not be able to guess that this was chicken varuval – tastewise. It was different but tasted good, especially when eaten with the rice. A variety of flavors and spices. Yummm!

When they were serving me the Maharaja Set and the serving size for some of the items were small … I was quite sure that they needed to pile on more. I never said anything but that was my thought. Once I started eating though, the small serving size made sense. There were soooo many things to eat that I couldn’t finish it. As mentioned before, halfway through the meal, I was already full. If you are like me, I stongly suggest eating first before asking for more because it is unlikely that you can finish it.

Overall, I can see what the hype was all about. The Maharaja Vegetarian Set Meal sure was unique and the food was tasty. However, for reasons stated above, I’ll stick to the usual banana leaf meal. It comes with 4 vegetables, which is more than enough for me, a papadum and mango chutney + rasam. Add on a meat of my choice and I am a happy kid. Considering the restaurant is located close by, I can see myself dropping by for lunch again. Food tasted good anyways.