Dahl, rendang and skateboards in WA’s South West

The waves may bring surfers to town, but canteen Dahl Daddys brings food loving roadtrippers to a Margaret River skatepark for dahl, rendang and more.

Dahl Daddy's paratha.

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A Cotswold Farmshop

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series • 

documentary

PG

Sure, a skatepark isn't the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about Western Australia's Margaret River region. But a roadtrip down the South West is never complete without a pitstop at Dahl Daddys, a small canteen nestled beside a skatepark.

In 2023, Corey Rozario and Imogin Mitchell decided this was the place to dish out dahl, rendang and paratha, quickly becoming favourites for locals and road trippers alike.

Why a skatepark? "The skate park canteen is as close as it gets to cooking on the street," Rozario explains. "We really like our canteen with outdoor dining as it simulates the food stalls in the regions that inspired our menu."

Dahl Daddy knows a thing or two about dahl. Credit: Dahl Daddy

Rozario is certainly bringing the heat and charm from an expanse of Asian street stalls to an unexpected pocket of Margaret River. There's the namesake dahl, which Rozario describes as "constantly evolving", starting from the numerous helpings of dahl he had while growing up in a Burmese household in Margaret River, to his own experiences cooking with dahl, which he started doing when he was 16.

It simulates the food stalls in the regions that inspired our menu.

Then there's the beef rendang, with its complex yet comforting flavours, and the lahpet thoke (tea leaf salad) – Dahl Daddys' warm introduction to Burmese cuisine. Comfort food is punctuated with the unmistakable shrimp-like goodness of a heaped tablespoon of balachaung, the star of a lineup of homemade condiments, including pickled eggplants, lemons and turmeric. The golden, flaky, crunch of parathas round the menu out.

The blackboard menu reads like a letter to the South West's best suppliers. While the menu changes with the seasons, expect to find a mix of organic beef from local farmers Geo Organics, vegetables from Margaret River Fresh Produce, and organic kombucha from local producer Alewife that Rozario praises as "liquid gold".

Dahl Daddys' menu is inspired by South and Southeast Asian food. Credit: Dahl Daddy

Of course, the South West is synonymous with fresh fish, which features on the menu. "The fish is also a source of an unexpected staple," Rozario says. One of Rozario's favourites is the dhu fish, which is hand caught by local fishers South West Wilde Catch.

"One day we had an excess amount of fresh fish that needed to be used. So we cooked a paratha, filled it with pan-fried dhu fish, turmeric sauce, pickled radish, bamboo slaw and balachaung.

"We didn't plan to make it, it's not traditional. It has become one of the most popular things we created."

Its appeal is simple. As Rozario puts it: "Nothing beats fresh fish".

Dahl Daddys' canteen. Credit: Dahl Daddys

Rozario is also proud of the community he's built at the canteen, including friends, families, local neighbourhood kids, city road-trippers and tourists, not to mention Alf, Rozario and Mitchell’s French bulldog.

They can unwind with the beauty of the outdoors (thanks to its outdoor seating), childhood nostalgia (the clattering of skateboards punctuated by exclamations and laughter), and the canteen's window service. 

There’s also unexpected benefits for nearby skaters. "We do find ourselves giving out a lot of ice packs and bandaids, that's for sure!" says Rozario.

A warm reminder of how good food takes care of communities in more ways than one.

 

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