Restaurants in Melaka
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Teachew Cuisine
We walked past this place for about a week before we realised there was a restaurant here, and yet it's Melaka's claim to haute cuisine. Duck past mum, who washes the dishes on the sidewalk and spends all day chopping veggies and dismembering chickens. Smile at uncle who runs the rickety soup stall that efficiently covers the restaurant's doorway, and then you're in for a surprise.
The secret interior room is air-conditioned, the tables are set with China's finest and the walls are decorated with an impressive collection of hard liquor bottles and odd landscape paintings. There's no menu but everyone knows that you're supposed to order the soft-shell crab or the prawns. T…
reviewed
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Restoran Sek Yow Fook
There's a little of everything at this hodge-podge Chinese place but it's all surprisingly good. English cooked breakfasts are available from 08:00 or there's a little congee (rice porridge) stall for those wanting to start the day local style. For lunch dive into the excellent Chinese buffet, but don't arrive past around 14:30 when the dregs have been sitting out sans refrigeration for hours.
For kids (or fussy grown-ups) there's an 'Elvis Presley' peanut-butter-and-banana sandwich on offer. A bar in the back serves beer.
reviewed
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Low Yong Mow
Famous Malaysia-wide for its large and delectably well-stuffed pao (steamed pork buns), this place is Chinatown’s biggest breakfast treat. With high ceilings, plenty of fans running and a view of Masjid Kampung Kling, the atmosphere oozes all the charms of Chinatown. Take your pick from the endless variety of dumplings, sticky rice dishes and mysterious treats that are wheeled to your table.
reviewed
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Howard’s
A finely crafted ambience of creaseless linen, elegant furniture, black-and-white chequered tile floor, flavoursome international cuisine (lobster bisque, roast rack of lamb) and nonintrusive service, Howard’s is a thoroughly unhurried and intimate experience and a top romantic dining choice. Topped off with an impressive wine list, this is definitely Chinatown’s swankiest choice.
reviewed
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To Be Korean Café
Traditional Korean pork barbecue (RM23) as well as pages of other specialities (some vegetarian) can be enjoyed here while your feet get the dead skin nibbled off them by little fish – the tables are placed over a pond so can dine with your feet in or out of the water. There’s also a selection of ‘Korean healthy teas’ (from RM3.50) that purport to cure a plethora of ailments.
reviewed
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Kenny's Nonya Delights
It's a hole-in-the-wall café, but this friendly little place, right near the junction of Jln Hang Kasturi, serves up some of the best Nonya food bargains in Melaka. This is an excellent place to have a quick snack of Nonya style laksa, popiah or a nasi lemak breakfast. The restaurant bottles its sauces, which make delicious (albeit heavy) souvenirs.
reviewed
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Restoran Wuguzhan
This Chinese organic vegetarian health-food eatery was temporarily closed when we passed, but it's got a good reputation for delivering carrion-free calories in the form of inexpensive Chinese-style veggie dishes. Handy for the local guest houses, the menu runs to sweet-and-sour 'veggie chicken', seaweed wholemeal bread roll, veggie duck la mee soup and beyond.
reviewed
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Calanthe Art Café
The Zen water garden atmosphere of this light- and plant-filled café is like reflexology for the travel-weary soul. Try coffees from each of the 13 Malaysian states, either hot or cold or in a coffee cocktail. There are also smoothies, espresso drinks and light Malaysian and Western meals. A quiet internet terminal is available for a charge.
reviewed
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Pak Putra Restaurant
This fabulous Pakistani place cooks up a variety of meats and seafood in clay tandoori ovens perched on the sidewalk. Apart from the tandoori try the taw prawns (cooked with onion, yoghurt and coriander, RM10) or mutton rogan josh (in onion gravy with spices and chilli oil, RM8). Side dishes of veg are around RM5 and a mango lassi costs RM4.
reviewed
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Nancy’s Kitchen
In a town already known for its graciousness, this home-cooking Nonya restaurant is our favourite for friendly service. The server is as chatty as they come, full of suggestions of what to order and will have you making conversation with the other handful of customers in no time. Try the house speciality: chicken candlenut (RM10).
reviewed
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Ind Ori
Mmm, Indonesian Pedang food: fresh and heated in a point and ask buffet. It’s just like the real thing but without the flies and dubious sanitation issues. House specialities include avocado juice with chocolate sauce (RM4.50) and sekotang (sweet cream and peanut dumplings with green beans and hot ginger; RM5.80).
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Selvam
This is a classic banana leaf restaurant always busy with its loyal band of local patrons ordering tasty and cheap curries, roti and Tandoori chicken sets (RM5.50). Even devout carnivores will second guess their food preferences after trying the Friday-afternoon vegetarian special with 10 varieties of veg for only RM6.
reviewed
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Coconut House
It's a cheesy name, but there's oodles of inviting space and atmosphere upstairs and down at this bar-restaurant. The menu boasts a popular pizza selection, rosemary roast chicken, slow-roasted shoulder of pork and other tasty offerings. The namesake coconut tree rises proudly into sunlight from an interior courtyard.
reviewed
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Capitol Satay
Famous for its satay celup (a Melaka adaptation of satay steamboat), this place is usually packed to the gills and is one of the cheapest outfits in town. Stainless-steel tables have bubbling vats of soup in the middle where you dunk skewers of okra stuffed with tofu, sausages, chicken, prawns and bok choy.
reviewed
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Limau-Limau Café
Decorated with dark coloured ceramics and an arty twist, this quiet café extends through several rooms and a pleasant interior courtyard. Take a seat for salads, sandwiches, fruit juices, milk shakes or internet access. Its second location on Jln Hang Jebat has similar décor and the same menu.
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Hoe Kee Chicken Rice
Serving the local speciality of chicken rice ball and Assam fish head (fish heads in a spicy tamarind gravy), you’ll need to arrive outside of peak time or expect to wait for a table. The restaurant’s setting, with wood floors and ceiling fans, seems to further bring out the exotic flavours.
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Cafe 1511
Next to the Baba-Nonya Heritage Museum is this high-ceilinged Peranakan cafe, with original tiles along the wall, lovely carved screens, a mishmash of decorative objects from Southeast Asia and a Nonya menu. At the time of research this place was also planning a guesthouse.
reviewed
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Newton Food Court
Serving Chinese food in the main hall and Halal at the back, Newton Food Court, just west of the Mahkota Parade shopping complex, is Melaka’s newest and most attractive hawker centre. It’s under an immense thatched roof and is bordered by palms.
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Restoran Amituofoh
This Buddhist vegetarian restaurant – the gift of a Chinese philanthropist – provides food on the house. You should make a contribution, but otherwise there are few conditions: you must wash your own plates and cutlery, and taking food away is not permitted.
reviewed
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Restoran de Lisbon
On Friday and Saturday evenings, head to Restoran de Lisbon, where you can sample Malay-Portuguese dishes at outdoor tables. Try the delicious local specialities of chilli crabs (RM20) or the distinctly Eurasian devil curry (RM10).
reviewed
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Medan Makan Bunga Raya
Follow the sounds of a chopping meat cleaver to Medan Makan Bunga Raya, where you can feast on Indian-style curry-pork rice in the evenings or try the local speciality of gula melaka (palm sugar) during the day.
reviewed
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San Pedro
There's really not much reason to head out to the nondescript neighbourhood of Medan Portugis other than to eat. Visit San Pedro, on the street immediately behind the square, with a cosy, local atmosphere for Malay-Portuguese meals.
reviewed
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Poh Piah Lwee
An authentic and lively hole in the wall with one specialist cook preparing delicious Hokkien-style popiah (RM2), another making near-perfect rojak (RM3) while the third whips up a fantastic laksa (RM3).
reviewed
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Tart & Tart Bakery
This simple, relaxing Malay-run Chinatown snack shop does a small range of bite-size snacks, from blueberry and cheese tarts to pineapple pies, apple pies and kaya - coconut cream that you spread on bread.
reviewed
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Harper’s Café
Perched elegantly over the Sungai Melaka, breezy Harper’s serves excellent (though small) Malay-European fusion dishes in a rather stark decor. It’s worth visiting for the food, though the service can be slow.
reviewed
