Restaurants in Malaysia
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Top Spot Food Court
The double entendre definitely holds true. This excellent rooftop plaza has acres of tables and a good variety of stalls. Order anything from abalone to banana prawns or numerous varieties of fish, and chase it down with a cold bottle of Tiger. To get here, climb the stairs leading from Jln Padungan to Tapanga restaurant, and keep heading upstairs from there.
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Kohinoor
There are several excellent restaurants along the Waterfront Esplanade, including this Indian place offering comfortable indoor seating and a breezy outdoor patio. Take advantage of their authentic tandoori oven and don’t forget to grab a side of pillowy garlic naan.
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Bla Bla Bla
Spiffier than a pimp’s outfit, Bla Bla Bla brings a splash of Hollywood to Kuching. The tasty fusion food is anything but ‘blah’, and patrons will adore the koi pond and golden Buddhas.
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Kampung Baru Hawker Stalls
Saturday evening is the best time to eat in Kampung Baru, when dozens of hawker stalls set up around Jalan Raja Muda Musa for the weekly pasar malam, which rolls through till early Sunday morning. You can find all sorts of Malay specialities here, from ikan panggang (grilled skate) to rojak (spicy fruit-and-vegetable salad), and the night market positively crackles with energy.
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Junk
The coolest car-boot sale you’ll ever see, Junk is filled to the brim with…well…junk. But it’s all so very chic – when you walk in you’ll think, ‘Did Amelie explode in here?’ A favourite among Malaysian celebs, Bla Bla Bla’s sister restaurant offers superb sophisticated Western food with an Italian bias. A word to the wise: don’t set your watch by any of the wall clocks…
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Sunset Corner
Right near Nazri’s on the plush southern part of the beach, this is the ideal place to split a pizza and sip a cold beer while watching the sunset. Fresh fruit juices are also available for RM5. Happy hour is from 5pm to 7pm.
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Devi’s Corner
A pavement-cafe mood prevails at this food court facing the Bangsar Village II mall. The tray curries are excellent, with plenty of fish, prawns and other seafood. You can get dosa, biriyani and great satay here.
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Old Town Kopitiam
This more upmarket coffee house facing the padang seems to be forever crowded. Simple chicken rice dishes prevail.
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Itroo Cafe
A popular cafe with very friendly service in JB’s colonial district. The best iced cappuccino in Malaysia.
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Jln Alor
KL's biggest collection of roadside restaurants sprawls along Jln Alor, just north of Jln Bukit Bintang. From around 17:00 till late every evening, the street transforms into a continuous open-air restaurant, with hundreds of plastic tables and chairs and rival caterers shouting out to passers-by to drum up business.
Most places serve alcohol and you can sample pretty much every Malay Chinese dish imaginable, from grilled fish and satay to kai-lan (Chinese greens) in oyster sauce and fried noodles with frogs' legs. The best way to experience the food street is to stroll along looking at the signs and the dishes on the tables to see what takes your fancy.
Stalls to look out…
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Café Café
Tucked down the street in the shadow of the towering pagoda, this local hotspot puts a modern spin on the traditional kedai kopi. Excellent local fare (and a smattering of designer coffee beverages) is served up amid bodacious decor and flickering candles.
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Hawker Stalls in Chinatown
Chinatown has some of the best street food in KL. From late afternoon the pavements along Jln Sultan and Jln Tun HS Lee fill with plastic chairs and tables, and mobile kitchens are set up in the street, serving an astonishing array of Malay and Chinese dishes. Many of the food stalls stay open till midnight or later and you can get a filling meal of rice and spicy stir-fried beef with a cold beer for as little as around RM20.
Everything is prepared fresh so the food is almost always safe to eat, but stick to stalls with lots of customers.
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Padang Brown Food Court
Everyone in town knows that this is the spot for delectable popiah (spring rolls) although the won ton mee (egg vermicelli served with pork dumplings or sliced roast pork) and bubur caca (it's pronounced cha cha - don't be so childish - and it's a delicious dessert porridge made with coconut milk and banana) is another good reason to try the food in this area. In the afternoons try the yong tau foo (clear Chinese soup with fish balls, lettuce, crab sticks, cuttlefish and more).
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Restoran Sempelang
Eating outside is a Kota Kinabalu tradition and Restoran Sempelang is a great place to do it - right smack in the middle of the colourful Kompleks Sinsuran. There's a lot to like about this bustling Malay eatery: giant fresh fruit juices, English menu, good seafood barbeque (from 18:00 nightly), a canopy to keep off the rain, and friendly staff. As with other restaurants in the complex, your meal will be accompanied by the ubiquitous pro-wrestling videos.
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a-ha Café
a-ha wouldn’t look at all out of place in any cosmopolitan European capital, and the emphasis is firmly on healthy eating, with organic produce, all-natural ingredients and no MSG or artificial additives, plus a special ‘healthy heart’ menu. Whether you treat yourself to Norwegian salmon, ostrich steak or deer kebabs, or just pop in for a fruit ’n’ vegetable smoothie, a-ha is a rare treat with virtually zero guilt factor. Wi-fi available.
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FMS Restaurant
Upstairs from the FMS Bar, though under separate management, this is a popular Chinese restaurant in an old colonial building adorned with antique prints, porcelain, and a large portrait of the young Queen Elizabeth II. Seafood and beancurd dishes are particularly good, but prices are high. Wave away the 'complimentary' peanuts if you don't want them added to your bill. You'll also be charged for your paper napkin.
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Grace Point
Take bus 15 out near Tanjung Aru for some local grub at this Kota Kinabalu (KK) mainstay. The development is actually quite chic compared to the smoke-swathed food courts in the city centre – KKers joke that the public bathrooms here are Borneo’s nicest (and it’s true!). Go for the Sabahan food stall (located in the far right corner when facing the row of counters) and try hinava.
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La Bodega
This popular, trendy place is four venues in one: an all-day deli cafe serving good sandwiches, a chilled-out tapas bar, a formal dining room, and a lively lounge bar. Good wine and authentic tapas and paella complete the Spanish mood. The new branch at Pavilion KL ([tel] 2148 8018; Level 3, Pavilion KL, 168 Jln Bukit Bintang; open 7am to 3am) is known for its great cooked breakfast.
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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.
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Food Stalls at Lorong Tuanku Abdul Rahman
The best time to visit Little India is during the Saturday pasar malam on Lorong Tuanku Abdul Rahman, the alley between Jln TAR and Jln Masjid India. From mid-afternoon, this narrow lane becomes crammed with food stalls serving excellent Malaysian Indian food, as well as favourite dishes of the Chinese and Indian communities.
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Kedai Kopi Lai Foong
Chinatown has a number of informal hawker-style restaurants, with various food stations serving classic Malay Chinese dishes. Almost all offer fried rice, fish curry, rice porridge, mee (thin noodles, fried or in soup) and tofu dishes - a meal should cost less than RM20. Kedai Kopi Lai Foong is recommended.
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Bonda
Self-styled 'retro' restaurant with a vaguely '60s/'70s décor scheme, including orange plastic chairs and Lonely Planet covers on the walls. Chicken and chips-style dishes are served, alongside the usual rice and noodle options, and there are piles of English magazines to flick through.
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Seri Angkasa
Watch KL pass by from this revolving restaurant atop Menara KL (KL Tower). The very decent lunch buffet (noon and 2.30pm) is RM66.70. Book for evening meals, especially for sunset dining. There’s a dress code, but the staff will provide men wearing shorts with a sarong (to cover the legs).
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Medan Selera Meldrum Walk
Every late afternoon, the little food stalls crammed along this alley (that runs parallel to Jln Meldrum) start frying up everything from ikan bakar to the local curry laksa. Wash down your meal with fresh sugar-cane juice or a Chinese herbal jelly drink.
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Little Italy
Dear homesick holidaymaker; this is your place. Create your own carbo-lode with a variety of saucey tributes to the Bootland. All things considered, it’s a rather pricey endeavour, but it’s definitely worth stopping by if you’re in desperate need of a rice respite.
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