In Malaysia we take our food seriously.
We reckon that food is the first thing that come to our minds when we open our eyes in the morning. Thanks to the multi-ethnic makeup of our country’s population we have the luxury of eating a different dish for breakfast each day of the year with a high probability of not repeating any dish within the next 356 days.
Thus it was a mammoth task to shortlist only 8 Malaysian breakfast choices but we did our best. So here are some examples that you should try when you’re in our beloved city.
Here, we take you through choices 5 to 8. Click here for Top 8 Breakfast Choices In Kuala Lumpur, Part I
5. Nasi Lemak and coffee @ Chawan
One of the main attractions here at Chawan is the availability of 14 different brew of local coffee from different states within Malaysia. If you’re a caffeine fiend, we recommend a few hours of leisure in this airy café. At the corner of the busiest street in the affluent neighbourhood of Bangsar, Chawan offers a good vantage point for people watching and free WIFI for catching up on your online social life.
While you’re at it, transport yourself to the numerous states of Malaysia via its various coffees. At RM3.80 a cup, we recommend that you drink it hot (versus cold) to discover the little nuances that differentiate each brew. A one-pager on the menu book provides a good reference as it explains a bit of each of the coffee served here.
For food, the extensive menu covers most of Malaysian local food and even some not commonly available dishes. One can’t go wrong with the Nasi Lemak. A more unusual dish is Lontong which is essentially nasi himpit (compressed rice) cut into cubes served swimming in sayur lodeh (vegetables such as cabbage, beancurd, tempeh (a fermented dense soycake) cooked in light coconut milk).
Getting to Chawan, Bangsar:
Address: 69 Jalan Telawi 3, 59100 Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur.
Refer map: https://goo.gl/maps/h5mNP
How to get there (Recommended mode): Take the train (Putra LRT) to Bangsar Station. Take a metered taxi from Bangsar Station.
What to wear: Light clothing, shoes.
What to expect: A nice cafe, non-air conditioned. Operational hours: Daily, 8am-2am.
Tips on safety, communication, ordering and directions: There is a pictorial menu and the staff speaks English so it is pretty straightforward.
6. Wisma Genting foodcourt
Our Malaysian Nasi Lemak is sold almost everywhere and consumed at any time of the day. Since it is a “must-try” dish when you’re in Malaysia, we consider it our duty to point out some of the better ones around. This stall tucked in a narrow food court at Wisma Genting hits all the right spot for price, taste and location. There is an enduring queue almost the entire morning for their aromatic steaming hot rice drenched in generous ladlefuls of curry. A basic set consist of rice, hardboiled egg, cucumber, anchovies, peanuts and sambal. Their regulars know best and their sets are always topped up with the signature cuttlefish sambal. We recommend the same! Other alternatives include fried chicken, curry chicken and more.
This stall also offers a good range of traditional Malay kuih and fried noodles as well.
Getting to Wisma Genting Foodcourt:
Address: Wisma Genting, Jalan Sultan Ismail, 50100 Kuala Lumpur.
Refer map: From Raja Chulan Station (Monorail): https://goo.gl/maps/NI0SZ
How to get there (Recommended mode): Take the train (Monorail) to Raja Chulan Station (Monorail). Walk from the abovementioned stations.
What to wear: Casual.
What to expect: A one lane sheltered foodcourt with a row of tables on one side and stalls on the other. Business is brisk, but service is fast. Expect to be packed during morning breakfast and lunch hours.
Operational hours: 7am – 2pm daily. Close Saturday and Sundays.
Tips on safety, communication, ordering and directions:
This is right smack in the city area so it is quite central and there’s good human traffic. Ordering is easy as most of the proprietors speaks English.
7. Yut Kee
This 86-year-old Hainanese coffee shop is one of KL’s most nostalgic kopitiams complete with charming mosaic floor tiles, old dark wooden chairs, round marble tables, old portraits and a hand-written menu hanging on the wall. Both locals and foreigners flock to Yut Kee for its Chinese/Hainanese dishes and its old style Chinese coffeeshop ambiance. Food at best is decent, though admittedly some dishes did fare better than others.
Recommended orders are the Hainanese Pork Chop, the perfectly half boiled eggs with homemade coconut jam (kaya), the roti babi (more because it is unique than for its taste) and the no-frills marble cake which is so basic yet so good.
Getting to Yut Kee, Dang Wangi:
Address: 35 Jalan Dang Wangi, 50100 Kuala Lumpur. Take the train (LRT Putra Line) to Dang Wangi Station or Medan Tuanku Station (Monorail)
Refer map:
From Dang Wangi Putra LRT station: https://goo.gl/maps/0Rz1b
From Medan Tuanku Monorail Station: https://goo.gl/maps/iJX7W
How to get there (Recommended mode): Take the train (LRT Putra Line) to Dang Wangi Station or Medan Tuanku Station (Monorail). Walk from the abovementioned stations.
Update: Yut Kee has recently moved to Jalan Kamunting, just around the corner form the old shop. Read more about it from Time Out Kuala Lumpur here.
What to wear: Casual.
What to expect: A very popular coffeeshop with an extensive menu. Business is brisk, service is fast and there is a perpetual queue for tables during morning and lunch hours.
Operational hours: 8am – 5 pm daily, closed on Mondays
Tips on safety, communication, ordering and directions: This is a pretty busy and safe location in the city area. Ordering is easy as the service staff and cashier speaks English.
8. City One Foodcourt
This hidden Indian and Pakistani culinary gem right in KL City offers a variety of truly authentic mix of Indian and Pakistani food cooked by Pakistani and Indian natives.
Come early in the morning for the freshly rolled chappati (Indian flatbread) and roti paired with a variety of vegetarian and lentil curries on the side; all really lip-smacking delicious and distinctively unique from the fare offered in any other Indian restaurant in town. By lunch time, the food court is abuzz with locals for the delicious tandoori, naan, biryani and banana leaf rice.
One particular stall we would recommend is Hanif Catering. It isn’t hard to spot his stall as it is the busiest one in the foodcourt and for a good reason too. Some of his dishes are not available anywhere else such as the haleem; which he cooks a huge pot only on Fridays and it is a dish made with beef and lentils. It’s full of gentle spices and warm comfort, and an ultimate slow-cooked wonder.
Not even locals are aware of this foodcourt so you are definitely hitting a culinary jackpot here!
Getting to Plaza City One Foodcourt:
Address: Jalan Munshi Abdullah, 50100 Kuala Lumpur.
Refer map: https://goo.gl/maps/0j2zz
How to get there (Recommended mode): Take the train (Putra LRT) to Dang Wangi Station. Walk from Dang wangi Station.
What to wear: Covered clothing; preferably no sleeveless or short. Shoes.
What to expect: This is a foodcourt within a shopping mall that caters mainly to the Indian community so there are a lot of cultural items to be bought here which could make for an interesting shopping experience.
Operational hours: 7am – 7pm.
Tips on safety, communication, ordering and directions: The area has a strong Indian community so it is almost like Little India of KL (other than Brickfields). Curious stares are expected but everyone is friendly. The proprietors speak English so there are no foreseen issues in ordering your meal. Prices are usually shown on the stall or you can just ask the proprietor. Like anywhere else do watch out for your belongings as you navigate the area.
