A Guide to Eating and Drinking in Kuala Lumpur

  Fresh Market Vegetables

Wandering through the streets of Kuala Lumpur, it’s hard not to be struck by the central role that eating plays in the city’s day-to-day life. And it almost goes without saying that, as the capital, Kuala Lumpur leads the way in Malaysia when it comes to the dizzying range of dining options available to the traveler.

The best way of eating like a local is to join the throngs of Kuala Lumpans indulging in the dining culture of ‘mamak’, or at the many ‘warung’ (hawker stalls). This essentially consists of sitting out on the plastic chairs and tables that fill many of the city’s streets and ordering a variety of different Asian cuisines.

The pedestrianized Jl Petaling market in Chinatown is a great place to make for after dark. Here, you can find cheap chicken and rice dishes or ‘laksa’ (curried noodles) and watch the world go by over a few beers. Once you’ve finished eating, you can browse the vast selection of pirate goods that the area specializes in.

To the north of Merdeka Square, Little India is another great place to head for a budget meal. The area around Jl Tar and Jl Majid India is full of places where you can pick up a delicious curry or a type of Indian pancake known as a ‘paratha’. Just as busy and colorful as Chinatown, Little India offers an equally interesting dining experience.

It’s also worth eating in a Malay ‘kedai kopi’ (coffee shop), if only just to try the delicious ‘nasi lemak’. This traditional breakfast combination is made up of coconut rice, beef 'rendang' and ‘sambal’ with crisp-fried anchovies and roasted peanuts.

Kuala Lumpur also has a number of more upmarket restaurants, particularly in the ‘Golden Triangle’ and Bangsar. Really, though, the budget traveler is unlikely to look much further than the food stalls whose sheer number (and the choice they offer) makes eating out in Kuala Lumpur consistently cheap and delicious.

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