kuala lumpur

roti canai and tea tarik at mansion tea stall

roti canai and tea tarik at mansion tea stall

 

Kuala Lumpur is one of those major Asian cities that can be lightly intimidating because it seems too big to have a real personality until you realize (like all cities in the world) that it’s the individual neighborhoods and beautiful people that make the place truly great. I love Malaysia dearly and it’s partially because I was introduced to the country with two weeks spent in KL. Happily will go back to this big, lurvely city again and again.

p.s. check out my post on Penang for a full breakdown of Malaysian food dishes (many of which are mentioned below)

Lil things to note

  • there are loads of 2 foot tall mini prayer houses all over the city (both Chinese and Indian cultures use these here in Malaysia) — it was fun for me to keep an eye out for these anywhere I went

  • KL has an an above-ground and below-ground subway system. the whole system is pretty easy to maneuver and very cheap to use.

  • download the Grab app to hail cars (since Uber is not a thing here)

  • go to KK minimarts and FamilyMart for snacks

Main neighborhoods to explore

  • Chinatown (kinda touristy area but worth going, lots of good food, go to central market)

  • Bukit Bintang (4 major malls here)

  • Chow Kit (local area with big food/wet market)

  • Bangsar (hip area with cafes and shops)

  • Brickfields (little India)

  • Masjid Jamek (has a cool street market on Saturday afternoon/evening)

  • Pudu (go to ICC Pudu for great street food vendors)

  • Kampung Baru (traditional/local area to explore)

Places to go

  • Batu Caves

  • Central Market for souvenirs

  • Perdana Botanical Garden

  • Chow Kit Market

Night markets

  • Jalan Alor (fat brother satay Lok Lok is popular)

  • Petaling (knock off shopping)

  • Pudu Glutton

Malls of Bukit Bintang

  • Sungei wang: old school (90s esque) mall with small cheap shops of clothing, luggage, beauty, etc (skippable)

  • Lot 10: modern, international chains and some nice local stores, good food hall on bottom level

  • Pavilion: a mix of fancy international brands with mid level brands and small cool stores, great food court on lowest level, Japanese shops on level 6

  • Berjaya Times Square: indoor theme park (that we quite enjoyed) and many many levels of mall shopping 

Places to eat

Chinatown:

  • any of the Loong Kee stalls for their honey jerkys 

  • Fat One Lok Lok for satay at night 

  • beef noodles at shin kee 

  • curry laksa at madras lane hawkers (go to busiest one)

  • kedai kopi lai foong is known for beef noodles and clam noodles (la la) but we had other dishes that were also good 

  • chee cheong fun at petaling street (didn’t go but looked good)

  • Ali, Muthu, & Ah Hock Kopitiam for kaya toast and milk tea (Nasi lemak is also supposed to be good)

  • Ho Kow Hainam kopitiam was v busy in the morning (promising)

  • The juice vendor in the food court of central market 

Masjid Jamek:

  • mansion tea stall for roti canai special and tea tarek 

Pudu:

  • ICC Pudu has dozens of amazing street food vendors. We liked everything we tried. Ahfook for chee cheong fun for sure. Egg tarts at the stall toward the back right side. 

Other:

  • Nasi kerabu at chun buri

  • Banana leaf rice at Vishal food and catering 

  • Cendol or ABC at Ah Keong’s ABC

  • ABC at fatty loong abc

  • Bak Kut teh at heng kee bak kut teh or restoran heng kee delights bak kut teh

  • roti tisu at original penang kayu

  • Rojak at rojak Bellamy

  • Prawn mee at restoran yong Len

  • Mr chews chino Latino bar

  • Restoran kam fatt (eat curry laksa)

  • Choca food store