For the fastidious picky travelers, food is always a top concern when traveling abroad. Personally, I am also a bit difficult to eat (but not a fastidious person at all), so I often learn about the cuisine of the destination before each trip. In order not to miss the “must eat” dishes and choose for yourself the most palatable menu. Malaysia and Indonesia are among the countries with the cuisine that does not suit my taste. However, I still found the best list of good food to try when I visited these two “neighbors”. And of course, careful preparation has never let me down. So, what to eat in Kuala Lumpur (what to eat in KL)? Let’s check out our suggested best eats in KL (best eats in Kuala Lumpur) with 10 best food to eat in KL (best food to eat in Kuala Lumpur) including best local food in Kuala Lumpur, best street food in KL, food must eat in Kuala Lumpur, food must try in KL (food must try in Kuala Lumpur, must try food in Kuala Lumpur), Kuala Lumpur what to eat, must eat food in Kuala Lumpur and best places to eat them to find out the answer! If you are wondering what to eat in Kuala Lumpur, here is a list of 10 foods you should try when coming to KL.
- Best street food in KL — Top 10 best street food in Kuala Lumpur & best places to taste them
- Best infinity pools in Kuala Lumpur— 10+ best Kuala Lumpur hotels with infinity pool with breathtaking views of the city
- Top rooftop bars in KL — 13+ best sky bars & best rooftop bars in Kuala Lumpur
- Kuala Lumpur travel blog — The fullest KL guide for first-timers
- 2 days in Kuala Lumpur itinerary — How to spend 48 hours in KL & what to do in Kuala Lumpur for 2 days?
Don’t just only think about eating. Remember to prepare train tickets or car rental in advance & the Internet to make your trip convenient – economical!!!
Internet: Telephone roaming service packages when traveling abroad are quite expensive, especially 4G roaming data service. A sincere advice for you is to buy 4G tourist sim which very convenient and economical. Depending on the itinerary of your trip to choose the appropriate sim, if you go to Malaysia and Singapore, you should buy the sim because to connect the free wifi at Changi Airport – Singapore requires a sim with a confirmation phone number to be able to access. Link to buy sim below:
- Malaysia 4G travel sim package of 7 days: [SALE] 4G SIM Card (MY Airport Pick Up) for Malaysia.
- Singapore and Malaysia 4G travel sim unlimited data access
Transportation: I recommend you choose the subway. The subway in KL is relatively modern, fast and quite easy to use for those who do not have much experience with this type of vehicle. However, if you go to Malaysia in large groups and the arrival time to land at the airport is late, you should book a private transfer service in advance from the airport to the KL center. And don’t forget to experience the 2-storey bus service to visit the city again, I find it quite interesting.
- KLIA Ekspres Airport Train Tickets (QR Code Direct Entry).
- KL Hop-On Hop-Off Sightseeing Bus Pass (24/48 Hours).
- Private Airport Transfers (KLIA/KLIA2) for Kuala Lumpur.
Done, below are what to eat in Kuala Lumpur, best eats in Kuala Lumpur with 10 best food to eat in Kuala Lumpur, best local food in Kuala Lumpur, food must eat in Kuala Lumpur, food must try in Kuala Lumpur, famous food in Kuala Lumpur you definitely should eat.
Best food to eat in Kuala Lumpur: Nasi Lemak
When you coming to Malaysia you definitely must eat Nasi Lemak. This is the national dish of Malaysia and other Southeast Asian countries like Singapore or Indonesia. Going to Kuala Lumpur without eating Nasi Lemak is like going to Saigon without eating the famous Saigon bread around the world.
It can be said that Nasi Lemak rice dish has become a “specialty” culinary culture of Malaysia. The recipe is also very simple: Rice cooked with coconut milk, served with cucumber, roasted peanuts, dried fish, dried venison, chili sauce, sometimes with chicken, beef, seafood or lamb curry. Try it out!!!
Where to eat? – Nasi Lemak Famous (Address: Food Truck located on, Jalan Telawi 4, Bangsar, 59100 Kuala Lumpur, Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia / Hours: 5PM–5AM; Sunday: Closed).
What to eat in Kuala Lumpur? Ikan bakar
If fish is not your favorite food, you should still try Ikan bakar. Fresh fish, delicious sauce along with top grilled fish skill have created a delicious grilled fish. So hungry!
To process ikan bakar grilled fish, Malaysia people choose fresh fish, fresh fish is cleaned and then marinated with many spices such as chili sauce, salt, fish sauce, … Let the fish for about 15 minutes for infuse spices, place fish onto a layer of banana leaves below and grilled on charcoal. When cooked, fish has a very attractive aroma, flying aroma makes it hard to resist. Ripe fish has a very attractive golden color.
Where to eat? – Kedai Kak Jat (Address:Gerai No 3, Lorong Bellamy, Bukit Petaling, Kuala Lumpur, 50460 / Hours: Daily, 11am-3pm).
Best food to eat in KL: Roti canai
Roti canai is made from flour mixed with chicken eggs and butter, thinly coated then fry until gold on both sides. Enjoy the best when the cake has just been made so will be better. The outside of roti canai is fluffy, crunchy, soft and slightly chewy. To enjoy roti canai for delicious and attractive, it is indispensable for chicken curry.
You can buy this cake everywhere in the city. But if you want enjoy the best roti canai, go to Valentine Roti (Address: Stor No. 1, Jalan Semarak Opposite Menara Celcom, 54000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia / Hours: 5PM–2AM; Sunday: Closed). This roadside eatery with over 20 years old and has never stopped crowded for over 20 years. Is that enough to trust?
Food must try in Kuala Lumpur: Ramly burger
The Ramly Burger brand was founded in Malaysia in 1984 by Haji Ramly Mokni. As such, the name Ramly is named after the founder of this famous burger.
A special feature of Ramly Burger compared to other common burgers is that Ramly Burger uses extra fried eggs wrapped around the meat. Thanks to the addition of this creative fried egg, the traditional Malaysian burger becomes greasy and tastier.
Ramly Burger is so famous and popular that you can easily find it in street stalls. In addition to shopping centers, convenience stores, Ramly Burger is also sold in the type of street food, so this is a dish that is widely consumed by Malaysians every day.
Convenient and affordable roadside burger is a symbol of Malaysia. Eating Ramly Burger at Brother John Burger Stall – Damansara Uptown. Try the famous Master Burger of the shop: two pieces of beef, Ramly chicken with eggs, cheese and black pepper sauce.
Food must eat in Kuala Lumpur: Banana leaf rice
Banana leaf rice – so friendly to remember, haha. KL has turned this South Indian dish into a Malaysian dish with more local flavors and ingredients.
Banana leaf rice is a rustic specialties in Malaysia, the meaning of this dish is the same as its name. That is, rice and other side dishes are all placed on banana leaves. Malaysians usually eat hand-picked with this dish, so you can also try it.
Kuala Lumpur what to eat: Brown sugar appam
This dish is fermented rice flour cake which includes coconut milk and brown sugar. This snack is also quite good to try when coming to KL.
Must eat food in KL: Char siew
This dish is called grilled pork with honey. I believe you will love this dish if you spend a few days in KL. When you feel too greasy with chicken, everywhere you go, you will find it is full of chicken and curry. Looking at the plate of meat will make you feel happy as if rediscovering the homeland for so many days. Hahaha …
Best local food in Kuala Lumpur: Chicken rice
Loke Yun is a famous Hainanese chicken restaurant in KL. KL never lacks chickens. That’s the truth that I enlightened to after several wandering around in this city. Luckily, this dish is not fried chicken, so it is not greasy!
Famous food in Kuala Lumpur: Hokkien mee
Hokkien mee is a dish in Malaysian and Singaporean cuisine that has its origin from Fujian province, China. In its most popular type, the dish consists of yellow egg noodles and rice noodle that stir-fried with eggs, slices of pork, shrimp, squid, and served vegetables, small pieces of lard, Sambal sauce.
I named this dish as KL black soy sauce noodles. Of course, It’s not like Korean black soy sauce noodles. Try to feel the difference!
Best food to eat in Kuala Lumpur: Celdon
Celdon desserts are also quite famous. Shaved ice combined with coconut milk and green cendol pandan jelly creates a special delicious flavor.
Some best day tours, trips, activities and transfer services, tickets in, to from Kuala Lumpur you can refer to
- Private Airport Transfers (KLIA/KLIA2) for Kuala Lumpur
- Shared Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Transfers for Kuala Lumpur
- Premium Private Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Transfers
- Private Transfer between Genting Highlands and Kuala Lumpur Airport (KLIA/KLIA2)
- Shared Bus Transfers between Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 and KL Sentral by AeroBus
- Kuala Lumpur Half Day City Tour
- KL Pass in Kuala Lumpur
- Kuala Lumpur City Full Day Tour
- Kuala Lumpur Suburbs and Batu Caves
- Kuala Lumpur Food Experience
- KL Hop-On Hop-Off Sightseeing Bus Pass (24/48 Hours)
- Genting Highlands Day Trip
- KL TravelPass (Metro Card) in Kuala Lumpur
- [SALE] 4G Prepaid SIM Card (MY Airports Pick Up) for Malaysia
- 4G WiFi (MY Airport Pick Up) for Malaysia
- KLIA Ekspres Airport Train Tickets (QR Code Direct Entry)
Are you looking for more Kuala Lumpur travel guide and top things to do in Kuala Lumpur: Tours, activities, attractions and other things? Read more: Kuala Lumpur in a day — What to do & How to spend 24 hours in Luala Lumpur perfectly? And What to eat in KL & where to eat in KL? — Top 10 Kuala Lumpur must eat food & best places to try them.