Nasi Ulam Cikgu @ Kampung Kraftangan, Kota Bharu

Price Range: Budget

Cuisine: Nasi campur, Kelantanese style

Halal

If lunch doesn’t count to you if rice is not involved, then you’d appreciate this fuss-free eatery famed for rice with ulam and assorted lauk (like the legendary giant keli!)

Kopitiam Kita @ Jalan Pengkalan Chepa, Kota Bharu

Price Range: Budget

Cuisine: Kopitiam fare

Halal

The best breakfast to kickstart your morning in Kota Bharu ought to be a wholesome meal of Roti Titab and a cuppa smooth, rich Kopi O!

Ayam Kampung Publika @ Damansara Perdana

Price Range : Budget

Cuisine : Malay  

Catphobia-Friendly? : Yes, despite it being open air!

Halal

We were having this discussion the other day on the ultimate test to see whether someone truly knows you or not: if they can buy you a plate of nasi campur that contains all the lauk you would’ve picked yourself, you’ve got yourself a soul mate!

Anyways, on a slightly unrelated note...for a less daunting nasi campur dining option, check out Ayam Kampung Publika! 

Sukiya @ Kota Damansara

Price Range : Budget 
Cuisine : Japanese (Fast food) 
Recommended For : Casual meals 
Catphobia-Friendly? : Yes 

The bright facade of Sukiya caught out attention and drew us in for dinner a few nights back; welcomed warmly by very Japanese-sounding staff, we stood at the self-service counter and had fond flashbacks of Yoshinoya! 

Veggies Gyudon

Nasi Beringin @ Menara Mutiara Bangsar

Price Range: Budget

Cuisine: Malay

Recommended For: Nasi campur for the indecisive

Catphobia-Friendly?: Oh yes! 

We never knew such a famed eatery lies hidden in the second-floor food court of Menara Mutiara Bangsar! Lucky for us, we had Malaysia's top food expert to shed light on this hidden delight =) 

Thank you MTS for the awesome suggestion! 

Call for Nominations: Time Out KL Food Awards 2013

It's that time of the year again! 

Yes, Raya is indeed around the corner, but we're referring to another exciting event that's also got us pumped: the Time Out KL Food Awards! 

The awards, which honour the best of the best food finds in the city, are all the more exciting due to the fact that the nominees are all voted by the public! What better way to get to know the best restaurants in town than through the eyes of its seasoned dwellers? Plus, the shortlisted restaurants make an awesome makan-makan to-do list! Here's last year's list for your reference. 

Nominations are now open until 31st August 2013, so head on over to the voting page and enlighten Kuala Lumpur on your favourite food haunts! Categories this year include Best Cheap Eats, Best Healthy Eats, Best Place for Coffee, Best New Restaurant and many more. (We had a hard time picking just one favourite restaurant for each category, traipsing from one insanely scrumptious memory to another, but pulled through somehow). 

Happy voting! =) 

Kedai Makan New Eastern @ Jalan Abdullah, Muar

Price Range: Budget 
Cuisine: Kopitiam 
Recommended For: A trip down memory lane 
Catphobia-Friendly: Yep! 

Ever watched a P. Ramlee film and crave that beef steak he's having in one of those restaurants with them private booths? Well, we've found just the place for you! 

 

Kopi 434 @ Jalan Maharani, Muar

Price Range : Budget

Cuisine : Coffee   

Recommended For : A taste of Muar's famous coffee    

Catphobia-Friendly? : Yes

Came across this little nook on one of our random Sunday daytrips, this time to this rather bustling Johorean town. After a nostalgic lunch and mini tour around town, only one thing could complete our day. If you guessed coffee, you know us too well =)

One of the best moments in life is, undeniably, stepping into a coffee house and having that waft of roasting coffee just hit you! When in Muar, Kopi 434 is the place to have your caffeine fix. It is easily noticeable along Jalan Maharani with its bright yellow façade. What’s great about this place is that you can choose to have your drinks ‘espresso style’ or ‘local style’.

Durian Desserts @ Kafe Happy Meal, Jalan Tun HS Lee

Price Range : Budget 
Cuisine : Desserts
Recommended For : To-go durian fix 
Catphobia-Friendly? : Not too many cats in these streets, thankfully 

And suddenly, durian crepes seem to have risen over to claim the title of the fad food of the moment (remember the cupcakes and macaroons obsession?) and is now being sold on every other online bakery. The thing about fad foods is, well, how would you know which ones are really good and which ones are just riding along on the dessert's sudden fame? 

Arumugam's Naan & Tandoori @ Ampang Point

Price Range : Budget

Cuisine : Naan & Tandoori  

Recommended For : A simple dinner out 

Catphobia-Friendly? : No! There’s a chief cat amongst the cat clan here about the size of Richard Parker  

We’re pretty sure this naan place, despite its immense fame for reputably having the Best Naans in Town, is actually nameless. Some call it ‘that naan place opposite Ampang Point’, some ‘naan sebelah Galeri Guitar’, and some fondly refer to it as Uncle Aru’s. The lack of an official name does nothing to deter its steady flow of customers: mention ‘naan in Ampang’ and undoubtedly this is the first place that will pop to mind.

Restoran ZZ Sup Tulang @ Jalan Petri, Johor Bahru

Price Range : Budget

Cuisine : Malay (Johorean)

Recommended For : A sampling of one of Johor’s greatest culinary treasures

Catphobia-Friendly? : No. If you’re afraid of cats, better to sit at shacks with chairs rather than at the shacks where you have to sit cross-legged on the floor

Mee rebus tulang is synonymous with the southern state of Johor, and we took advantage of our quick stop in JB by sampling a bowl (or two). Yes, you can find places that sell mee rebus tulang in KL, but nothing comes close to what we had at Restoran ZZ Sup Tulang.

Recipe: Pumpkin Soup

Pumpkin soup is probably one of the most satisfying things to have, and yet requires minimal effort to make! Here's how! 

Laksa Janggus @ Kg Perlis, Balik Pulau

Price Range : Budget 
Cuisine : Malay 
Recommended For : A pit-stop on a scenic round-island trip 
Catphobia-Friendly? : Yes, much to our surprise! 

No gastronomical visit to Penang is complete without a bowl of laksa! With its thick sour-spicy gravy stock-filled with poached-then-flaked fish, it is no wonder that Penang Assam Laksa was awarded #7 of the World's 50 Most Delicious Foods 2011, as compiled by CNN Travel. 

Ikan Bakar Din @ Kepala Batas, Seberang Perai

Price Range : Budget

Cuisine : Malay

Recommended For : Diet off-days

Catphobia-Friendly? : Not really (there are always a few fish-craving cats on standby)

If you’ve got a hankering for some ikan bakar and you happen to be in Seberang Perai, we only have three words for you: IKAN BAKAR DIN! To be completely honest though, it’s worth going to even if you’re all the way in Kuala Lumpur and just felt like having some good, succulent grilled fish (not necessarily practical, but not necessarily illogical either. Well...in our books, anyway! =P).

Coconut Shake @ Padang Kota Lama, Georgetown

Price Range : Budget 

Cuisine : Indian (drinks and snacks) 

Recommended For : Pit-stop while touring Penang 

Catphobia-friendly? : NO! 

This is about the best thing you can get on a balmy day in Penang! The coconut shake (RM2.50) is especially phenomenal when you’ve spent the afternoon trudging under the blazing sun from one attraction to another.

Quan Ice Cream & Coffee House @ Pandan Indah

Price Range : Budget

Cuisine : Asian, Western, Desserts

Recommended For : A wholesomely satisfying meal

Catphobia-Friendly? : Yes, thankfully!

There are some places that are just too darn awesome that you don’t even know where to even begin gushing about them... Quan Ice Cream & Coffee House’s range of foods far exceeds its humble name, ranging from rice dishes, to rainy-day-friendly soup noodles, to surprisingly commendable Western favourites. As if the mains are not attractive enough, they also serve an extensive line of desserts, plus super interesting beverages!

Backofen @ Desa Sri Hartamas

Price : Budget (for now*)

Cuisine : Austrian bakery / cafe

Recommended For : Middle of the month coffee/desserts sessions

Catphobia-Friendly? : Yes

When was the last time you paid RM4 for a good cup of latte? Exactly our point: Backofen’s prices are ridiculously cheap for the quality they uphold!

Angsana Risoles @ Kelana Jaya

Price Range : Budget

Cuisine : Malay (Snacks)

Recommended For : Sinful treats to be tapau-ed back to the office for teatime

Catphobia-Friendly? : It actually is!

It seems that every time we lunch at Kuay Teow Auntie Gemuk, somehow or other we will end up at Angsana Risoles, somehow or other we will be returning to the car with a heaving brown bag full of piping hot risoles, and somehow or other the brown bag is emptied much too quickly. It’s as if we’ve fallen under a spell… of risoles?

Sate Madura @ Jalan Masjid, Kayu Ara

Price Range : Budget 
Cuisine : Indonesian (Madurese)
Recommended For : Satay cravings
Catphobia-Friendly? : At times, yes =)


Sate Madura is, quite simply, one of our favourite Indonesian discoveries. Madurese cuisine is similar to East Javanese cuisine, probably due to their geographical proximity: it is characterised by the omnipresence of kicap manis and liberal usage of chilli in its dishes. 

Nasi Ayam Garing @ Batu 8, Jalan Gombak

Price Range : Budget 

Cuisine : Malay 
Recommended For : A cheap pit-stop on the way back from Genting
Catphobia-Friendly? : Nooooooooo! *cowers in fear*


Yep, going to Genting may be fun. From roller coaster rides, to snowball fights, to breathtaking theatrics, it seems like the fun never ends in this city in the sky. But one thing that really gets on our nerves about this place is how overpriced the food can be! As a consolation to all the cash that will inevitably be spent here, we highly recommend having a budget yet yummy dinner on the way back!