Live, Move, Explore: Kaylah in Kuala Lumpur #3: FOOD

My long weekend escape to Kuala Lumpur was filled with glorious, glorious food. I had heard that food in KL was much better than in Singapore, but I did not anticipate for it to be as wonderful as what it was.

While we were in Kl, we stayed with some friends of which had been living there for the last few years. By staying with people who knew all of the best places to eat and the best dishes to order off the menu was a HUGE help in expanding my palette and getting the most out of our culinary experience whilst in Malaysia.

On the first night we arrived, Friday, we headed to a Japanese restaurant, located at the Publika shopping centre. It was called Edo Ichi. We ordered a delicious array of foods from soft shell crab salad, sashimi, teriyaki chicken, tempura prawns, prawn and crab sushi as well as mushrooms wrapped in beef. Everything was absolutely delicious to say the least. I loved trying out new dishes such as the sashimi and soft shell crab. The food was incredibly flavoursome and tasted incredibly authentic in comparison to anything I had ever eaten when I was living in Australia, which I loved. Even though some of the dishes we ordered we had only simple ingredients, they were executed so well that dining at this restaurant had to be one of the best Japanese food experiences I have ever had.

On our second day in KL, the Saturday, the people we were staying with took us to a Chinese restaurant located about 15 minutes’ drive from the city centre. I am sadly not sure about the name of the restaurant, but perhaps the photos can add some familiarity for my readers from KL. The restaurants layout reminded me of something similar to a Singapore Hawker Centre experience; the plastic chairs and the somewhat squashy eating area. Although, I have fast learnt that these kinds of environments tend to offer some of the best dishes. One of our friends was luckily able to speak fluent Chinese as many of the waiters were unable to understand or speak English.

We ordered soft shell crab, steamed fish (mmmmm), friend rice; always a staple, steamed vegetables, venison; which I had never had before but LOVED and marinated chicken pieces. Something I love about outdoor dining in Asia is that is it so incredibly casual; there are no rules. I do not have to be embarrassed to use my hands to gnaw at juicy pieces of crab. Additionally, all of the food is incredibly affordable for the portions you are given. Through dining experiences such as this, I am able to eat the kinds of foods that the locals treasure and love eating which is something I value highly when travelling to a new destination.

The food at the restaurant was really, really tasty. The portions were massive, meaning that I was able to try a large serving of each dish without the fear of missing out. Totally recommend checking out restaurants similar to this one if you are looking for more of a casual, authentic and cultural dining experience.

Following our extremely casual, outdoor dining experience, we contrasted and went for dessert at the highly acclaimed; Grand Hyatt Hotel. We primarily visited here as I wanted to see the Patronas Towers close up, and get a good view of them in all their glory.

I knew I was incredibly underdressed when everyone around me was wearing high heels and elegant cocktail dresses. But never the less, I was desperate to gaze upon the view and eat some dessert!

For dessert, we were told the servings were generous enough to be shared between two or three people, so my brothers and I ordered two desserts; coconut, pineapple and banana crumble which came with vanilla soft serve ice cream and the signature cake. My mouth waters every time I remember the crumble; it was a heavenly reminder of summer and my love for tropical fruits. The signature cake was exactly as it sounds; grand, amazing and something this restaurant should be incredibly proud of as it was one of the most exquisite, rich and scrumptious desserts I have ever had the pleasure of eating. As it was brought to our table, everyone’s eyes steered towards it; full of wander and similarly to my brothers and I; desire. It came in a glass cake stand, fogged with dry ice. The waiter then poured warm caramel sauce in the centre of the chocolate mousse cake. This was most certainly a cake I thought I only had the capabilities of dreaming of.

My dining experience at the Grand Hyatt was phenomenal; it was also definitely not as expensive as what I had assumed. All the dessert dishes ranged between RM8 – RM40. The dishes were incredibly decadent; it was an experience I will savour and never shy of telling people about. Both the dishes I had the chance of eating where winners in my eyes and I can only hope I will be able to go back to the Thirty8 Restaurant and Lounge at the Hyatt to try many, many more!

The final stop on my culinary journey in KL was brunch on Sunday morning. My family was taken to a café called Antipodean at the Mid Valley megamall. We had to wait about 20 minutes before we got to our table as the line was so long. The restaurant was actually the only busy one at the mall, which definitely signalled as to how good the food was going to be.

The only downside to this restaurant was that it was so incredibly busy. All 7 of us were stuffed into the back corner of the restaurant where it was almost impossible to get out of our seats. Additionally, there was no menu given to you; you had to read it off a large blackboard which was obstructed by other people dining.

Continuing to set my hopes high for my meal, I ordered the banana pancakes and orange juice. I was pleasantly surprised by the servings. It came with three crunchy, golden brown, thick, fluffy, beautiful banana pancakes with a side of butterscotch sauce and fruit salad; definitely more than I bargained for. I even gave one of the pancakes to my brother as I was unable to finish the entire plate! It’s definitely a good sign that you have enjoyed your meal when you leave the restaurant incredibly full. Everyone seemed to love their meals as well, so I recommend this place for anyone with a big appetite and loves homely, comforting, good food.

Leaving KL that afternoon made me wish I was able to spend a longer amount of time there! I had such a blast and loved all the unique experiences I had. It was so awesome to travel to another part of Asia and see things that I cannot living in Singapore. Hopefully I will get to visit again sometime soon!