Mere minutes away from the city center, this little Malay village is lost in time. One of the oldest collection of villages in Kuala Lumpur, Kampung Baru was identified as an agricultural settlement in 1900 so that the Malay locals could retain their village lifestyle close to the city. The charm of its people and their cooking stands against the test of time. It is hereditary to be a food lover here.
We recommend jumping on the LRT in the late afternoon and hoofing it for this foodie adventure, as the narrow lanes and haphazard parking of the locals are hard to get used to easily. The road rules here are fairly international, with each road requiring that cars switch from driving on the left side of the road to the right quickly, hard to navigate without losing some sense of normalcy. Being car-bound also makes it hard to access some of the better roadside stalls.
Surrounded by urban development, the architecture here is mostly untouched
Exercise patience when searching here, as some of the usual opening hours may vary on the weather, the patronage of customers, and the fickle whims of the cooks. Some may feel uncomfortable in this strange yet wonderful environment, but we assure you that the folk here are friendly and helpful, and rightly proud of their food.
Suraya Seafood Kampung Baru
Settle down under a fan as the weather can get rather tepid here, and the open-wall concept of this restaurant lets in only a slight breeze. The servers are shy and little quiet here, but the food is anything but.
A short ways away from the Kampung Baru LRT station
The kangkung belacan has an amazing depth of flavor, complimenting our plates of nasi goreng kerabu with a bold sweet and savoury tinge of spice. Our bowl of tom yam sotong was tart with ripe tomatoes, and hot enough to bring a tentative flush to the cheeks, it was swimming with perfectly executed chunks of squid, firm pieces that avoided the common elastic-band syndrome.
These suckers look good
We finished the meal off with pulut mangga supplied to the restaurant by a sister stall. Slices of mouth-puckeringly sour mango were placed atop a plate of creamy white coconut and fragrant pandan glutinous rice. Every dish we ordered here fought for the center of attention, and was happily unapologetic about it.
Also gluten-free despite it's name!