Old China Cafe — Restaurant in Kuala Lumpur

Love it!!! Everyone we brought there to try, loved it. Peranakan cuisine in old-style Chinese cafe in KL. At the Chinatown corner. Charming cafe & restaurant serving traditional Malay & Chinese dishes amid antique decor. Some of the older parts of Kuala Lumpur are decaying little by little, but some institutions still stand strong to remind us of the character it once held. A good example of these is the Old China Cafe, a cafe serving delectable Peranakan dishes, slightly off the beaten track in Chinatown.

Previously the premise of the guild hall of Selangor and Federal Territory Laundry Association, the cafe is housed in a heritage pre-war shop house dating back to the early 1900s. The cafe retains its quiet charm, with most of its original furnishings still gracing the interior. Expect to find old Chinese furniture such as marble-topped tables at least 100 years old, and Wild-West-like wooden saloon doors that flap as you push them to enter. Little antique trinkets line the shelves for sale for those who would like a piece of history.

Interracial marriages between Singaporean Chinese and local Malay Muslims ladies during the late 15th and 16th century resulted in the birth of the Peranakan people, and today, because of religious laws prohibiting Muslim Malays marrying other religions, traces of the Peranakan race are becoming a rarity. Blending centuries-old cultures and customs, the Peranakans’ way of life is a reflection of both races, and it is apparent in their dishes – non-halal ingredients such as pork are cooked with Malay flavours, and vice versa. Peranakan dishes are also known to be very rich in flavours, thanks to their spiciness.

In the Old China Cafe, spicy dishes rule the menu and as an introduction, try out their Nyonya pai tee. Crispy deep-fried flour in a shape of a top hat comes with condiments such as bean sprouts, shredded turnip and carrots, and if you’re wondering how to attempt this, here’s how. You stuff the deep-fried flour with the vegetables and top it off with the chilli sauce before eating it whole. Eating pai tee is always a fun affair, and it serves as a great starter, especially during big family dinners.

For mains, we recommend beef rendang and fish head curry, and you can have it with a choice of either plain white rice, or the blue-tinged coconut rice. The cafe’s beef rendang is especially good - tender and spicy, just as how we like it. As for soups, try out the itik tim, which is a duck soup boiled with salted vegetables and lean pork meat, and ginseng soup, a great option for the health-conscious. For RM8.90 per bowl, this is one of the cheapest ginseng soups we have ever stumbled upon in KL.

As for desserts, items such as bubur cha-cha and sago gula Melaka make up the menu. The bubur consists of little cubes of sweet potatoes and taro in a thick sweetened coconut milk served as a nice ending to our pleasant evening of Peranakan fare in the cafe.

Courtesy of...

This Is an unexpected gem of a place that we chance upon, as we got a car park right in front of this shop, and trust me, it is impossible to get a car park on this road. Parking fee is RM1.50/1st hr and RM2.50/2nd hr. Max can par 2 hours only.

Back to those Old China Cafe. We thought it's some cafe selling China/Chinese food, but was surprised it's Nyonya! We just came back from Malacca, and fresh from Nyonya over-dose. Luckily we decided to proceed to try, and we were rewarded with very good food and instagrammable experience.

Nyonya Laksa - normal price is RM14.90 and if come during lunch set meal, you get a decent ice-lemon tea. The laksa is very good, and in fact better than those we have tried so far in Malacca. Curry soup is creamy "lemak" with full body and oomph! Ingredient fresh and generous and the noodle is a little soft but still very good. With the overall generous servings, the price is reasonable and not like what some review state that they are over priced.

Buah Keluak Fried Rice - at last we get to try this labour intensive buah keluak dish. It's the paste that is labour's intensive and not the frying. Time and patience is required to prepare the buah keluak paste, as it is deemed toxic, if not prepared properly.

Anyway, we tried it and.definitely it has a distinct taste that is (in our opinion, not an acquired taste) nice and in fact we love it. Definitely, it's a new taste.and.we.will be savoring other buah keluak dishes in future.

Again, the serving is generous, with a few sizeable small prawns. The rice fried with the paste is well balance and taste very good. The chicken is well marinated, and not dry, despite its breast meat. At RM14.90 with a glass of decent ice-lemon tea, what more can one demand when the food is good and servings generous.

Bo Bo cha cha - was deciding either Bo Bo cha cha or sago gula melaka. Went for bo bo cha, as we have had too much of gula melaka while in Malacca. It is a decent Bo Bo cha cha dessert, in fact better than many we have tried before, as it's not too sweet, and the ingredients are well cooked but not mushy.

On hind sight, though strong recommended by the staff, we should have went for the sago gula melaka to confirm if these guys uses the real mccoy!

Well, we I'll do so on our next visit.

Should you try, YES, definitely.

On the menu, yes,.some dishes seems to be expensive such as petai.sotong is ranging near RM30. Well gotta be fair. Petai and sotong not cheap either.

Hope to try their other dinner dishes on...

Was here for dinner last night, waiter had difficulties in understanding orders placed in English. Ordered a few dishes, Asam Dory fish was absolutely delicious, the souring agent wasn’t too empowering and it balanced well with the curry.. fish was cooked to perfection. Vegetables was somehow rather too bland, lacked seasoning, Chui Pei Tofu was also bland, the minced chicken inside the dish wasn’t seasoned at all, the chicken tasted slightly rubbery and after two bites of it, we decided to not consume it. The other dishes was nothing to shout about. Price wise was rather exorbitant for the portion and food quality. Loved the ambiance. I used to come here every single day for lunch during my college days but the feel isn’t as how it was before. Tables placement were very cramped up, bar seemed very disorderly. Cafe needs tidying up. Severe air conditioning improvements is needed, noticed most patrons were sweating away as it was stuffy and lacked ventilation. Manager / Supervisor wasn’t friendly and website states last kitchen call is at 9.30 but the guy kept telling families that walked in at 8.55pm that kitchen is closed sorry. I was quite shocked watching him turn away families that walked in around that time. It wasn’t even 9pm yet! When I asked him, he said kitchen closes at 9pm, but websites states otherwise! Initially,when I requested to change tables as the table that they seated me at was more for 7-10 pax and it was really uncomfortable, he was visibly upset. Like why? There was only 4 of us. Your charges has to be in line with the quality of service. Pricey food but service level was like a food hawker stall. Miss the old days where the service used to be top tier at this cafe.I wouldn’t patronise this place again if the service doesn’t improve. For tourists that would like to experience good ole’ fashion nyonya fusion food, it’s worth a try. However, I wouldn’t recommend local families to try this place out, with a service like this- I’m sure you would be...