Serai Cafe — Restaurant in Kuala Lumpur

Serai is a well-known name in the F&B scene, often associated with quality food and a great dining experience. Naturally, expectations were high when I decided to dine here. But honestly? The food was underwhelming, to say the least. For the price we were paying, I expected something more impressive—not just in terms of portion, but in flavour and overall satisfaction. It just didn’t feel like we were getting our money’s worth.

I ordered the Nasi Lemak Pandan, a dish that sounded promising. The plate arrived with a serving of fragrant pandan-infused nasi lemak, a side of crispy fried anchovies, peanuts, and a whole fried chicken leg. Visually, it looked decent, but the first bite told a different story.

The rice, which should have been the highlight, was a letdown. While it had a subtle pandan aroma, it lacked that rich, creamy coconut milk flavour that defines a great nasi lemak. It felt more like plain rice with a slight pandan twist rather than the indulgent, fragrant base you’d expect.

The fried chicken leg was generously portioned, which was nice, but the execution missed the mark. The skin had a decent crunch, but the seasoning didn’t quite penetrate the meat, making it taste rather bland. A good fried chicken should be crispy on the outside and juicy and flavourful inside—this one only half-delivered.

The anchovies and peanuts were standard—crispy and salty, nothing much to complain about. But the sambal, arguably the soul of nasi lemak, was a major letdown. Not only did it lack depth in flavour, but the portion was shockingly small. I just couldn’t comprehend it—imagine having a full plate of rice, a whole fried chicken leg, and all the sides, but barely enough sambal to go around. It felt like I had to ration every tiny spoonful, which completely threw off the balance of the dish.

Overall, while the dish wasn’t bad, it wasn’t particularly memorable either. And for the price point? Definitely expected more. Serai carries a strong reputation, and while the ambiance and service were good, the food just didn’t live up...

Good, authentic Malay food. I was pleasantly surprised that I got to try the nasi uduk, which I hadn't found in other similar restaurants. Enjoyed my nasi kerabu. It comes with solok lada, which was also my first time trying. I wish there was budu, so that it's even more authentic... The chicken for both dishes were very dry, probably overnight and reheated or pre-fried and re-fried before serving. Definitely not freshly fried. The mixed satay was nice, tender and flavorful too. The lamb chop/shoulder was average.

It would've been a better meal if the service was better. Firstly, not a single smile from the host standing in front, to the waitresses. The only slightly friendlier faces were the young chap with curly hair and the cashier. The waitress that brought us our food saw that we accidentally spilled something when she passed us the plate(instead of putting it on the table herself), made eye contact with me, and walked away 🤨 I looked at her thinking to ask her for a cloth to wipe the mess, but decided to clean it up ourselves after seeing her sour face. I guess no more next visit for us. Too bad, because the food is not bad. I'm just not willing to pay almost RM 200 for a meal only to get lousy service. Looking at the other good reviews, I hope the bad service we received was not because of our race as we were the only non-Malays...

Poor service and rude & inattentive staff. First 2 times eating here was great but the 3rd time was the last. When we arrived we were left standing at the front for 5-10 mins. Restaurant wasn't full... There were only 3 tables with customers at the back and 2 staff attending them. Tried to get their attention but they didn't look over. So we just went in, got a table and tried to get the servers attention again but failed. Then one of the servers finally came to the front but it was to seat a family that just arrived. Got up and went to the cashier to get the menus. When the cashier came with the menus we asked her why the servers weren't paying attention to the front and that a server was attending to customers that came after us. Cashier said that we had to wait to be seated by a server and that there was a sign in front telling this. Told her that we already waited to be seated by a server but no one paid attention to the front and how long did she expect for customers to remain standing outside. She started getting argumentative and repeatedly insisted we should have waited outside until a server came and to follow the sign. At this we decided not to order and got up to leave. The cashier made a face and grabbed back the menus and sarcastically said "oh tak jadi pulak nak order". Seems like some staff there need...