During our stay in Langkawi, we really only ate in Pentai Cenang where we were staying. While there are a number of food options, we weren’t overwhelmed by the choice of restaurants available to us, with lots of options over-priced and not so inviting. In saying that, there were a couple of gems we found like the below. Yasmin was our pick of the food choices, with the Roti at Restoran Almaz hard to beat.
Orkid Ria Seafood
We’d read about this place online and after eating there can see why. Pantai Cenang is covered well and truly in the ‘live seafood’ restaurant options, and why the idea of fish being kept in tiny tanks until you pick to eat them, really doesn’t do it for me, we gave this place a whirl.
We learnt some lessons dining here. First rookie mistake, didn’t ask the price of the tiger prawns. Second rookie mistake, ordering four instead of the minimum order of three. We also got mixed veges, a small fried rice and Thai-style mussels and this was definitely too much food and cost us way too much. But, it was good. The garlic prawns had a crispy batter, the fried rice was tasty and the mussels were delicious. Eat here, but check the prices before ordering, keep in mind the large portions and set a budget. We learnt the hard way.
Lot 1225, Pantai Cenang, Mukim Kedawang, 07100 Langkawi, Kedah, Malaysia
Yasmin Syrian
When you think of a Malaysian island like Langkawi, Middle-eastern food doesn’t jump to mind, but Pentai Cenang seems to have an over-abundance of it. With more than one ‘Arabic’ option, we chose to eat our final dinner in Langkawi at a Syrian Restaurant, Yasmin.
Hands down the best meal of our stay. We over-indulged and we’re not proud of it, but when you’re offered more of the freshly cooked, warm flat bread, how do you say no? For the two of us, we ordered the mixed appetiser and then the whole cooked chicken. It probably would have fed four people. Nothing like a food coma to finish your final meal at a destination.
Kampung Lubok Buaua,07000 Langkawi, Kedah Malaysia
Restoran Almaz
So just over a month in to our trip, we realised that we may be over-indulging in the food stakes and we came up with a new rule. Only one ‘expensive’ meal a day. This meant looking for cheap and delicious breakfast options. At the end of the shops on the main road of Pantai Cenang is Restoran Almaz. They make roti. They make lots of things, but roti was our staple breakfast while we stayed here.
The Cheese and Egg Roti was the roti of choice, topped off with an iced Milo. They didn’t seem to do a coffee option, but that could just be down to our ignorance. Breakfast was about RM 11, or NZD $3.50 each morning, meaning we could have more dinners like the one we had at Yasmin.
Kampung Lubok Buaya, 07000 Langkawi, Kedah, Malaysia
Fishbone
We’d had a decent lunch, so wanted something simple for dinner, and as shameful as it is, something western. You couldn’t get more ‘kiwi’ than ‘Fish and chips’ and that’s what we got here. Good batter on fresh fish and a nice serving of chips.
The chef here loved what he did, offered good travel stories and chatted to the other diners who were there as well. This place is bigger than a market stall, but not quite a restaurant, so pick a night where it doesn’t look like it’s going to rain and enjoy the Al Fresco dining.
2 Jalan Pantai Chenang, 07000 Langkawi, Kedah, Malaysia
Yellow Beach Cafe
It’s another ‘must’ according to other travellers and while we didn’t eat here (ran out of meals), we made sure we came here for a drink. They had a decent choice of wines for a Malaysian restaurant and the best location for watching the sunset. Located right on the beach, they are perfectly poised for the early evening beverage and have bean bags on the beach for the perfect relaxing option. Note, they’re closed on Tuesday. We first went there on a Tuesday and found this out.
Jalan Pantai Tengah, Pantai Tengah, 0700 Langkawi, Kedah, Malaysia
Cocktail Bar on the beach
We don’t know the name of this place but Google suggests it might be Lavazza Café. It was dark and there was no name in flashing lights, but this place was a sweet spot for an after dinner cocktail. It’s a chilled out bar towards the right end of the beach (head towards the beach behind Fishbone). They serve slightly different drinks to the standard menu (keeping it classy), as well as wine and beer. Couldn’t think of a better place to listen to Fat Freddy’s Drop on a Tuesday evening.
115 Persiaran Mutiara 2, Kuah, 07000 Langkawi, Kedah, Malaysia
YamYam
So one exception to eating in the main town, was at Yam Yam, just down the road at Pantai Tengah. If you happen to be exploring around here like we were, I’d say this seemed like the best café option if you’re looking for a coffee or a bite to eat. The beach area seemed a little sad and the restaurants were hardly bustling (the joys of travelling off-peak).
We went for a coffee each, and while I had an amazing looking nacho-style salad, Mike went for one of the filled baguettes. Not the cheapest meal you’ll find, but we enjoyed the café and free WiFi.
Jl. Teluk Baru, 07000 Langkawi, Kedah, Malaysia
