30 cafes across 2 cities. All Malaysia guides.

Food tours and tastings to book

Best rated on GetYourGuide and Viator first, weighted by reviews, from the cities on this list. One per city.

Everything to book in Kuala Lumpur, Penang

All 30 cafes

Ranked by our editors.

Ome by Spacebar Coffee

Ome by Spacebar Coffee hand-brews drip coffee in a spare Penang shophouse and placed 56th on the 2025 World's 100 Best Coffee Shops ranking.

Details

Yut Kee Restaurant

  • ★ 4.4
  • Kopi with kaya and butter toast
  • Dang Wangi
  • Kuala Lumpur

Yut Kee Restaurant, founded in 1928 on Jalan Dang Wangi and now on Jalan Kamunting in Kuala Lumpur, pours kopitiam coffee beside Hainanese chicken chop.

Details

Norm Micro Roastery

  • ★ 4.4
  • House-roast filter coffee
  • George Town
  • Penang

Norm Micro Roastery roasts in an industrial-chic heritage shell on Church Street Ghaut, the Penang cafe where brunch plates match the coffee program.

Details

Toh Soon Cafe

Toh Soon Cafe grills kaya toast over charcoal in a Campbell Street alley, the Penang kopitiam breakfast locals have queued for since the 1950s.

Details

Ho Kow Hainam Kopitiam

Ho Kow Hainam Kopitiam has poured cham and served kaya toast in Kuala Lumpur since 1956, now with a fourth-generation owner on Jalan Balai Polis in Chinatown.

Details

Constant Gardener Coffee

  • ★ 4.3
  • Single-origin chocolate drinks
  • George Town
  • Penang

Constant Gardener Coffee pours espresso and single-origin drinking chocolate inside the Penang Chinese Chamber of Commerce building on Light Street.

Details

VCR

VCR has poured specialty coffee from a two-storey house on Jalan Galloway in Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur, since 2013, alongside an all-day brunch menu.

Details

Feeka Coffee Roasters

Feeka Coffee Roasters occupies a shophouse on Jalan Mesui in Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur, roasting its own beans for the daily all-day menu here.

Details

ChinaHouse

ChinaHouse links three heritage buildings between Beach and Victoria streets into Penang's longest cafe, with about 30 cakes on the counter daily.

Details

Yi Feng Restaurant

  • ★ 4.1
  • Salted cham ping with cheese foam
  • Taman Overseas Union
  • Kuala Lumpur

Yi Feng Restaurant runs a bright, modern kopitiam in Taman OUG, Kuala Lumpur, pouring curry laksa and salted cham ping topped with cheese foam.

Details

Coffee Stain by Joseph

Coffee Stain by Joseph has roasted and poured specialty coffee at Publika, Kuala Lumpur, since 2012, alongside a full all-day brunch menu here.

Details

The Alley

  • ★ 4.1
  • Single-origin pour-over
  • George Town
  • Penang

The Alley opened in 2013 as one of Penang's first specialty coffee bars, still pulling single-origin pours and frying churros on Stewart Lane.

Details

The Mugshot Cafe

  • ★ 4.1
  • Bagels with homemade yogurt
  • George Town
  • Penang

The Mugshot Cafe bakes chewy bagels for fresh coffee and jars of homemade yogurt on Chulia Street, Penang's long-running backpacker breakfast anchor.

Details

Urban Daybreak

Urban Daybreak opens at 07:30 with Australian-style brunch on Lebuh Bishop, the earliest proper flat white and waffle service in central Penang.

Details

Ali, Muthu & Ah Hock

Ali, Muthu & Ah Hock revives a 1960s kopitiam look in Kuala Lumpur Chinatown, plating nasi lemak ayam alongside teh tarik and mee rebus daily.

Details

Botanica+Co

Botanica+Co sits under two Ficus trees at Bangsar South, Kuala Lumpur, a light-filled cafe serving brunch, cakes and specialty coffee daily.

Details

LOKL Coffee Co

LOKL Coffee Co sits near Masjid Jamek in Kuala Lumpur's historic city centre, a Melbourne-style cafe pouring house-blend specialty coffee daily.

Details

Antipodean Cafe

Antipodean Cafe serves Australian-style flat whites and all-day brunch on Jalan Telawi 2 in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur, the Bangsar branch of a small local chain.

Details

Artisan Roast

Artisan Roast runs a cosy coffee bar in Taman Tun Dr Ismail, Kuala Lumpur, roasting its own beans for long blacks, cakes and kombucha daily.

Details

Narrow Marrow

  • ★ 4.0
  • Tiramisu and craft sodas
  • George Town
  • Penang

Narrow Marrow runs a skinny Beach Street shophouse from afternoon into the night, Penang's art-crowd cafe with six tiramisu flavours on the counter.

Details

Kraffmen

Kraffmen plates Melbourne-inspired brunch, pastas and pork ribs in a spare modern room off Burma Road, Penang's most reliable all-day western kitchen.

Details

Wells Cafe

  • ★ 4.0
  • Japanese and Nordic style roasts
  • George Town
  • Penang

Wells Cafe brews its own Japanese and Nordic style roasts at the Hin Bus Depot art yard, the natural Penang coffee stop before an Au Jardin dinner.

Details

Yitcha Kaw Kaw Kopitiam

Yitcha Kaw Kaw Kopitiam in Sri Petaling, Kuala Lumpur pairs white coffee with Portuguese tarts and Ipoh-style shredded chicken hor fun noodles.

Details

Jia Kopitiam

Jia Kopitiam in Setapak, Kuala Lumpur is pork and lard free, serving nasi lemak and Hainan coffee alongside kaya butter toast and croissants.

Details

House of Wheat

House of Wheat in Chow Kit, Kuala Lumpur, bakes sourdough loaves with a thin crust and a soft moist middle, serving them alongside Melbourne style cafe food.

Details

Urban Daybreak

Urban Daybreak on Jalan Telawi in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur, serves Southern inspired brunch plates and strong coffee in a cozy, sit-down neighborhood cafe.

Details

RaRa Coffee

RaRa Coffee's Desa Sri Hartamas outlet in Kuala Lumpur serves an Asian and Western all-day menu of donburi, burgers and chicken chop plates.

Details

Harper Comfort Food

Harper Comfort Food is a sister-run cafe at Plaza Damas in Sri Hartamas, Kuala Lumpur, pouring filter coffee with wholesome breakfast plates.

Details

% Arabica

% Arabica, the coffee brand from Kyoto, pours espresso, batch brew and pour over on Level 2 of Pavilion Damansara Heights in Kuala Lumpur daily.

Details

Chapel Street Café

Chapel Street Café hides on Medan Lim Cheng Teik with build-your-own breakfasts and generous fusion plates, the quietest morning room in Penang.

Details

More across Malaysia