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HainaneseDang Wangi
Yut Kee, founded in 1928 on Jalan Dang Wangi and now on nearby Jalan Kamunting, cooks Hainanese chicken chop and roast pork roll in Kuala Lumpur.
OrderHainanese chicken chop and the roast pork roll with apple sauce.
TipThere is no queue line: give your name and party size at the front counter and wait to be called; weekend mornings fill fast.
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IndianBangsar
Sri Nirwana Maju's banana leaf rice, ladled with fish curry and rasam, draws lunchtime queues on Jalan Telawi in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur, most weekdays.
OrderBanana leaf rice with fish curry, rasam and fried chicken.
TipCome hungry and ask for extra rasam; the queue outside moves fastest right at the 11:30 opening.
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MalayKampung Baru
Nasi Lemak Wanjo has sold coconut rice, fried chicken and sambal from a Kampung Baru cafeteria counter in Kuala Lumpur since 1963, open until midnight.
OrderNasi lemak with fried chicken, sambal and boiled egg.
TipAdd the ayam rendang to the base plate; the house sambal leans sweet, with a chilli heat that builds slowly.
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Nasi kandarBangsar
Original Kayu Nasi Kandar's Bangsar branch banks curries over rice around the clock, one of Kuala Lumpur's busiest nasi kandar counters after midnight.
OrderMixed rice with fried chicken, squid sambal and mutton curry gravy.
TipAsk for a splash of two or three curries over the rice; the mutton curry is the strongest of the lot.
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Indian VegetarianBrickfields
MTR 1924 serves the same Bangalore-style dosas and filter coffee in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur, that earned its Michelin Bib Gourmand recognition.
OrderMasala dosa and filter coffee at the walk-in counter.
TipSpice mixes, coffee beans and ghee come from the Bangalore central kitchen, so order the filter coffee with a dosa.
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NyonyaChinatown
Old China Cafe has plated Nyonya laksa and mee siam inside a Chinatown shophouse in Kuala Lumpur since 1997, in a building that was once a trade guild hall.
OrderNyonya laksa, pie tee and the blue rice nasi lemak with Nyonya chicken rendang.
TipLook for the saloon doors at the entrance, which are more than 70 years old, and the twin mirrors set for feng shui.