Old China Cafe

Visited Old China Cafe while exploring the area. We tried the nasi goreng, chicken curry with rice, and teh tarik, which was really yummy ☕🍛. The cafe itself is nice, though it can get crowded at times. Food is affordable, but honestly, nothing extraordinary compared to the hype.. the chicken curry had fewer pieces than expected and portions were on the smaller side. Overall, a decent spot for a casual meal if you’re in the area.

The place exudes an old-china charm, making it an inviting spot to savor a meal. The menu offers a delightful selection of Peranakan cuisine. The nasi lemak with rendang is a flavorful and satisfying dish, while the chicken rendang is enjoyable but not overly abundant. The sambal belachan fried rice has a distinct belachan flavor, though it lacks the desired spiciness. The fried chicken, unfortunately, falls short in terms of taste, but the belachan chilli on the side adds a touch of flavor. The chili is a bit salty, which is a minor drawback. The okra is crunchy and well-cooked, complemented with the same chili that adds a subtle spiciness without being overpowering. The roselle drink is quite refreshing. Overall, this place is a decent option for those seeking Peranakan food. It’s worth trying if you find yourself in the area.

Old China Café is one of those rare places where you don’t just eat, you travel back in time. Set inside a 1930s shophouse, the atmosphere alone is worth the visit. Wooden floors that creak softly, ceilings darkened by age, and walls covered with old calligraphy, watercolours, and black-and-white portraits of KL’s early Chinese community, it feels like stepping into a living museum that still smells of coffee and nostalgia. The menu beautifully reflects Malaysia’s mixed heritage, offering everything from Nyonya dishes to classic Chinese and Malay favourites. I started with a rosella drink: fragrant, tangy, and refreshing (yes, I ate the flowers too!) followed by a bowl of ginseng soup that was pure comfort in liquid form. To finish, I tried their Melaka-style kopi, rich and aromatic with cocoa and buttery milk on the side. It was indulgent, satisfying, and perfectly matched the old-world setting. Service was friendly and unhurried, the kind that lets you linger and soak in the atmosphere. If you’re looking for a place in KL that combines heritage, flavour, and character, this café is it. Definitely one of my favourite food experiences in the city.

There are 2 Old China located about 500m from each other. This is Old China Cafe while the other is Warong Old China. Warong been around for years and more spacious. But Cafe is easier to get parking. Highly recommend their Baba Curry Chicken.

Compelled to write a raving review. Such good service. Free drinks, free desert. All for waiting just 15 minutes for my meal. Which I believe is completely standard. Food was sensational and the service was five star

This place came highly recommended from a local so we were excited to try it out. They definitely need to update their opening and closing times on here because we turned up just before 9 thinking we still had 2 hours to go before closing but they told us they will be closing soon and they would let us in but we need to order fast, and can't stay long. So that was disappointing as we felt quite rushed. The food itself we thoroughly enjoyed and I love the vibes it looks like we have been transported back in time. But we had to eat very quickly and couldn't enjoy our meal or the atmosphere.

Old quaint cafe and staff were friendly. The food was disappointing for Malaysian fare. I ordered the Hokkien mee and wasn’t satisfied. You can see from the picture that it’s not the dark black thick noodle.

This shop serving up authentic Nyonya flavors! We went for the curry fish head 🐟🔥 and fried tofu 🍴— both super tasty and the portion was more than enough for 2 pax. 😋 Definitely worth coming back for! ✨

This place wowed me from my first peek from the street. The decor is old style Chinese with classical tables and chairs. Quite pleasant to fine while walking in china town. Just absolutely love the dining room. The food was an explosion of flavors. The Precious Nasi Lemak presentation was art like. The coloring of the rice with pea flower essence really accentuate the dish with color. The Nyonya Laksa was not as visually enticing as the Precious Nasi Lemak but the flavors are just as good. The curry mixture is so complex and rich from the coconut milk, loved every bite. The coffee deserves special mention. Roasted with cocoa, leaves a robust coffee that I have not had before. I regret not getting a second cup to go. The service was friendly and efficient.

TLDR: traditional style Malay Chinese food Service was good. Food was delicious. Nice area with lots to do.

Nice ambience and a touristy spot next to Chinatown. The service is good, and the Nasi Lemak was really good. The rest of the dishes were okay. They refer to their cuisine as Nyonya style of cooking. However my Fried rice was mostly just that, fried rice and a fried chicken leg. I won't mind stopping by once from a touristy perspective but won't be my go to joint in KL. Also, apparently their credit card machine was broken, and I had to pony up RM that I was saving for the cab ride. If you are planning to pay by credit card, definitely confirm with them first.

Highly Recommended for tourist, great variety of local food. Nice ambient and authentic food.

Everything we ordered was good. Service was okay. We had nasi lemak, Nasi goreng, Curry chicken, pineapple shrimps, and Sambal Belacan. They were all very flavourful, except their chicken was a bit undercooked. They were quite pink inside which got us a little worry. Love their ice white coffee. So good! We also tried their Malacca blend coffee, presentation were adorable. They take card and cash. They were rushing us to sign the bill at the end though, didn't even give us time to double check the bill.

I would recommend this place if you are a newbie to Malaysian food. This quaint cafe has a very classical styled decor, so, there are plenty of photo ops. The food choices are decent, however, I believe that the level of spiciness is kept at a minimum as most of their clientele are foreign tourists. I spotted a few locals requesting for chilli (my table included). I was very delighted with the dessert! The sago gula melaka was very good for the price of RM6.90. Their tiny bowl of Santan Durian set us back RM13.90, however, the seedless and sweet flesh mixed with santan gives the dessert an enhanced smooth texture. Very enjoyable though kinda pricey for something so small.

Old China Café is a heritage restaurant in KL, and possibly one of the oldest restaurant to be operating in the city. It looks its age, which isn't a bad thing at all. They've hung a lot of old photos and displayed many nostalgic décor items that have aged together with the restaurant. It's nice when you need a quick trip down memory lane. However, I think the standards of food there have gone down. Back in the day, Old China used to serve really good Nyonya-Chinese food. But these days, things are a little sloppy. The flavours aren't as robust and the menu change doesn't help. The staff are a bit abrupt which I also don't appreciate in a setting that's supposed to ignite fond memories. I'm also bummed that they closed the tea house on the first floor. It used to be a nice respite from the heat and noise of the city.

Walking around KL, we stumbled upon Old China Cafe (OCC) near the Police Station. Having heard of OCC before, we decided to walk in and give it a try. The setting inside is beautifully done, with antique tables and chairs adorning fresh flowers. OCC is quite dimly lit, which gives it a rather calming ambiance overall. We only snacked and ordered drinks this time around. The drinks weren't fantastic; my watermelon juice was not chilled and lacked sweetness. The OCC white coffee was not bad though. I tried the Lemongrass drink for the first time, and I must say I'm not a big fan of the lemongrass taste as a drink. It's served with a small pot of sugar syrup which did not made the drink any better for me. We also ordered a plate of lobak (meat roll with vegetable). I am not very keen of OCC's lobak because the skin was too crisp and there weren't enough meat in the rolls. The chilli sauce which was meant to enhance the flavour didn't seem to bring out any. However, the fried noodle which the table next to us ordered looked pretty great, but we were already too stuffed to down another plate of carbohydrates. The waiter who served us was friendly and efficient, which made our experience at OCC a little better. I might just go back to try out their other dishes the next time I'm around the block. Getting here via public transport is convenient. Just drop off at the Pasar Seni LRT Station or get off the bus when it has arrive at Pasar Seni. Then walk through Chinatown, cross the main road, walk through a row of shops and at the end, turn left. The police station will be on your right. Old China Cafe is your left as you continue walking.

I didn't quite know what to expect of this Old China Cafe but when I stepped into this cafe... It was pretty awesome. Old push-swing doors, black and white photos, etc - the setting created a very warm ambiance with lots of nostalgia feels. Looking at the menu, I thought the prices were quite alright but considering we weren't hungry, we only went for drinks and an appetizer to share. I had the OCC White Coffee which was just average. My friends had the watermelon juice and fresh lemongrass, both of which were below average I thought. We had the lobak appetizer to share - again, was quite disappointed. However, I think I would like to go to this cafe again because I really like the setting - and maybe, I will try their main dishes and hopefully, they won't disappoint.

I was on assignment that day and found this little restaurant that caught my attention. I told myself I am having lunch here once I get my assignment done. I managed to finish my assignment early and found my way there for my nasi lemak lunch. The interior of Old China was dimly lit but it create relax atmosphere. Old antique furniture are placed as decorative and if I am not mistaken for sale too. As soon as my nasi lemak arrived, I went into my world of indulgence but soon came back to reality when the first spoon was fed into my mouth. The rice, sambal and condiment was just alright but the chicken was overcooked. Too dry and tasteless. Another disappointing nasi lemak. Look forward and move on to the next nasi lemak adventure.

I wanted to try Nyonya-Chinese while visiting in KL and Old China Cafe seemed like a safe and easy option thanks to a plethora of food blogs recommending it plus providing a list of must have dishes. Unfortunately, they were out of the pie-tee which I was really looking forward to trying. To start we had the spring rolls (the waiter kept insisting that we get these and although I protested, they were the best dang spring rolls I have ever had), and the ikan bilis which was loaded with salty umami flavoring. For mains we had beef rendang, chicken with lemon sauce, siu yook devil curry, nyonya laksa, and the lemak nenas prawns, all served with fluffy coconut rice. My favorite dishes were the siu yook devil curry and the nyonya laksa. It was a sad moment for me when that nyonya laksa bowl was empty!! I agree with other reviewers that the dishes labeled as spicy could have been spicier but it was nothing a little extra chilis couldn't fix. The lemongrass drink was wonderfully refreshing, as was the ice cold jug of beer. Service was friendly and the waiter even made sure we got our order in before a group of 10 so we wouldn't have to wait. Overall, an excellent meal in an adorable location.

Good food, Good prices, respectful service colourful establishment, would go again! Right off of Petaling street!

This is a beautiful restaurant that deserves more attention. I am glad the next door Ali, Muthu & Ah Huk was closed for holiday. The decor is so beautifully done to make you feel you are really in Old China. The food was very good, and service was very attentive, yet casual. Every detail about this place is just lovely (check out their beautiful open toilet upstairs). I think it is also a good sign that there are a lot of Chinese people here. I had a great time, definitely coming back here.

I was so excited for this meal. It had been a long time coming. Two years ago on vacay in KL I heard Old China Cafe was one of the tastiest, most beautiful, historical etc etc. But each time we tried something got in the way.. our last night we arrived too late and were turned away at the door. Cry! So two years later, back in KL and Old China Cafe is first on my list. I'm sooo happy as we sit down, the restaurant is so calm, clean and perfectly fitted out with antique furniture and soft lighting I feel like we're in Instagram. We sip tiger beers and order our favourites: laksa and beef rendang. And Chinese veggies for balance. When the food arrives I actually applaud a little bit and "yaaaay!" like I'm on a Japanese variety show. So happy. I watch my husband try the laksa. "Umai!" I taste it and agree - yum! Lime(kalamansi?)-zingy coconut soup filled with all the tasty things - half a boiled egg, shrimp, fish cakes, soft fried tofu, chicken. Perfect. Next, the rendang. The first taste and smell is amazing - coconut and lemongrass heaven. Then I chew. Huh?! The beef is thin-sliced and tough, like an overcooked stir fry. Well, at least the flavor is amazing, I think. But this is definitely NOT beef rendang! How could they mess up such a staple dish? I asked the waiter if it was different to their usual rendang. Don't know what I was expecting him to say - they ran out of amazing melt-in-your-mouth slow-cooked perfection so they whipped up this chewy substitute at the last minute? He answered that they also had a chicken rendang. Not sure if my question was lost in translation or not, but yep, chicken rendang. Go for the chicken rendang. I read in some other reviews that Old China Cafe isn't what it used to be. Ahhh if only we'd made it in two years ago, before they got sloppy with their beef rendang.....

It was not the first time I was misled by reviewers with minimal knowledge about Malaysian food, but Old China Cafe beats all my other bad experiences by being both truly atrocious and expensive. Old china cafe was very dimly lit and the interior looked dark even with a hot blazing afternoon daylight outside. The service was nonchalant and the waiters avoided looking at the dining tables in case a diner needed service. The diners were all foreign except for a group of men looking like owners or shareholders. The fried chicken pieces in lemon sauce were small, over fried, tasteless, and the lemon sauce was watery and tasted diluted straight from a supermarket bottled sauce. The beef rendang was anything but. Tiny slivers of tasteless fatty beef served in Chinese stir-fried style, it was very dim but we could tell that the dish was off-coloured, and of course, tasteless. The coconut rice was served in Nonya-style bluish colour and it was ... you might have guessed ... tasteless. The menu is very expensive for a run-down setting in a tourist-trap area of KL, the lack of local diners was already a worrying sign at the outset. I'm not here to do anybody any favours, thus, its your money if you want to squander it here. I've done it so you don't have to.