Turns out food courts are still cool

No really, I’m not kidding. Forget the restaurants, head to the malls. It’s the best variety and prices that you are going to find. And if malls aren't your thing, there are versions of food courts where you can skip the mall all together. There are these wonderful, if slightly questionable-looking, freestanding food courts. They are open-air pavilions with a collection of food carts all around the perimeter and tables set up in the middle. Most have fans to cool you off and attendants who will come sell you drinks right at your table! The lack of walls and English menus might make these sorts of places seem like a bad idea but trust me they're great!

Malaysia is a food adventure of its own. The mix of Malay, Indian, and Chinese cultures in the country means that you can find food from each of these culinary traditions as well as the creole dishes created from mixing some (or all) of them together. Then you add in Thai and Japanese food just for fun and you can eat until your heart is content J

I typically ordered food by pointing at a photo, or the food itself, which means I don’t know the names of most of the dishes I was eating. But in the three weeks I spent in Malaysia I can only think of one dish I didn’t enjoy, so I think the pointing system worked out well. Although I can offer one word of caution if you’re like me and can’t handle spicy food (Read: I am a huge baby when faced with a chili pepper). I was careful to ask “not spicy?” every time. This worked out in varying degrees of success. Turns out my definition of “not spicy” and another person’s definition of “not spicy” can vary greatly at times, but generally speaking it helped me avoid the mouth scalding, hell-broth that lurks in the dark corners of many menus.

 

Before traveling to Malaysia, everyone I met who had already traveled to the region told me to expect awesome food and Malaysia certainly didn’t disappoint!