Our 5 favourite cheap eats in Langkawi
Eating cheap, particularly in Asia doesn’t mean that you can’t eat well. In fact it’s usually the opposite. Some of the tastiest and most authentic dishes can be found from street vendors and small local restaurants alike. You may even have heard of legendary Bangkok street food stall vendor Jay Fai who hit the headlines in 2018 when she was awarded a Michelin star for her famous crab omelette stall!
I did a guide a few years ago for our Top 5 Asian food destinations and now that we’ve been back in Langkawi for a few months and sampled a couple of places that are new to us I wanted to share our 5 favourite places on the island to get a great bite to eat.
1. AMMACHI TASTE INDIAN RESTAURANT
Area: Kuah
Taking top spot is Ammachi Taste. It offers up the best Indian food we have ever found on the island for an amazing price. They even give some of the great places in Penang a run for their money!
The restaurant is small, simple and clean with staff that are friendly, attentive and welcoming. During the day they offer up a fantastic array of Nasi Kandar style options as well as Thosai with various sauces and chutneys. You also get unlimited poppadum’s to scoop it all up with if that’s your thing. On an evening it’s more of the same great choice but they also offer up a second menu of individual main dishes that are cooked to order. We have tried all options and non of them disappoint.
Ammachi specialise in Southern Indian cuisine which means some of their dishes are generally more spicy than those from the North. If spicy isn’t your thing then don’t let that put you off. They have such a wide array of both meat and non-meat options that it caters to all tastes.
So what sets Ammachi apart from the other similar Indian options in Langkawi and indeed all the cheap eat options that are available on the island?
First and most importantly is the flavour and quality of the many dishes available. They use good quality ingredients and take pride in the quality of their food, it shows. Non of their dishes are too oily which you find in many similar places on the island, the consistency of the sauces and flavours on offer are of a very high standard. Some are punchy, spicy and packed with flavour, others such as the potato dishes are subtle and equally as complex in terms of taste.
They are Halal friendly so you wont find any pork options available but they do have a great range of chicken and mutton curries to choose from. The non meat options are widely varied and they have several tofu curries to choose from that pack in incredible flavours.
If you get flavour and quality right your going to be popular and Ammachi is a very popular place indeed with both locals and visitors. They have a high footfall through the small restaurant and because they are managed and ran very well they have a constant supply of fresh dishes being brought out to replace those running low. Food doesn’t sit around here for long and that makes it incredibly fresh compared to some of the other Nasi Kandar places we have eaten at.
Consistency is hugely important to us when it comes to food. When you have a great meal somewhere and go back again you want to have the exact same experience you got the first time it impressed you. We eat there once a week now no matter where on the island we are staying and every time we visit the dishes and quality are consistently good. I can’t recommend this place enough. If your on the island you really need to get along and check it out.
Price The pictures you see are the usual amount we get when we visit and yeah I know it’s quite a lot, but that’s just because it’s so good and fills us up for the day. For what you see we pay 10 RM each (£1.70) which is fantastic for a plate of food like that. There’s just one thing to note that caught us out once. If you choose one of the mutton curries it’s considerably more, around 20 RM for a similar plate. The mutton is lovely but now we always stick to the chicken options.
AMMACHI TASTE is located HERE
2. JoMakan Langkawi
Area: Cenang
JoMakan is only open on an evening and shares the same restaurant space as Tony’s corner that operates there during the day. We’re a long time fan of this great little eatery. During Covid it was one of our regular places to go and grab a take-away. What you get here is cheap high quality local tasty food. Some of the dishes are a fusion of Thai/Malay and it works very well.
For us JoMakan offers the best Tom Yum on the island and trust me we’ve tried a few. JoMakan’s Tom Yum is pretty damn close to what you get in Thailand and that’s no mean feat. In fact if I was served it in Thailand I wouldn’t question it at all when it comes to good authentic flavour. The ingredients are fantastically fresh and just like any good Tom Yum should it packs a punch in the spice department. You can grab a delicious bowl of it for just 8 RM with rice or upgrade to the set which comes with a prawn omelette for just 10 RM, outstanding value for money.
The menu here has the right amount of options. We don’t like places that have a huge extensive menu as that can quite often mean that quality suffers. A good compact menu is where it’s at for us as it usually means that they do a modest range of options very well. That’s what you get at JoMakan.
The stand out thing for me is that you can tell they seriously care about the food they serve. You wont find fast food here brought to you in under a minute but you will get a lovingly prepared dish that is thoughtful, balanced and nicely presented. They are very friendly and welcoming and I’ve even see them prepare dishes that are not on the menu when a customer asks to be surprised with something good! For me that shows you are getting a chef, someone passionate about food. All that for the great price it is and you’ve got yourself a cracking deal.
Price Just 8 RM (£1.35) for a great Tom Yum with rice. Other dishes are a similar price up to around 10 RM (£1.70). If you fancy a drink with your evening meal they don’t serve beer but are happy to let you bring your own along.
JoMakan is located HERE
3. Warung Corner
Area: Cenang/Temoyong
Our favourite little Warung serving up our favourite local soup.
Warung corner is a lovely little family place not far from both Cenang and Tengah on the main road out to Temoyong. This no frills eatery serves the best Mee Rebus we have been able to find for just 5 RM a bowl.
This dish is our local favourite and consists of nice chunky noodles with a thick sweet potato gravy that oozes a sweet dark flavour. You’ll find red chilli in here to give it a kick and a good squeeze of lime cuts in to the sweet richness of the soup to give it balance and a zesty kick. It comes with either chicken or beef and it’s a big hearty bowl of joy.
The menu isn’t huge but they also offer Laksa for the same price which is decent and several western style dishes such as spaghetti bolognese for 8 RM. They are decent enough for the money but for us this place is all about the Mee Rebus.
Price 5 RM – 8 RM (84p – £1.35)
Warung corner is located HERE
Bella’s
Area: Cenang
Bella’s is a bit different to the other places we like but it still ticks all the right boxes for the money. It’s very popular with locals and visitors offering both local and Western options that are great as a morning after the night before pick you up. It’s cheap and cheerful fare that fills you up and lines your stomach for the day ahead.
After trying a few things there over the years we usually now choose the same usual suspects every time we visit. From the Western options we get the chicken burger with consists of a nice whole piece of tender and moist well grilled chicken. You wont find any reconstituted nonsense here just a nice single piece of chicken breast in a bun nicely charred with salad on top and fries on the side, it’s a staple winner at just 12 RM. From the local side of the menu we usually grab a Nasi Goreng daging Merah for 8.50 RM. It’s slightly sweet and spicy with a slick red sauce and plenty of flavour from the coriander and lemon grass. It’s a little more oily than what we usually go for but not as much as other places and once mixed in with the Nasi Goreng it’s exactly what your body needs after a few beers the night before.
Another dish here well worth a mention is the curry mee. You get a huge bowl of curry noodle soup for just 7 RM that sets you up nicely for the day. Bella’s is a great option if your looking for somewhere right on Cenang strip that knocks out some hearty food to sort you out on a morning.
Price Dishes from 6 RM up to 15 RM (£1.00 – £2.50)
Bella’s is located HERE
New Water Garden Hawker Centre
Area: Kuah
Water Garden in Kuah has been a round a long time and has always been popular. On a night its a single restaurant with tables set out on the pavement but during the day it’s collection of individual stalls all specialising in different local dishes. We go in the daytime to grab something quick and easy.
For us there are several stalls that stand out as offering good food for good money. If your looking for your fix of pork then the pork rice ninja at the corner is where you need to be. He serves up succulent pork slices on rice with a splash of soy and a chilli garlic dip to go with it. He serves different cuts of pork and I recommend asking for the BBQ pork which is beautifully sticky and juicy. Your pork fix will set you back 10 RM (£1.70). If pork’s not your thing then he also serves up chicken rice with the same trimmings for 8 RM (£1.35).
2 stalls along from him is the white curry noodle lady. She’s a bit of a character and before you know it you’ll have her Whatsapp number so you can message ahead and reserve your curry! The curry is really flavoursome and different from the other curry mee’s we’ve had in Langkawi. It’s incredibly popular this one and can be sold out and closed by 11:30am so I suggest getting along early if you fancy this one, or get her number for next time and order ahead. A great bowl of curry soup will set you back 10 RM (£1.70).
Another couple of stalls along from white curry you will find a lady serving up Tom Yum noodles with Tofu. It’s a bit of a strange one this as it’s not really like Tom Yum at all but it’s got a flavour and for 7 RM (£1.20)a portion you can’t go wrong. There are several other stalls here that we’ve tried before but these are now our regulars. If your headed along I’d make it your breakfast/early lunch choice as once the stalls are sold out they shut up shop.
Water Garden is located HERE
