Damansara area guide

Discover the best restaurants, shops, bars and cafés in Damansara

Wednesday 13 January 2016

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email WhatsApp

Advertising

The wide land that is Damansara has the privilege of being both KL and Selangor. It can be confusing – Bukit Damansara for example, is not exactly near the main Damansaras while Ara Damansara is somewhat Subang (and sometimes even Shah Alam). To make things easier for you, we've picked some of the best restaurants, cafés, bars and things to do in each Damansara area.

Damansara Utama

Bars and pubs

The Great Beer Bar

The Great Beer Bar is very easy to like, not least because it has on rotation up to eight craft beers on tap at any point in time. More importantly, a majority...

Restaurants

Battery Acid Club

Here’s another ‘hidden’ café to look out for the next time you’re in the Damansara Utama area. Battery Acid Club’s...

Things to do

I'm So Sleepy

Apparently, when you’ve been awake for over 24 hours straight, driving sleepy becomes as dangerous as driving drunk. If you’ve dozed off at the wheel before,...

Art

Minut Init Art Social

Minut Init welcomes both aspiring and established artists alike regardless of the artistic discipline practised. So whether you do pop, street, or abstract...

Restaurants

Hail's Soft Serve

price 1 of 4

The once-minimalist menu (two soft serve flavours and a variety of toppings) at Hail's Soft Serve is now replaced with a dessert spread featuring waffles,...

Restaurants

Miru Dessert Café

price 2 of 4

Joining the ranks of dessert joints in Damansara Uptown is Miru Dessert Café, a cosy spot that specialises in Shibuya honey toast. The thick, fluffy slice of...

Restaurants

Nara Kitchen & Co

price 2 of 4

Damansara Uptown has a good mix of places to eat – you have your cafés, your hawker stalls and your dessert joints. Run by the same team as The...

Restaurants

Tea Press

After a wave of specialty coffee bars in KL, it's tea's turn in the limelight. For a good dose of Zen, head to Japanese tea house Tea Press at Damansara Uptown...

Restaurants

Village Park

price 1 of 4

March 2009 In the three years I’ve been frequenting Village Park I’ve not once tasted its widely touted nasi dagang, a delicious (or so I’ve...

Restaurants

Fat Spoon Café

price 2 of 4

September 2011 The only thing worse than going to Uptown is going to Uptown at lunchtime. Like Pudu, the area has always invoked an inveterate fear in me,...

Restaurants

POKC

POKC, which stands for People of Kheng Chew (a term to describe Hainanese, or those from the Kheng Chew or Hainan province in China), was launched early last...

Restaurants

Brother John Burger stall

Home of the famous Master Burger (two Ramly beef/chicken patties with egg and cheese), the stall has been manned by Abang John (whose real name is Kahar) for...

Damansara Kim

Restaurants

The Kitchen Table Restaurant & Bakery

Restaurateur Marcus Low and pastry chef Mei Wan Tan draw inspiration from world-renowned bakeries and restaurants to serve up modern American food that...

Restaurants

Robert's Char Kuey Teow Restoran Golden Kim Wah

price 1 of 4

Named after Robert Khoo, the man behind the wok, the char kuey teow here comes loaded with prawns, Chinese waxed sausages, bean sprouts and crunchy pork lard....

Restaurants

IDC (Ice Dreams Café)

price 1 of 4

New Zealand's famous Kapiti ice cream takes centre stage at Damansara Kim's Ice Dreams Café (IDC), where you can enjoy scoops of the rich, creamy ice...

Bars and pubs

The Locker & Loft

Hidden behind a block of beat-up lockers on the first floor of a nondescript shophouse in Damansara Kim is this speakeasy bar. The industrial vibe favoured by...

Bukit Damansara

Things to do

Lorong Kekabu

Somewhere along the quiet hills of Damansara Heights is a corner-lot bungalow that is part gallery, part café – altogether a cool hangout spot....

Bars and pubs

Blue Elephant

This bar lets you work a little for your post-work drinks by being hidden. Look for the trail of posters lining up the walls of the staircase and you’re...

Music

Gaslight Café

If you’re all about reliving the '60s in an Allen Ginsberg, Joan Baez and Bob Dylan kind of way, then make Gaslight Café your new hangout spot....

Restaurants

Way Modern Chinois

price 4 of 4

What separates a good restaurant from a great one is its interpretation of food: The former executes a dish well while the latter successfully translates an...

Restaurants

Yellow Brick Road

price 2 of 4

While some of us miss the old establishments on Jalan Batai, the rest of us can look forward to new places opening up around the area, and the new café...

Restaurants

Kinme Sashimi & Grill Bar

price 4 of 4

April 2014 It’s not very often you come across a good restaurant by chance, let alone a Japanese one that isn’t accented with bamboo. Kinme is that...

Restaurants

Huckleberry Food & Fare

price 2 of 4

Even in its infancy, Huckleberry Food & Fare is shaping up to be one of the best bakery-cafés around. The space is huge; it takes up two shoplots...

Restaurants

Mezze

price 3 of 4

All past visits to Mezze have been planned around my habitual cravings for the Mezze Burger – a monster-sized beef patty topped with pulled pork,...

Restaurants

Sitka Restaurant

Finally, a café that prides itself on local produce. Sitka’s sustainable farm-to-table practices are brought to life by a properly modern...

Shopping

Ben's Independent Grocer at Batai Village

Ben’s Independent Grocer (BIG) opens a second outlet at the newly-revived Jalan Batai. It may not be as spacious as Publika's, but BIG in Batai does...

Restaurants

Raisin’ The Roof

price 2 of 4

Bukit Damansara now has a healthy eats establishment for your #eatclean days. Raisin’ The Roof is located in Plaza Damansara within the same vicinity as...

Restaurants

Babe

price 4 of 4

Japan-born American chef Jeff Ramsey is set to put KL on the map with the opening of Babe, touted as the country's first restaurant by a Michelin-starred chef....

Mutiara Damansara

Shopping

IKEA

The Swedish home furnishing giant offers everything under one roof, everything you need to complete your home with. Buy reasonably priced furniture like sofas,...

Restaurants

Closer Kitchen & Espresso Bar

price 2 of 4

Occupying an unlikely spot in Menara TSR (a short walk away from the Curve) is the geometry-themed Closer Kitchen & Espresso Bar. The space ticks all the...

Bars and pubs

Laundry

Over the years since it was established in 2006, Laundry went from being the go-to live music venue in the city (especially during the Crossborders regional...

Kids

KidZania

An indoor theme park originating from Mexico, KidZania is like a scaled-down town for kids to live out their ambitions or fantasies, whether they’re...

Kota Damansara

Bars and pubs

Olfactory Bulb

price 2 of 4

The all-in-one coffee mixology bar is also a café, lounge and dessert place perched on the first floor of a building overseeing the never-still streets...

Theatre

Markas

The Offday is the brainchild of the power duo that is Irman Hilmi and Deanna Ibrahim. If you’re a fan of the label’s razor-sharp edge to streetwear...

Restaurants

Rakshee

price 2 of 4

Located next to Ahmad & Co is Rakshee for your bakso fix amid stylish surroundings. All decked out in black steel, gleaming white tiles, touches of green...

Restaurants

Erawan

price 4 of 4

Charming and inviting, Erawan serves authentic and fusion Thai cuisine. Owned by two Thai brothers, dishes are carefully prepared with one of the brothers,...

Restaurants

Rak Somtam

price 2 of 4

Food trends come and go, but Thai fare remains a mainstay in the KL dining landscape. As more independent Thai eateries open shop, we made our way to one of...

Restaurants

Rimba & Rusa

price 2 of 4

For your next Instagram-worthy meal, head here, cameras at the ready. From the team behind cafe veteran Wondermilk, Rimba & Rusa has opened doors in Sunway...

Restaurants

Crack Pork

price 2 of 4

Occupying a narrow half-lot, Crack Pork is one of those places that instinctively understand that less is more. Not only is the space tiny, the short menu is...

Restaurants

Wood & Steel

No visit to Wood & Steel is the same – the owners of the café shift their furniture around like they’re playing The Sims. That’s...

Restaurants

The Border City Café and Board Games

Bring friends and roll the dice. There are dozens of board games to choose from here and if it's your birthday, you'll get a free scoop of ice cream.

Restaurants

Ahmad + Co. Coffee and Cigars

Owner Asnawi Rahman knows a thing or two about design – this coffee and cigar bar is some of the prettiest among a slew of openings this year. With ideas...

Ara Damansara

Restaurants

Double A

price 2 of 4

If you’re in the quiet side of Ara Damansara (Pacific Place) and need a cake fix, drop by Double A, owned by husband and wife team Alia and Aiman....

Restaurants

The Royal Flush

price 4 of 4

Helmed by the same group behind the successful Tom, Dick and Harry’s, The Royal Flush is an opulent three-storey restaurant with many regal virtues:...

Restaurants

Crazy Crabs

The team behind Tom, Dick & Harry’s and The Royal Flush has turned to the sea for their new culinary venture, Crazy Crabs. Aside from the...

Restaurants

Ali, Muthu and Ah Hock

The Malaysian kopitiam has been undergoing a metamorphosis of sorts. They are no longer the grungy slop shops that we knew and loved. In their places are...

Damansara Jaya

Shopping

Atria Shopping Gallery

Damansara Jaya residents will definitely remember the good old days of Atria (apparently parties at The Piccadilly inside Atria were all the rage –...

Restaurants

Chuup

price 2 of 4

Chuup serves the kind of food your nanna would cook if she was hip. There are neither salted egg mash-ups nor pasta flecked with crab meat, just local comfort...

Restaurants

Spitalfield's Gastrobar

Named after a market in London, Spitalfield’s Gastrobar aims to introduce classic British food along with a unique drinking experience at its industrial...

Sport and fitness

Jazzercise Damansara Jaya

Gyms like Jazzercise are reframing the idea of ‘fitness’, introducing a workout regime that fuses cardio with resistance training, yoga, pilates,...

Restaurants

Second Sunday

A café capable of making those dreadful weekdays seem like a lovely weekend is Second Sunday, which features an exciting brunch selection prepared by...

Restaurants

Clawset Café

price 1 of 4

If there ever was a café to wet your nose and melt your heart, it’s Clawset. Founded in November 2014, Clawset was opened with the idea to create...

Restaurants

Nasi Lemak Kak Sanah

There are long lines, and there’s the line at Nasi Lemak Kak Sanah. The 15-year-old operation gets so popular on weekends that fans with less patience...

Restaurants

Inside Scoop

price 1 of 4

Inside Scoop churns out some of the best ice cream in the city. Owner and in-house ice cream churner Shiew Li uses gelato techniques to achieve full-bodied...

Damansara Perdana

Restaurants

Metal Box

price 2 of 4

When Ryan Cheah first clapped eyes on the lot in up-and-coming Empire Damansara that was to be Metal Box, he was sold – tucked into a corner on the...

Restaurants

Seven Cups

One of our favourite coffee openings in recent months is tucked in Empire Damansara’s quiet hallways. Seven Cups is a calm, clean space with light...

Theatre

Damansara Performing Arts Centre (DPAC)

This new peforming arts space looks set to be a major venue for theatre and dance shows in KL. The centre features four rooms, namely Theatre, Black Box (a...

Restaurants

The Curious Goat

This new Damansara Perdana corner is run by three friends – Nathaneal, Andy and Kevin – who trained at Coffee Société. The boys use a...

Music

Playspace

Playspace is a performance venue by Tempered Mental frontwoman Melina William, Anthony Yap and Cathy Chin. The venue is not limited to just musical...

Restaurants

Haraju Cube

price 2 of 4

After Shibuya-style Japanese honey toast has generated long queues in Tokyo, Taiwan and Thailand, Haraju Cube founders Daichi Fukuzato and Kent Ong decided...

See more area guides

Things to do

Bangsar

Bangsar has gone through many phases – unobtrusive residential area, clubbing haven, arts and culture quarter, and now, café district. From the...

Things to do

Hartamas

Populated by expatriates and upper middle class families, Hartamas is fancy – even its name says so (‘harta’, treasure; ‘mas’,...