Restaurant in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Michelin-recognised Hakkanese at bargain prices.
A 2025 Michelin Bib Gourmand shop in Taman Sri Sinar that has been serving authentic Hakkanese cooking for over 20 years. The lui cha — a green soup of ground sesame, peanuts, and mint — is the dish to order. At a $ price point with a 4.3 Google rating across nearly 800 reviews, it is the most cost-effective Hakkanese meal you are likely to find in Kuala Lumpur.
Hor Poh Cuisine is the right call for food-focused travellers who want to eat the way Kuala Lumpur actually eats: at a no-frills shop in a residential neighbourhood, spending very little, and leaving with a clear understanding of what authentic Hakkanese cooking looks like. If you are planning a meal around atmosphere, service, or a private-dining setup, look elsewhere. But if your priority is flavour and culinary context at a price point that makes a second visit the same day technically feasible, this is one of the better decisions you can make in KL. The 2025 Michelin Bib Gourmand confirms what regulars in Taman Sri Sinar have known for over two decades: the food here earns its queue.
Hor Poh Cuisine sits at 36 Jalan 6/38d in Taman Sri Sinar, a quiet, unremarkable part of Kuala Lumpur that most visitors would never find without a specific reason to go. That specificity is the point. The shop has been operating for more than 20 years in the same spot, serving the same Hakkanese dishes to the same neighbourhood, plus an expanding circle of food-minded visitors who have followed the Michelin signal. The energy inside is busy rather than loud — the sound of a working kopitiam-style operation, not a destination restaurant performing busyness. Expect close tables, communal seating, and a pace that is set by the kitchen rather than the front of house. This is not a place that quiets down at the edges for private conversation; it is a place where everyone is focused on what is in front of them, and the ambient hum of a packed local lunch spot is part of the experience.
The cuisine is Hakkanese, a Chinese dialect group tradition with deep roots in Malaysia, particularly among communities in Selangor and the Klang Valley. The Hakka table is defined by preserved ingredients, ground grains, and dishes that reward patience: fermented tofu, braised pork, and above all, lui cha. At Hor Poh, the lui cha is the dish that draws the crowd. It arrives as a sheeny green soup — made from ground sesame seeds, peanuts, and mint leaves , served alongside steamed rice. The result is nutty and aromatic, and the preparation is labour-intensive enough that finding it at this quality and at a $ price point is genuinely useful information for anyone building a Hakkanese eating itinerary across Malaysia or comparing it to Hakkanese cooking in Taiwan, such as what you find at Niou Jia Juang in Taichung or May Snow Hakka Food in Taipei. The Hor Poh dumpling , dried tofu, garlic, and pickles wrapped in a thin skin , runs a close second in popularity. Both dishes demonstrate the kitchen's control over seasoning and texture without requiring any culinary theatre to back them up.
The group and private dining question comes up quickly given the Bib Gourmand profile, and the honest answer is that Hor Poh is not configured for it. There is no private room, no group-booking infrastructure, and no concierge layer. What exists is a busy shop floor where groups can sit together if they time their arrival well, but coordination is entirely self-managed. For a food-focused group , say, four to six people who want to work through the menu and compare dishes , the setup is fine. For a business dinner, a celebration, or any occasion where the room itself needs to do some work, this is the wrong venue. In that case, DC. by Darren Chin or Beta are better fits. Hor Poh's group value is specifically in shared discovery of a cuisine that most tables will not have encountered at this level of authenticity.
Bib Gourmand, which Michelin awards to venues offering good food at moderate prices, is the most relevant credential here. It does not imply starred-level technical refinement or a tasting-menu format; it implies that the kitchen is doing something worth going out of your way for, at a price that does not require justification. For Hakkanese cooking in Kuala Lumpur, that is a meaningful signal. The Google rating of 4.3 across 789 reviews reinforces consistency rather than suggesting the occasional brilliant meal surrounded by misses. Both data points point in the same direction: this is a reliable, food-forward destination that has sustained quality for over 20 years.
For explorers building a broader Malaysia eating trip, Hor Poh pairs well with other Bib Gourmand and heritage-focused stops across the country. George Town is the natural extension, where venues like Auntie Gaik Lean's Old School Eatery offer a parallel depth in Peranakan cooking. Closer to KL, Lavo and Lavo Gallery in Petaling Jaya represents a different price tier and format. For the full picture of where to eat and stay while in the city, the Pearl Kuala Lumpur restaurants guide, hotels guide, and bars guide cover the broader planning context. If you are extending into Langkawi or Penang, the Dining Room at The Datai Langkawi and Christoph's in Penang are worth adding to the list.
Reservations: Walk-in only based on available data , no booking method is listed, and the format is consistent with a shop-style operation where turning up is the expected approach. Leading timing: The kitchen is consistently busy; arriving early in the service window is the practical move to avoid a long wait, particularly given the Bib Gourmand exposure. Budget: $ price range , one of the most affordable meals you will have in Kuala Lumpur at this quality level. Dress: No dress code; casual is the only appropriate register for this setting. Getting there: Taman Sri Sinar, 52100 Kuala Lumpur; a ride-hailing app is the most practical approach from the city centre. Groups: Manageable for small groups of up to six if you arrive together and are prepared for communal, no-reservation dining. No private room available.
| Venue | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Hor Poh Cuisine | $ | — |
| Dewakan | $$$$ | — |
| Beta | $$$ | — |
| Molina | $$$$ | — |
| DC. by Darren Chin | $$$$ | — |
| Aliyaa | $$ | — |
Side-by-side comparison to help you decide where to book.
This is a no-frills shop in a residential neighbourhood, not a restaurant in the tourist circuit — come for the food, not the setting. It holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand (2025) and has been serving Hakkanese cooking for over 20 years, which tells you everything about the value proposition. Arrive early or off-peak: it is consistently busy and walk-in only.
No booking is needed — and based on available data, no booking is possible. Hor Poh operates as a walk-in shop, which is standard for this format in KL. The trade-off is that it fills quickly, so arriving early in the meal period is your best move.
Yes — a shop-style operation at $ pricing with communal or small tables is one of the easier formats for solo diners in KL. You can order a single bowl of lui cha with rice and be in and out efficiently. There is no pressure to fill a table or hit a minimum spend.
The lui cha is the main reason to come: a green soup made with ground sesame seeds, peanuts and mint leaves, served with steamed rice — nutty, aromatic, and listed by Michelin as the dish to try here. The Hor Poh dumpling, filled with dried tofu, garlic and pickles in a thin skin, is the second order worth making.
Small groups should be fine given the shop's consistent popularity and turnover model, but large parties will likely face a wait or space constraints. The format is not designed for group dining events — if that is your priority, a sit-down restaurant like DC. by Darren Chin is a more practical fit.
Hor Poh is a traditional kopitiam-style shop, not a bar or counter-service restaurant in the Western sense. Seating is available at the shop's tables — there is no bar counter to speak of. Come expecting casual, utilitarian seating rather than a curated counter experience.
The menu is plant-forward by default — the signature lui cha is a vegetarian green soup, and the dumplings are filled with tofu, garlic and pickles. For specific allergy or dietary needs, no documented information is available, so communicating directly at the counter is the practical approach. Meat eaters should note that Hakkanese cuisine at this level of simplicity may have a narrower protein range than a full-service restaurant.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
