Brickfields:
a top-three eating
district nobody ranks.
Brickfields is Little India, and it is one of the three best eating districts in Kuala Lumpur without appearing in anybody’s top ten. Banana leaf rice, Indian sweets by the kilo, filter coffee, flower garlands and temple bells, all in a ten-minute walk. Attached to it is KL Sentral, which puts every train you will use at the end of the street: KLIA Ekspres to the airport in 28 minutes, KTM Komuter to Batu Caves for RM2.60 and to Klang for bak kut teh, plus the LRT, the monorail and the MRT Kajang line at Muzium Negara. Rooms run RM130–300. One correction, because half the internet gets it wrong: Sri Nirwana Maju at 43 Jalan Telawi 3 is in Bangsar, not here. Brickfields does not need the borrowed credit.
Who should stay in Brickfields, and who should not
Stay here if you are eating your way through Kuala Lumpur, taking day trips by train, or catching an early flight. Stay elsewhere if you want an evening scene — Brickfields eats early and goes quiet.
The eating case first, because it is the real one. Banana leaf rice is the format that defines the district: rice on a leaf, three or four vegetable sides, papadum, curry ladled over, and unlimited refills of everything except the meat, for roughly RM10–15 at a working shop. It is the best-value full meal in Malaysia and Brickfields has a dozen places doing it well within a few hundred metres. Around them sit the sweet shops selling laddu, jalebi and halwa by weight, the banana-leaf and garland stalls, and the Sri Kandaswamy Kovil and other temples that make the neighbourhood loud in a good way during festivals.
The transport case is unmatched anywhere in the city. KL Sentral is the national rail hub and it sits at the northern end of Brickfields, a five to ten minute walk from most of the district. From it: KLIA Ekspres to the airport (28 minutes to T1, 31 to T2, RM55 single, 10% off booking online, first and last 05:00 and 00:05), KTM Komuter north to Batu Caves for RM2.60 and west to Klang, the ETS to Ipoh in 2h20, the LRT Kelana Jaya line, the KL Monorail, and the MRT Kajang line at Muzium Negara via a covered walkway. If your trip involves more than one day trip, staying here saves you an hour a day.
The argument against is atmosphere. KL Sentral itself is a transport box surrounded by office towers, and the hotels closest to it are business hotels with nothing at street level. The good part of Brickfields is the streets behind the station — Jalan Tun Sambanthan and the lanes off it — and that is where you should be looking on the map. The district also winds down early: this is a lunch-and-early-dinner neighbourhood, not a late one.
One more honest note. Brickfields does not appear in most guidebooks’ top-ten lists, and the reason is not quality — it is that the district photographs poorly and has no single headline sight. If your standard for a neighbourhood is what it feeds you, it is a top-three district in Kuala Lumpur. If your standard is what you can put on a postcard, it is nowhere.
Brickfields, decided
A short list because the district is small and the point of it is repeatable rather than remarkable — you eat here two or three times and each one costs under RM20.
| What | Verdict | Where | Cost | The detail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Banana leaf rice | WORTH IT | Jalan Tun Sambanthan and the lanes off it | RM10–15 | The format that defines Brickfields: rice on a leaf, unlimited vegetable sides and curry, papadum, meat priced separately. Lunch is when the district does it best. Eat with your right hand or ask for a spoon — nobody minds either way. |
| Indian sweets by weight | WORTH IT | The sweet shops along the main street | RM5–20 | Laddu, jalebi, halwa and burfi sold by the kilo from trays in the window. Buy 200g of three kinds for under RM20 and you have solved the afternoon. This is also the best place in KL to buy a gift that is not a fridge magnet. |
| Little India street life | WORTH IT | Jalan Tun Sambanthan | Free | Garland stalls, sari shops, temple bells, filter coffee and a fountain arch. Thirty minutes of walking covers it and the late afternoon is the right time — the district is at its loudest and its least hot between 17:00 and 19:00. |
| Day trips by train | WORTH IT | KL Sentral, at the end of the street | RM2.60–45 | KTM Komuter to Batu Caves at RM2.60 each way and to Klang for bak kut teh at Seng Huat, 07:30–13:00. ETS to Ipoh in 2h20 for about RM25–45 a leg, first train 05:10, last back 20:26 — the day trip where DIY beats every tour. |
| KL Sentral itself | DEPENDS | The station complex | — | A superb interchange and a poor destination. Use it, do not stay inside it: the hotels wrapped around the concourse have nothing at street level, and the reason to be in Brickfields is on the other side of the tracks. |
| Sri Nirwana Maju | SKIP | 43 Jalan Telawi 3 — in Bangsar, not Brickfields | ~RM8.50 | Not a skip as a restaurant — it is a Bib Gourmand and the best-value great meal in the city at about RM8.50. A skip as a Brickfields plan, because it is four kilometres away in Bangsar and half the internet mis-sites it here. Go, but go to the right postcode. |
Banana leaf prices are what a working shop charges at lunch. Add RM5–8 for fried chicken or mutton, and expect to pay more for the same plate after 19:00.
Everything KL Sentral reaches
Brickfields, practically
Where to stay in Brickfields and KL Sentral
Two searches, two different trips. Brickfields proper for the food and the neighbourhood; KL Sentral for a 06:00 flight or a week of day trips where every minute at the station counts.
Brickfields FAQ
Is Brickfields worth visiting in Kuala Lumpur?
Yes, and it is underrated to the point of being missing from most top-ten lists. It is Little India — banana leaf rice at RM10–15, sweets by the kilo, garland stalls and temples — and it is one of the three best eating districts in the city. It has no headline sight, which is the only reason it does not rank.
Is Sri Nirwana Maju in Brickfields?
No. Sri Nirwana Maju is at 43 Jalan Telawi 3 in Bangsar, about four kilometres away, and it is mis-sited to Brickfields constantly. It is a Bib Gourmand serving banana leaf rice at about RM8.50 and it is worth the trip — two stops on the LRT Kelana Jaya line, then a walk. See our Bangsar page.
Is KL Sentral a good place to stay?
For an early flight or a week of train day trips, yes. For anything else, book Brickfields proper instead. KL Sentral is an excellent interchange — KLIA Ekspres, KTM Komuter, ETS, LRT, monorail and the MRT at Muzium Negara — wrapped in office towers with nothing at street level.
How much is the train from KL Sentral to Batu Caves?
RM2.60 each way on the KTM Komuter, direct, about 30 minutes. The Temple Cave itself is free and open 07:00–21:00. That is the whole reason no Batu Caves tour is buying you access — only a driver and a narration. Go at 07:30 before the heat and the coaches.
What is banana leaf rice and how do I order it?
Rice served on a banana leaf with three or four vegetable sides, papadum and curry poured over, with unlimited refills of everything except meat, for about RM10–15. You sit down, they serve you, you point at the meat you want if any. Fold the leaf towards you when you finish — away means you did not enjoy it.
How far is Brickfields from Kuala Lumpur city centre?
It is central. Chinatown is about four minutes away on the MRT Kajang line from Muzium Negara to Pasar Seni, Bukit Bintang is two stops, and KLCC is a straight LRT ride. The distance people mean when they ask this is atmospheric rather than physical.
Is Brickfields safe at night?
Broadly yes. The main streets are busy until about 22:00 and the usual advice applies — the district goes quiet early, so the back lanes are emptier after 23:00 than the equivalent streets in Bukit Bintang. Our safety page has what travellers actually report.