Hammering Metal, Eating in Rivers, Exploring Caves (All in One Day)

My friend Shum has a talent for finding the strangest spots around Kuala Lumpur, and this day had three of them: lunch with our feet in a river, a pewter factory where you can hammer metal yourself, and dinner inside a cave.

BBQ lamb in the river. Our first stop was a BBQ lamb place in Kemensah, just outside KL, where the tables sit right in a flowing stream. You sit down, put your feet in the water, and they bring the food to your table. Shum gets plus one for unique dining experience. The food is okay, but honestly, you come here for the experience.

Royal Selangor Visitor Centre. Royal Selangor is Malaysia’s famous pewter maker. Its founder came from Shantou, China, in 1885, and the company opened its first shop house in 1911. It’s still run by the family. The visitor centre walks you through the history and the craft: the casting station, where molten pewter is poured into molds; the factory floor, where around 300 employees make everything sold in the showrooms; and a wall of handprints, one for every employee who’s been there five years. The showroom at the end has some very intricate work. One piece reminded me of Gaudí.

If you want to get hands-on, Royal Selangor also offers a class where you can hammer your own pewter piece. We didn’t try it this time, but it’s there if you want to try the craft yourself.

Gua Lepak. We ended the day at Gua Lepak, a café built to look like a cave, complete with carved walls and a neon sign. It was the fasting month, so many people were waiting until 7:15 to eat. Because it was a religious holiday, we had the place to ourselves, which made dinner in the cave pretty neat. We ordered chicken wings and one of their giant watermelon drinks for 30 ringgit. It’s huge, and Shum and I finished the whole thing between the two of us.

It was a fun spot, and worth it if you want something different for dinner.

None of these are on a typical tourist itinerary, and that’s exactly why I loved this day.