Have Perut Will Travel...: KCH Day 6 │ Lepau Restaurant!

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Thursday, 5 June 2025

KCH Day 6 │ Lepau Restaurant!

More Local Cuisine at Lepau

After our late lunch at Kim Coffee Garden, we returned to Adelyn’s homestay at 2:15pm and unpacked our haul from India Street and Jalan Main Bazaar. We showered, then settled into our usual rhythm — me at the laptop, Cat at the washing machine.

By late afternoon, we were ready to head out again. We left the homestay at 5:30pm and arrived at Lepau ten minutes later. Since the restaurant wasn’t open yet, we took a seat outside to wait. Moments later, heavy rain began pouring down, and the waitress kindly ushered us indoors.

Thankfully, we had made reservations. From the number of “Reserved” signs on the tables, it was clear Lepau was almost fully booked, with only a couple of walk in tables left at the back.

Dining at Lepau

Lepau Restaurant is known as an ethnic eatery serving authentic Orang Ulu and Dayak cuisine. It has won the Best Innovative Ethnic Restaurant at the 20th Malaysia Tourism Awards. “Lepau” means hut in the Kayan language, and the restaurant has been operating since 2014.

Dayak Daily describes Lepau as offering more than just iconic Sarawak food — it provides an ethnic dining experience with its beautiful indoor and outdoor ambience, homey atmosphere, and soothing sape music.

Inspired by that same article, we ordered:

Tempoyak Anchovies
Terung Asam Fish
Orang Ulu Red Chili Chicken
Stir Fried Spicy Bunga Kantan
Purple Bario Rice wrapped in Itun Sip
a round of drinks

Soon after placing our order, the waitress suggested moving us to a bigger table outdoors. We happily agreed — the new seating was airy, cosy, and perfect for the rainy evening.

Our delightful Dayak dinner came to RM97.75 (≈ USD23 / EUR20). The flavours, the ambience, the sape music — Lepau is an experience we wholeheartedly recommend to anyone seeking authentic local cuisine in a beautiful setting.

What’s Next

Stay tuned — next, we head to the Kuching Waterfront to walk off the calories.