JB Eat & Buy: Monday Night Market @ KSL City Mall (KSL星期一夜市)

Many people usually go to KSL City Mall for shopping, movies, massage and dining on weekends — especially the wide range of food options that can be found around the mall. There is also a night market outside KSL City Mall.

Read: JB Eats: What to Eat around KSL City Mall @ Taman Century

The odd thing is that the night market (a.k.a. KSL Pasar Malam) materialised outside KSL City Mall only on Monday nights. Around 5pm on every Monday, the stretch of road along Jalan Seladang from outside the main entrance of KSL City Mall to Grand Paragon Hotel will be closed off to vehicles — but, not fully — to make way for a night market along the two-lane road.

Makeshift stalls will be set up to sell all kinds of food stuffs, fruits, vegetables, bags, clothes, etc. Most of the food stalls are gathered closer to KSL City Mall than Grand Paragon Hotel, but some are dispersed throughout the night market. There are many local food, confectionery and snacks at relatively cheap prices.

Few food stalls may offer tables and chairs for "eat-in" but many are for take-aways only. It is convenient for locals to pack and go but visitors will have to find a place to eat the food. Eating while walking in the crowded night market is not recommended as chances of spilling or dirtying other peoples' clothes are high. Find a non-obstructing corner, finish the food before continuing through the night market.

Top-left: Stall selling stinky tofu at one end of the night market. Top-right: Stall selling Hong Kong style carrot cake. Bottom-left: Stall selling dim sum on skewers and steamed buns. Bottom-right: Stall selling pancakes with large selection of fillings.

Top-left: Stall selling traditional min jiang kueh (pancake) by an elderly couple. Top-right: Stall selling Taiwanese fried chicken and snacks. Bottom-left: Back of a mini-truck with roasted ducks and other delights. Bottom-right: A mini-van selling stinky tofu at the other end of the night market closer to Grand Paragon Hotel.

There are many more food options, just take your picks. Visiting KSL Pasar Malam will never be a one-time event once you fall in love with the wide varieties of food options here and the stalls do change from time to time.

On my last visit, I had a Shandong-style crepe (煎饼果子) with ham and cheese (RM15) and matcha warabi mochi (RM10) from the same stall. The crispy snack was quite filling and the matcha mochi with sweet syrup filled the gap.

I had bought big mantou and dim sum from 牛仔包点 on previous visit. This time, I bought 7 assorted small buns (not very small, 7 for RM11) for breakfasts — can last longer when kept in the freezer.

I also bought a coffee-flavour cake (RM9) from a confectionery stall — I had seen the same stall in Permas Night Market too — and 5 assorted Nyonya kueh (5 for RM6) from another stall.

The night market is really a great place to eat tasty food and buy confectionery at the same time.

Opening Hours:

5pm to 10pm | Open on Monday evenings only

Transportation

The night market can be overly-crowded with people during Malaysia's and Singapore's school holidays and public holidays even though it is held on Monday nights. Due to road closure during the event, traffic in the surrounding areas may be congested and chaotic — especially to uninformed drivers.

If you are taking myBAS F100 shuttle service to JB Sentral / JB CIQ on Monday night, board the bus at the basement exit after 3pm — outside KFC / Pizza Hut — instead of at the main entrance. Do expect a long queue. Be patient as the shuttle service may be held up by the congestion too.

Read: JB Bus Guide: Getting to KSL City Mall in Johor Bahru

If you intend to get a Grab car, it may take a long time for the car to arrive due to congested roads and errant parking — not to mention that most e-hailing drivers will avoid the area and surcharge will be high. The worst location to e-hail a car will be at the main entrance of KSL City Mall. The rear entrance is not any better as local taxis and myBAS F100 shuttle service will be picking up passengers there too.

The best option will be to walk away from the area to Crystal Crown Hotel (about 500 metres from KSL City Mall) and grab a car there or cross Tebrau Highway to take any buses at the opposite bus-stop.

If visiting a night market on a Monday evening is not a convenient time for you, visit the Sunday Night Market in Permas Jaya.

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