Seafront Restaurant 88: A Kristang (Portuguese-Malay) Restaurant in Malacca, Malaysia (It’s My First Time To Try Kristang Food!)

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This article is part of the Malacca Food Trip 2025 series. Check out the installments in this series: Asam Pedas Pak Man (Sour and Spicy Fish Soup) | Beh Leh Hainam Satay (Chinese- or Hainanese-Style Satay) | Nancy’s Kitchen (Peranakan Food) | Pak Putra Restaurant (Indian and Pakistani Food) | Seafront Restaurant 88 (Kristang or Portuguese-Malay Food)

For other Malacca articles, click here.

Malacca was once colonized by the Portuguese. Many of the Portuguese men intermarried with the local Malay women. The result was a creole ethnic group known as the Kristangs (a.k.a. Portuguese Eurasians). Today, many of the Kristang people settle in an area called Kampung Portugis (Portuguese Settlement).

Naturally, the blending of Portuguese and Malay cultures gave birth to an entirely new cuisine. The most popular Kristang dish is the Curry Debal, which is traditionally cooked the day after Christmas using leftover meats. It is anglicized as “Devil’s Curry” due to its fiery taste.

Since we’re already in Malacca, we didn’t miss the opportunity to try Kristang food and went to the Portuguese Settlement. There are many seafood restaurants at the Medan Selera (food court), but we decided to go for Seafront Restaurant 88.

Seafront Restaurant 88 is among the ones that are open late:

Seafront Restaurant 88 is open late at night

But I will say this right away: The curry debal wasn’t available during our visit. While that’s unfortunate, we still had a pleasant experience. Here’s what I think of the food:

The Portuguese Baked Pari (stingray) has a spicy and limey taste, covering any fishiness.

Portuguese Baked *Pari* (Seasonal Price)

The Salted Egg Squid is crisp and has a nice dry salted egg coating. It also has curry flavor coming from the curry leaves. This is easily my favorite!

Salted Egg Squid (Small: MYR35; Large: MYR45)

The Black Pepper Brinjal (eggplant) has a peppery crust and creamy flesh. It’s unexpectedly delicious!

Black Pepper Brinjal (Small: MYR12; Medium: MYR18; Large: MYR20)

The Fried Chicken is simple but it’s incredibly delicious. (If I’m not mistaken, there were a few pieces of chicken wings left so they substituted it with drumsticks.)

Like the fried chicken, the Onion Omelette is simple yet tasty.

Onion Omelette (Small: MYR10; Large: MYR15)

Honestly, I’m not sure if our meal is truly Kristang. LOL. Maybe the stingray and the brinjal are. But I’m certain of this: Our meal in SeaFront Restaurant 88 was satisfying. I highly recommend it to you!

Seafront Restaurant 88

Address: 4 Medan Selera, Portuguese Settlement, Malacca, Malaysia | Operating Hours: Tuesday-Sunday, 5PM-12AM | Contact No.: +60 17-889 6758 | Facebook