Little Lylia's Chillout Cafe Langkawi
Mid-Range, Beach Bar, Seafood/BBQ
This is another cool beach bar located on the beachfront of Pantai Cenang. Over the years, this laid back casual friendly beach cafe has become a tourists' favorite. Although it serves breakfast, lunch and dinner, tourists mostly throng here to spend the evening, listen to live music and relax as the drink is served on the candle lit table next to you and right on the sand. As you hear the waves pounding yards away and the reggae music flowing in from the other side, it creates an amazing ambience, and you won't know how the time flies.
It is easy to find Little Lylia's if you are walking along the beach. It' located behind the Best Star Resort and on the beach. You will see rows of small tables and chairs laid out on the sand amongst swaying palm trees. The seating arrangement goes up the slope from the beach all the way to the bar area. The bar and the insides area are mostly done up with drift wood. Overall it's a cool & casual beach ambience. But do not expect an upscale service here. This is after all a budget beach bar.
If you are trying to locate the place from the main street of Pantai Cenang, then first find the popular budget restaurant Tomato Nasi Kandar. There is a narrow pathway right next to it that leads down towards the beach area through overgrown grasses and junked materials. You will find Little Lylia's at the end of the pathway.
The owner Gie is a versatile and a very friendly person. He has named the cafe after his daughter Lylia. Gie himself has had a varied experience. Having worked in Merchant Navy, he has had his stint in art school as well as in drumming. Evidence of that is prominent in the bar area where you will find several of his own art work.
Coming to food. I don't think you should come here with great expectations of very tasty and quality food. That is probably not the main focus here. While they have several dishes in the menu, you will get most choices only during dinner. The burgers and toasted sandwiches are quite popular here. Nachos served with sour sauce are closest to the original that you will get. Chicken Satay served with peanut sauce is quite nice as well.
During dinner, you will also get dishes like chicken rice in green sauce, fried rice etc. Main courses are around RM30. They also have a barbecue stall which opens in the evening during the dinner time. They serve both grilled and barbecue items like fish & chicken barbecue etc, but those items are priced higher than the rest. Honestly, I didn't much like the barbecue preparations here. The grilled fish was a little burnt from outside. There is also a Shisha Corner (hukka with pipe for smoking tobacco) which too opens in the evening.
Beer is quite cheap. You get a small bottle for RM4. Note that after 10:30pm, the kitchen closes and you won't get any proper food although the bar remains open till late night (2am). You will only get some small snack items after the kitchen closes.
So how is the service? In one word, laid back. All staffs are local lads and ladies. Sometimes you may find the staff quite active, on other days you may not find them interested, and rather see them chatting with solo tourists. So take it easy, you can't rush it even if you want to.
My takeaways...
1) Great place to view the sunset right from the beach as you dine.
2) Where else can you enjoy live music as you place your feet on the sand while watching the waves crashing on the shore. Watch out for small red crabs & insects on the sand though.
3) Overall friendly and non-interfering staff.
4) Drinks are quite cheap.
5) Main courses are relatively expensive ... go for burgers etc if you don't want to spend much on food. Main course food is not very impressive either. Nachos are must.
6) After a few drinks, go to the beach under the starry night and dip your feet in the water, a great experience.... but be careful!!! Don't go too far into the water.
Dress Code
Casual. You will find most tourists coming here wearing shorts and T-shirts.
Open Hours
Update January 2017: Little Lylia's has closed down.
Daily from 10:30am to 2am.
You can walk in. No reservation is required.
Location
Pantai Cenang Beach. Entrance from the side of the restaurant Tomato Nasi Kandar.
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