Petaling Jaya

Petaling Jaya, universally referred to as PJ, is a satellite city on the western edge of Kuala Lumpur, in the state of Selangor.

Understand
Founded in 1954 as Malaysia's first planned town, PJ has become a busy commercial and residential hub in its own right with almost 640,000 inhabitants (2010). In the later years, further expansion to the north saw the rise of the Damansara area that gave birth to such housing estates as Bandar Utama, Kota Damansara, Damansara Perdana, Bandar Sri Damansara and Damansara Impian.

Addresses in PJ are remarkably bureaucratic. The town is divided into numbered sections (seksyen), which to further confuse things are denoted with just S (eastern PJ), SS (central and western), PJU (northern), and PJS (southern). The northern chunk is also known as Damansara. "SS" is an acronym for "Sungai Way-Subang", and just to keep you on your toes, sections SS 12 through 19 & PJS were part of Petaling Jaya, then reassigned to a new neighbourhood city, Subang Jaya, covering the west area of Kuala Lumpur.

Each road in a section is numbered, so an address like "No. 38, Jalan SS 21/58" means house 38, road 58, section SS 21. There is no definitive form for a PJ address. Therefore, the above example could well be written as 38 Road SS 21/58, 38 Jln SS 21/58 or simply as 38 SS 21/58. Most major roads developed during the 1960s are given names, e.g. Jalan Utara, Jalan Selangor, Jalan Kemajuan. Some secondary roads, even those in residential or industrial areas were also given names. For example, Jalan 8/8 in Section 8 is also known as Jalan Tengas, Jalan 13/1 is also known as Jalan Bersatu. In addition, the roads of PJ Old Town or Section One are named as Road 1, Road 2, etc. As for the predominantly industrial Section 51A, the roads are named as Jalan 222, Jalan 225 etc.

The numbered sections are usually adjacent to each other. For instance, Section 16 is adjacent to section 17 which is adjacent to Section 19. The 'missing' Section 18 (originally to be named Section 1B) is way across the other side of town adjacent to Section 1A. Likewise, without a good map, it can be an onerous exercise to find PJ roads. For instance, Jalan 21/20 is adjacent to Jalan 21/18. However Jalan 21/1 is also adjacent to Jalan 21/18. (Most odd-numbered roads are parallel to odd-numbered road, even-numbered roads are parallel to even-numbered roads, and odd-numbered road and even-numbered roads are perpendicular to each other.) In addition, residents within a local PJ community may sometimes choose to refer to their local roads by their numbers, omitting the prefix altogether. For instance, in Damansara Jaya, residents often choose to refer to the road 'Jalan SS 22/39' as 'Road 39'.

By road
PJ is well linked with Kuala Lumpur and the rest of the country by road. The main Kuala Lumpur-PJ link is the Federal Highway which goes through the middle of PJ and continues to Subang Jaya, Shah Alam, Klang and Port Klang. The main link to the northern part of PJ is the Sprint Expressway while the southern areas of PJ are served by the New Pantai Expressway.

If using the North-South Expressway (E1), the main exits for PJ are Subang Jaya, and Damansara.

By train
The Kelana Jaya line light rail transit (formerly PUTRA-LRT) snakes from central Kuala Lumpur to the center of PJ and is a good way of avoiding the traffic jams between the two, especially at rush hour. The main stations in PJ are Taman Jaya (nearest to PJ New Town), Asia Jaya (walking distance to the KL-Klang bus stop), Taman Paramount, and Kelana Jaya.

The KTM Komuter electric trains also stops at several places in PJ, albeit not as convenient as the LRT. The PJ stations, namely Jalan Templer, Kampung Dato Harun, Seri Setia and Setia Jaya, are on the Sentul-Port Klang Line.

By bus

 * From Kuala Lumpur: Petaling Jaya is linked to Kuala Lumpur by Rapid KL and Metrobus buses. Main bus hubs are Asia Jaya, Damansara Uptown and Bandar Utama. Main Rapid KL routes linking Kuala Lumpur and PJ are 750, 751 (Shah Alam via Federal Highway), 770, 772 (Subang via Federal Highway) and 780 (Bandar Utama). There are also bus connections from PJ to Klang and Port Klang, served by Transnasional (which can be caught at bus stops along the Federal Highway), and Putrajaya (Rapid KL route 506 from Bandar Utama).
 * From other destinations: The luxury Aeroline operating between PJ and Singapore with double-deck coaches stops at two locations in PJ - Menara Axis (opposite the Asia Jaya LRT station) and One Utama Shopping Centre. From Menara Axis, there are four services to Singapore daily (departing 08:00, 09:30, 11:00, 18:00) while at One Utama, there are two daily trips (departing 10:00 and 18:30).

By taxi
All metered taxis operating in Kuala Lumpur also serve PJ.

Get around
PJ is quite spread out and you pretty much need your own wheels to get around.

By road
A good web of roads link most parts of PJ. Main highways which cover most of PJ are the Federal Highway (covering central PJ), Sprint Expressway (serving Damansara and the northern part of PJ), New Pantai Expressway (linking the southern sections of PJ) and the Lebuhraya Damansara Puchong or LDP (Damansara Puchong Expressway), which connects the northern and southern parts of PJ.

By train
The Kelana Jaya Line light rail transit (LRT) is convenient for those moving between PJ New Town and Kelana Jaya.

By bus
Rapid KL is the main operator. Although the bus service is not up to first world standards, it has improved tremendously. The network is complicated but Rapid KL now provides information on its routes on its website.

Rapid KL's network works on a hub and spoke concept, where trunk routes (the bus number starts with "U") from Kuala Lumpur link hubs in Petaling Jaya where local shuttle buses (the bus number starts with "T") fan out into the numerous residential areas. Local shuttles also radiate from light rail transit (LRT) stations. Main hubs include the Kelana Jaya, Taman Bahagia, Asia Jaya and Taman Jaya LRT stations, and Bandar Utama (next to One Utama Shopping Centre), Damansara Uptown, EPF and Asia Jaya bus stops.

The major hotels (Hilton, Sunway Resort, Eastin, Crystal Crown, Royale Bintang, and Armada) have shuttle bus services that take guests into KL City and various PJ landmarks such as Sunway Lagoon, One Utama, and The Curve Shopping Center.

By taxi
All Kuala Lumpur metered taxis operate in Petaling Jaya, but there are far fewer roaming the streets and you'll usually need to find a taxi stand or call them up. Some cab company numbers are:

See


If taking public transport, try the Light Rail Transit (LRT) via the Kelana Jaya Line which covers major residential and commercial sections of this town, starting with stations (from KL City); Taman Jaya, Asia Jaya, Taman Paramount, Taman Bahagia and finally Kelana Jaya. The best way to see this area is to take a leisurely drive during non-peak hours. Some of the major attractions around the Greater PJ area are listed below.


 * Gasing Hill. Along the same road from the Chetawan Temple is the turnoff towards the Gasing Hill. The Hill, which is the only remaining forest reserve in PJ, covers approximately 100 acres where rare fauna and flora could be found. There are also trails, a viewing tower and resting area for nature lovers. From the top of Gasing Hill one gets breath-taking views of PJ and Kuala Lumpur. Over 100 species of birds are to be found in this green lung.
 * Hilton PJ. This legendary hotel has been a hallmark of good food for the people of Petaling Jaya since its opening in 1984 (the longest-operating Hilton in Malaysia). Its Paya Serai coffee house has been delighting diners with its daily hi-tea buffet for many years now and also, the ever popular Chili's Bistro was given a facelift. In fact, most people will know the PJ State area by the mere mention of "Hilton" or its famous neighbor, Menara MBPJ.
 * Kelana Jaya Lake Park. (Nearest LRT Station: Kelana Jaya) One of the largest in PJ, with its 7 scenic lakes, this park is a former mining area that was rehabilitated in the 1980s into what it is today. Other than a popular jogging track around the lakes, the Kelana Jaya Sports Complex is located nearby and it contains two Olympic-sized swimming pools as well as tennis and badminton courts. The modern MBPJ Stadium is also in the vicinity and it was one of the venues used for the KL 1998 Commonwealth Games.
 * LDP Cable-Stayed Bridge. The LDP (Damansara-Puchong Highway) Cable Stayed Bridge at Persekutuan Interchange crossing the Federal Highway is the first Cable Stayed Land Bridge in Malaysia. The bridge stands out as an aesthetically pleasing and unique design in a highway project in the country. The design and construction methods of the bridge allowed for the necessary traffic management required at the construction site (one of the busiest interchanges); a normal bridge design would have required for the removal of 2 traffic lanes to accommodate the construction of the piers.
 * MBPJ Tower. (Nearest LRT Station: Taman Jaya) The headquarters of the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) and a prominent PJ landmark, the 27-storey building which cost RM50m was officiated by the late Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah on March 16, 1987. The building is unique in the sense that it stands in the middle of a pit-like "sunken plaza" and surrounded by shops as well as commercial areas.
 * PJ Exchange. This 35-storey office tower, which is under construction, has a great location in PJ as it's at the doorstep of the Taman Jaya LRT Station and next to the Federal Highway and the popular Amcorp Mall. With its 30-m spire, the PJ Exchange (PJX) became the tallest office tower in PJ and a prominent landmark upon completion in 2010.
 * Taman Jaya. A spot for those in search of outdoor activities like jogging and cycling is Taman Jaya, a favourite recreational hub for residents with its shady trees and lake. It is a short walk away from the similarly-named LRT station as well as the Amcorp Mall and Dataran PJ Field.
 * Wat Chetawan Temple. (Nearest LRT Station: Taman Jaya) One of the main Thai Buddhist temples in the Klang Valley, the Chetawan can be seen in full glory either when driving on Jalan Gasing or traveling on the Kelana Jaya Line LRT. With a towering main prayer hall and surrounded by shrines, the temple has been around for more than 40 years, having started as a small temple in Jalan Raja Bot in 1957. The present temple was built in the early 1960s. Today, it is the main attraction for devotees and visitors alike because of its intricate design and statues within the temple grounds. The temple attracts huge numbers of devotees during Thai festivals like Songkran and Loy Krathong, as well as Wesak, and hosts Thai royal visitors during auspicious festivals.
 * Taman Jaya. A spot for those in search of outdoor activities like jogging and cycling is Taman Jaya, a favourite recreational hub for residents with its shady trees and lake. It is a short walk away from the similarly-named LRT station as well as the Amcorp Mall and Dataran PJ Field.
 * Wat Chetawan Temple. (Nearest LRT Station: Taman Jaya) One of the main Thai Buddhist temples in the Klang Valley, the Chetawan can be seen in full glory either when driving on Jalan Gasing or traveling on the Kelana Jaya Line LRT. With a towering main prayer hall and surrounded by shrines, the temple has been around for more than 40 years, having started as a small temple in Jalan Raja Bot in 1957. The present temple was built in the early 1960s. Today, it is the main attraction for devotees and visitors alike because of its intricate design and statues within the temple grounds. The temple attracts huge numbers of devotees during Thai festivals like Songkran and Loy Krathong, as well as Wesak, and hosts Thai royal visitors during auspicious festivals.

Buy


Various pasar malam (night markets) can be found on the main streets in the suburbs around Petaling Jaya. It's the best way to get to know the 'true' Malaysian culture. There you can find fresh foods, quick snacks and it is also a popular target by the local triads to sell their contraband merchandise of anything under the sun: clothing, electronics, mobile phone accessories, pirated DVDs and Audio CDs. You get a very good bargain if you buy them in bulk or if you speak Malay or Chinese dialect (most Chinese in PJ understands Hokkien).

But if it's air-con and fast food you want, PJ has a few megamalls:


 * Millennium Square, Section 14. More of a community-based complex as it is surrounded by houses as well as the Menara Jaya condo and below the Millennium Place Residences. It is 5 minutes drive along the road from Jaya SC. Cafe such as Picadilly which serves local and western.
 * Mutiara Damansara. A commercial precinct that is home to Asia's largest IKEA store and the adjoining IKANO Power Centre. Other malls here include The Curve lifestyle and F&B mall, a large Tesco hypermarket and the Cineleisure Damansara Entertainment Complex. The precinct is served by an hourly free shuttle bus from Kelana Jaya LRT (at the entrance to IKANO Centre).
 * Thrifty Mall, Jalan Barat, Sec. 8. The "other" shopping centre in PJ State (the other being Amcorp), the three-storey building also known as "Wisma Thrifty" has a Giant Supermarket, Courts Mammoth furniture store, and Olympia College as anchors. A Coffee Bean outlet and Memory Lane giftshop are also here.
 * Millennium Square, Section 14. More of a community-based complex as it is surrounded by houses as well as the Menara Jaya condo and below the Millennium Place Residences. It is 5 minutes drive along the road from Jaya SC. Cafe such as Picadilly which serves local and western.
 * Mutiara Damansara. A commercial precinct that is home to Asia's largest IKEA store and the adjoining IKANO Power Centre. Other malls here include The Curve lifestyle and F&B mall, a large Tesco hypermarket and the Cineleisure Damansara Entertainment Complex. The precinct is served by an hourly free shuttle bus from Kelana Jaya LRT (at the entrance to IKANO Centre).
 * Thrifty Mall, Jalan Barat, Sec. 8. The "other" shopping centre in PJ State (the other being Amcorp), the three-storey building also known as "Wisma Thrifty" has a Giant Supermarket, Courts Mammoth furniture store, and Olympia College as anchors. A Coffee Bean outlet and Memory Lane giftshop are also here.
 * Thrifty Mall, Jalan Barat, Sec. 8. The "other" shopping centre in PJ State (the other being Amcorp), the three-storey building also known as "Wisma Thrifty" has a Giant Supermarket, Courts Mammoth furniture store, and Olympia College as anchors. A Coffee Bean outlet and Memory Lane giftshop are also here.
 * Thrifty Mall, Jalan Barat, Sec. 8. The "other" shopping centre in PJ State (the other being Amcorp), the three-storey building also known as "Wisma Thrifty" has a Giant Supermarket, Courts Mammoth furniture store, and Olympia College as anchors. A Coffee Bean outlet and Memory Lane giftshop are also here.
 * Thrifty Mall, Jalan Barat, Sec. 8. The "other" shopping centre in PJ State (the other being Amcorp), the three-storey building also known as "Wisma Thrifty" has a Giant Supermarket, Courts Mammoth furniture store, and Olympia College as anchors. A Coffee Bean outlet and Memory Lane giftshop are also here.
 * Thrifty Mall, Jalan Barat, Sec. 8. The "other" shopping centre in PJ State (the other being Amcorp), the three-storey building also known as "Wisma Thrifty" has a Giant Supermarket, Courts Mammoth furniture store, and Olympia College as anchors. A Coffee Bean outlet and Memory Lane giftshop are also here.

Eat
Eating is almost a national obsession with eateries available around the clock. Petaling Jaya is home to many restaurants and stalls serving all sorts of Asian and Western cuisine catering to almost all sorts of budgets.

Mamak restaurants are found throughout the city. A veritable PJ institution, these 24-hour restaurants operated mainly by Indian-Muslims are popular amongst the young crowd for the live soccer broadcasts on weekends (and weekdays on occasion) as well as cheap food.

Damansara Utama


 * Asian Food House, No. 38, Jalan SS 21/58. The sign unhelpfully proclaims that this restaurant specializes in "Asian food", but in reality it's mostly Taiwanese fare. The pork stew with rice (RM8.90) isn't bad.
 * Village Park Restaurant. Great fried chicken. Eaten with nasi lemak.

Taman Megah
 * Fatty Crab Restaurant, No. 2, Jalan SS 24/13. It's been over 30 years since Uncle Fatty set up his shop, but their famed sweet, sour and spicy crab still continues to draw the crowds. Roll up your sleeves and dig in, and figure on RM30/head with a few side dishes thrown in.
 * Ming Tien Restaurant, SS 24. This is a standard hawker center that serves western, oriental and local range of foods. The drawback are its television sets blaring out the MTV channel and piped-in advertisements. (Food hygiene and the hawker centre's utility cleanliness are not satisfactory, and it is not advisable for first-time foreign visitor.)

Section 14
 * Sate Nora, Medan Ria MBPJ. Has been around for over 30 years. Best sate in Malaysia. Tu-Su.

Section 19
 * Stranger Restaurant & Cafe, No. 10 & 12, Jalan 19/36. The restaurant is most well known for its Lunch and Dinner Set Steamboat and is priced at RM9.80 and RM12.80 per person respectively. In addition, there is a good variety of rice and noodles as well as "kopitiam" (coffee shop) and drinks selections.

SS2
 * Yu Ai Segambut Seafood Noodle, 58 Jalan SS2/10, 47300 Petaling Jaya (11AM-9PM). Try your noodles with any of three soup options: their famous curry, fiery tomyam or milder qingtang.

Damansara Jaya

Basic fare including Malay and Chinese mixed rice are available from the 2 hawker centres next to the Jalan SS 22/19 and SS 22/25 car parks.


 * Esquire Kitchen, Ground Floor, Atria Shopping Centre.
 * Hainanese Chicken Rice on Jalan SS 22/23. Halal restaurant near to Dr Kwan's clinic.
 * Hooi Loong on Jalan SS 22/19. This location used to be occupied by the Chef Rasa Sayang Restaurant.
 * Jin Xuan Hong Kong Dim Sum on Jalan SS 22/19. Upmarket restaurant. Commenced business in 2008. Branch of parent shop in Kuchai Lama.
 * Ma Ma's Restaurant on Jalan SS 22/25. Upmarket restaurant serving excellent Penang nyonya style dishes. Reputed to be a favourite of the late Datin Paduka Seri Endon Mahmood, wife of Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi. The nyonya fish head curry was one dish she had particularly liked.
 * Nyonya Foodland Restaurant on the Ground floor of the Atria Complex (opposite Nando's). Serves tasty and affordably priced Malacca nyonya food.
 * Seri Penang, formerly Penang Cravings on the Ground Floor of the Atria Complex. This is authentic Penang, for Chef Tang is from Tanjung Tokong.
 * Omitsu Koshi on Jalan SS 22/23 offers tasty and affordably priced Japanese food.
 * Nando's Fast food. South African Peri-Peri chicken can be found on the Ground Floor of the Atria Complex
 * Piccadely Restaurant owned by Nepali brother in Millenium Square building is best place to eat with food and drink from all over the world.
 * Jin Xuan Hong Kong Dim Sum on Jalan SS 22/19. Upmarket restaurant. Commenced business in 2008. Branch of parent shop in Kuchai Lama.
 * Ma Ma's Restaurant on Jalan SS 22/25. Upmarket restaurant serving excellent Penang nyonya style dishes. Reputed to be a favourite of the late Datin Paduka Seri Endon Mahmood, wife of Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi. The nyonya fish head curry was one dish she had particularly liked.
 * Nyonya Foodland Restaurant on the Ground floor of the Atria Complex (opposite Nando's). Serves tasty and affordably priced Malacca nyonya food.
 * Seri Penang, formerly Penang Cravings on the Ground Floor of the Atria Complex. This is authentic Penang, for Chef Tang is from Tanjung Tokong.
 * Omitsu Koshi on Jalan SS 22/23 offers tasty and affordably priced Japanese food.
 * Nando's Fast food. South African Peri-Peri chicken can be found on the Ground Floor of the Atria Complex
 * Piccadely Restaurant owned by Nepali brother in Millenium Square building is best place to eat with food and drink from all over the world.
 * Omitsu Koshi on Jalan SS 22/23 offers tasty and affordably priced Japanese food.
 * Nando's Fast food. South African Peri-Peri chicken can be found on the Ground Floor of the Atria Complex
 * Piccadely Restaurant owned by Nepali brother in Millenium Square building is best place to eat with food and drink from all over the world.
 * Omitsu Koshi on Jalan SS 22/23 offers tasty and affordably priced Japanese food.
 * Nando's Fast food. South African Peri-Peri chicken can be found on the Ground Floor of the Atria Complex
 * Piccadely Restaurant owned by Nepali brother in Millenium Square building is best place to eat with food and drink from all over the world.

Drink
Just like in Kuala Lumpur, mamak stalls are also found all over Petaling Jaya. These are wonderful places to hang out with locals and it is possible to stay at one far past midnight (many are even open 24-hours!). They are run by Indian Muslims. They serve a variety of drinks and beverages, and the non-alcoholic options are varied and inexpensive. Traditional coffee shops can be found at the Mewah as well as the Atria shops.

For those who are looking for watering holes, several good ones include:

Both Lotus and Syed Abu operate on a 24 hours basis.
 * Sanctuary. Since its opening at Mutiara Damansara's The Curve shopping center, both young people and the white-collared folk have been flocking to this four-in-one nightspot that has the unique Ice Bar.
 * Uncle Chilli's. A highly popular bistro-bar (especially the working crowd) located at the Hilton. There is a live band that plays several times weekly.
 * Laundry. Pub with live band at The Curve, located opposite the Cine leisure entertainment complex and next to Fitness First. Very popular place with almost a full house every night!
 * Starbucks Coffee Cafe. Found all over PJ, most outlets come with WiFi (provided by Timezone) as a free service to customers. Outlets are located in One Utama, The Curve, IKANO Power Center, Damansara Utama, Dataran Tiga Dua, Amcorp Mall, and Sunway Pyramid Megamall.
 * Kopi tiam, a modern version of the traditional coffee shop is located on the ground floor of the Atria Complex.
 * Coffee Connexion, another modern day Kopi Tiam commenced business in May 2009 at a double shop lot at 12 & 14 Jalan SS 22/25, two doors away from the Hong Kee Tim Sum restaurant.
 * Lotus Penang Nasi Kandar restaurant is located adjacent to the Jalan SS22/25 car park.
 * Syed Abu, an Indian Muslim restaurant is found on Jalan SS22/19.
 * Coffee Connexion, another modern day Kopi Tiam commenced business in May 2009 at a double shop lot at 12 & 14 Jalan SS 22/25, two doors away from the Hong Kee Tim Sum restaurant.
 * Lotus Penang Nasi Kandar restaurant is located adjacent to the Jalan SS22/25 car park.
 * Syed Abu, an Indian Muslim restaurant is found on Jalan SS22/19.

Sleep
Despite being just "next-door" to the capital city of Kuala Lumpur, PJ has its fair share of hotels in all categories. Note that there are no inns, guest houses, motels or hotels in Damansara Jaya.

Go next

 * Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, 35-50 minutes away from here
 * Genting Highlands, a famous hill resort in Malaysia, at least 2 hours away