Food

8 Best Places to Eat in Labuan (2026)

From the island's oldest Chinese seafood house to a Brunei Bay-facing yacht club restaurant, a Jalan Bunga Mawar night market and a Western-fusion garden restaurant near the golf club — 8 real, currently-operating places to eat on Labuan island, verified beyond the one ambuyat stall most Labuan lists stop at. Updated 24 August 2026: Red Onion House closes at Labuan Golf Club on 26 August.

Jamie Tan30 July 20267 min readUpdated 24 Aug 2026

Beyond the one ambuyat stall

Most "things to do in Labuan" lists — including our own — treat food as one line item among shipwrecks, war cemeteries and duty-free shopping, usually pointing at a single weekends-only ambuyat stall and stopping there. Fair enough for a general guide, but Labuan's small, Brunei-adjacent food scene deserves its own list. This one stays on food only: three Chinese seafood institutions, a hotel coffee house, a Western-leaning garden restaurant, the island's night market and a casual local gerai — all verified as currently trading during this search.

The seafood houses

Labuan's food identity leans heavily on Chinese seafood, cooked to order from a display tank or ice tray. New Sung Hwa Seafood Restaurant on Jalan Hujong Pasir is reportedly the island's oldest seafood restaurant, with a river view and both open-air and air-conditioned seating. Mawilla Yacht Club Restaurant near Ramsey Point trades on its Brunei Bay and Papan Island views rather than polish — expect a dated, stilted building and plastic chairs, but a fresh-catch board with prices displayed (crab, squid, silver fish sold by weight). Labuan Fisherman Harbour Restaurant relocated to Paragon Labuan and is known for tiger prawn baked with cheese and Nyonya-style steamed fish.

Everyday and budget picks

Green Apple Restaurant on Jalan Sawangan Cina is a reliable, wallet-friendly Chinese/oriental spot with both indoor air-conditioned and outdoor seating. The Grill at Tiara Labuan Hotel doubles as the hotel's 24-hour coffee house, serving a "Tiara laksa" alongside Chinese, local and Western dishes — handy if you're staying nearby and want food outside typical restaurant hours.

Western fusion and casual eats

Red Onion House, tucked beside Labuan Golf Club, leans Western and Italian — pastas, fusion dishes and a well-reviewed steak sandwich in a garden-casual setting. Time your visit carefully: on 22 August 2026 the restaurant posted on its own Facebook page that Wednesday 26 August 2026 is the last day of operation for Red Onion Kitchen and The Poolside at the golf club, after which both close while the team prepares Red Onion x Langit on Level 8 of Labuan Point Hotel. No soft-opening date has been announced yet, and its bar, Rusty Blade, stays open at the golf club in the meantime. For something more informal, Manis Fam Empire in Kg Sungai Bangat is a gerai known for its "shell out" seafood boil spread and smash burgers, open evenings Tuesday to Sunday.

The night market

Pasar Malam Labuan on Jalan Bunga Mawar is the island's main night market — ikan bakar (grilled fish), satay, traditional kuih and fresh drinks like coconut water and cendol, in the usual point-and-grill night-market format.

If you need halal

Worth being upfront about, because it changes the shortlist: four of the entries above — New Sung Hwa, Mawilla Yacht Club, Labuan Fisherman Harbour and Green Apple — are Chinese seafood and oriental restaurants, and none of them advertises JAKIM halal certification. Muslim travellers on Labuan generally eat at the Malay and gerai end of the island instead: Pasar Malam Labuan on Jalan Bunga Mawar, Manis Fam Empire in Kg Sungai Bangat, and Deep Sea Raff Restaurant on Jalan Merdeka beside Jetty Sri Ganti — a halal Malay-style waterfront restaurant serving nasi campur berlauk and a pay-by-selection spread, averaging around RM25 per person, roughly 7.45am to 11pm, on 087-421 902. Deep Sea Raff isn't numbered here because it already has a full entry in our Labuan seafood list, linked below. As always on halal questions, check the certificate at the premises rather than relying on a listing.

Picking a spot

For a proper sit-down seafood dinner, New Sung Hwa or Labuan Fisherman Harbour are the safer bets; Mawilla trades some polish for the best view. On a budget or short on time, Green Apple, The Grill's laksa, or a walk through Pasar Malam Labuan will do the job well. If you want halal specifically, start at Deep Sea Raff or the night market. And if Red Onion House was on your list, note that after 26 August 2026 it is closed until the Labuan Point Hotel reopening. Whichever you pick, this is a small market — call ahead where hours matter.

Labuan food spots at a glance

Spot	Style	Best for	Price/hours (where confirmed)
New Sung Hwa Seafood Restaurant	Chinese seafood	Sit-down seafood dinner, river view	~12pm-2:30pm, 5:30pm-10pm
Mawilla Yacht Club Restaurant	Chinese seafood	Brunei Bay view over polish	~RM80/pax for dinner (reported)
Labuan Fisherman Harbour Restaurant	Chinese seafood	Cheese-baked tiger prawn	$$ (Paragon Labuan)
Green Apple Restaurant	Chinese/oriental	Budget everyday meals	~RM25/pax, 8:30am-10pm
The Grill at Tiara Labuan Hotel	Local/Chinese/Western	Laksa any time of day	~RM30/pax, 6:30am-11pm/12am + 24hr room service
Red Onion House	Western/Italian fusion	Steak sandwich, casual dinner	Closes at golf club 26 Aug 2026; reopens Labuan Point Hotel L8, date TBA
Pasar Malam Labuan (Jalan Bunga Mawar)	Night market	Ikan bakar, satay, kuih	From ~4pm into the night; halal-friendly
Manis Fam Empire	Casual gerai	Seafood boil, burgers	Tue-Sun, ~6pm-11pm

New Sung Hwa Seafood Restaurant

Reportedly Labuan's oldest seafood restaurant, on Jalan Hujong Pasir (Jalan Okk Awang Besar), with a river view, open-air and air-conditioned seating, and pick-your-own seafood from a display tray cooked to order. Rated 4.1/5 across reviews; reviewers highlight steamed fish, baby lobster and Malay kangkung. Reported hours roughly 12:00-14:30 and 17:30-22:00, with Mondays dinner-only (17:30-22:00). The dining rooms take up two lots on the first floor — the stairway up is at the far end of the shop row, which is easy to walk past. The only Facebook listing under this name is an auto-generated "Unofficial Page" nobody manages, so don't message it — book on 087-411 008 instead. Recent diner check-ins (most recently July 2026) confirm it is still trading.

Photo: Geoffreyrabbit, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Illustrative of the steamed fish this restaurant is known for, not a photo of the restaurant itself.

Mawilla Yacht Club Restaurant

Near Ramsey Point on Jalan Tanjung Batu, trading polish for a Brunei Bay and Papan Island view — a dated, stilted building with mostly al-fresco plastic-chair seating. Known for butter milk prawn, Nestum prawn, salted egg crab and chilli mussels, plus a fresh-catch board with prices by weight (e.g. crab RM5, squid RM10, silver fish RM15 per 100g, per a diner review). One reviewer's dinner for three with drinks came to about RM240. Rated 3.6/5 and ranked #12 of 45 Labuan Town restaurants on Tripadvisor. It now runs a small official Facebook page that posts only occasionally, so the fastest way to check a table or the day's catch is to call +60 87-423 888.

Photo: DTW, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Illustrative of the butter prawns this restaurant is known for, not a photo of the restaurant itself.

Labuan Fisherman Harbour Restaurant

Now located at Paragon Labuan on Jalan Tun Mustapha after relocating from its original site. Signature dishes include giant tiger prawn baked with cheese and Nyonya-style steamed and fried fish. Around 852 reviews with a 74% positive rate; reviewers describe the new space as clean with generous portions and friendly staff.

Image: Labuan Fisherman Harbour Restaurant

Green Apple Restaurant

A budget-friendly Chinese/oriental restaurant on Jalan Sawangan Cina, with fried prawns, seafood soup, noodle dishes, chicken and lamb, plus both indoor air-conditioned and outdoor seating. Average price reported around RM25 per person, open roughly 8:30am-10pm. It now runs under a new management team and sits inside the Victoria Island Club grounds at Kg Sawangan Cina — worth knowing, because the club entrance is what you actually navigate to. Reachable on +60 10-940 4078 or @greenapple.labuan on Instagram; 96% of its Facebook reviewers recommend it.

Image: Green Apple Labuan

The Grill at Tiara Labuan Hotel

Doubles as the hotel's 24-hour coffee house, serving Chinese, local and Western dishes including a signature Tiara laksa, curries and burgers. Ranked among the higher-rated restaurants in Labuan Town on Tripadvisor; average price around RM30 per person. Two official sources give slightly different closing times — The Grill's own Facebook page states 6:30am-11:00pm, while the hotel's dining page lists 6:30am-12:00am — but both confirm 24-hour room service, which makes Tiara the most reliable late-night option in Labuan town either way. The hotel's dining page also lists a Friday Buffet Dinner at its Alfresco Poolside Garden, though no price is published; call 087-414 300 for the current rate.

Image: Tiara Labuan Hotel

Red Onion House

Tucked beside Labuan Golf Club on Jalan Kelab Golf, leaning Western and Italian — pastas, fusion dishes and a well-reviewed steak sandwich in a casual, garden-style setting. Ranked among the top-reviewed restaurants in Labuan Town on Tripadvisor; reported hours roughly 11am-10/11pm daily. Now the important part: on 22 August 2026 the restaurant posted on its own Facebook page that Wednesday 26 August 2026 is the last day of operation for Red Onion Kitchen and The Poolside at the golf club. Both then close while the team prepares Red Onion x Langit on Level 8 of Labuan Point Hotel, with the soft-opening date still unannounced, and a new contemporary dining concept is due to take over the golf club space. Its bar, Rusty Blade, stays open as usual. If you are on Labuan before the 26th this is a last-chance visit; after that, check the Facebook page for the reopening date before making the trip.

Image: Red Onion House

Pasar Malam Labuan (Jalan Bunga Mawar night market)

The island's main night market, along Jalan Bunga Mawar in Bandar Labuan — ikan bakar (grilled fish), satay, traditional kuih and drinks like coconut water and cendol, in the usual point-choose-and-grill night-market format. Night-market directories put the stalls setting up from around 4pm and trading into the night; go later in the evening for the full spread of gerai rather than the first few. This is the cheapest full meal on the list and the easiest halal option in town.

Photo: *angys*, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Illustrative of a Malaysian pasar malam, not of the Jalan Bunga Mawar market itself.

Manis Fam Empire

A casual gerai in Kg Sungai Bangat known for its "shell out" seafood boil spread alongside smash burgers (from RM12) and local dishes like nasi goreng and ayam/ikan penyet. Its own Facebook cover confirms Tuesday-Sunday, 6pm-11pm, with bookings on 016-611 7029 or 014-305 6191 — worth calling ahead, because the shell-out platters are cooked to order. One caveat: the page hasn't posted since December 2025, so call before making the drive out to Kg Sungai Bangat rather than turning up on the strength of the cover photo.

Image: Manis Fam Empire

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Labuan's food scene worth a dedicated trip, or just an add-on to shipwreck diving and duty-free shopping?

It's a genuine reason on its own — three long-running Chinese seafood houses (New Sung Hwa, Mawilla Yacht Club, Labuan Fisherman Harbour), a night market on Jalan Bunga Mawar, and casual local spots like Manis Fam Empire give Labuan more depth than the single ambuyat stall most general guides mention.

Where can I get a proper seafood dinner in Labuan?

New Sung Hwa Seafood Restaurant on Jalan Hujong Pasir and Labuan Fisherman Harbour Restaurant at Paragon Labuan are both well-reviewed, pick-your-own-seafood restaurants. Mawilla Yacht Club Restaurant near Ramsey Point trades some polish for a Brunei Bay view.

What's a budget-friendly option in Labuan?

Green Apple Restaurant on Jalan Sawangan Cina averages around RM25 per person for Chinese/oriental dishes, and Pasar Malam Labuan on Jalan Bunga Mawar offers grilled fish, satay and kuih at typical night-market prices.

Where does this list overlap with the earlier '8 Things to Do (and Eat) in Labuan' article?

That article's only food pick was the weekends-only ambuyat stall H'ambuyat Semangkuk Agung at Pantai Tanjung Aru Nelayan — it isn't repeated as a full entry here since it's already covered there, though it remains a genuinely worthwhile stop if you're in Labuan on a Saturday or Sunday.

Which places to eat in Labuan are halal?

Not the Chinese seafood houses: New Sung Hwa, Mawilla Yacht Club, Labuan Fisherman Harbour and Green Apple are Chinese and oriental restaurants and none advertises JAKIM certification. For halal food, Pasar Malam Labuan on Jalan Bunga Mawar is the easiest option in town, Manis Fam Empire in Kg Sungai Bangat is a Malay gerai, and Deep Sea Raff Restaurant on Jalan Merdeka beside Jetty Sri Ganti serves halal Malay-style nasi campur berlauk at around RM25 per person, roughly 7.45am to 11pm (087-421 902). Check the certificate at the premises rather than relying on any listing.

Is Red Onion House still open in Labuan?

Only until Wednesday 26 August 2026. The restaurant announced on its own Facebook page on 22 August 2026 that this is the last day of operation for Red Onion Kitchen and The Poolside at Labuan Golf Club. It will reopen as Red Onion x Langit on Level 8 of Labuan Point Hotel, but no soft-opening date has been announced. Its bar, Rusty Blade, stays open at the golf club, and a new contemporary dining concept is due to take over the restaurant space.

#Food#Labuan#Sabah#Seafood

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