Sarawak has served notice that its next great tourism story may arrive on a plate, after 25 restaurants were honoured at the inaugural TOP25 Restaurants Sarawak Awards 2026.
Sarawak has long possessed the ingredients of a serious food destination. It has rainforest produce, river fish, indigenous cooking traditions, Chinese, Malay and Indian influences, and cooks who understand that heritage should be treasured rather than trapped under glass. It needed a brighter international shop window. It now has one.
The inaugural TOP25 Restaurants Sarawak Awards placed 25 dining establishments from across the Malaysian state before an international tourism audience during the Soul of Borneo Gala in Kuching on 19 August.
The Premier of Sarawak, Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg, presented the awards at the gala, which was organised by Sarawak’s Ministry of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts in conjunction with the Pacific Asia Travel Association and PATA Travel Mart 2026.
More than 800 guests attended the evening, including chefs, restaurateurs, tourism leaders and international delegates. The wider PATA Travel Mart, staged at the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching from 18 to 20 August, attracted more than 1,100 delegates from 48 countries and destinations, according to PATA.
That made the ceremony more than a pleasant round of trophies and handshakes. It gave Sarawak’s restaurant community direct exposure to buyers, sellers and tourism decision-makers from across the Asia-Pacific. In travel, a memorable meal can sell a destination rather more persuasively than a brochure ever managed and it rarely requires batteries.
Five categories, one broad culinary story
The awards were divided into five categories, with five recipients in each. Rather than creating a simple ladder from first to 25th, the format showcased the breadth of Sarawak’s dining offer: sustainable, international, creative, indigenous, and signature experiences.
The Sustainable Gastronomy Awards went to Cavakita Rooftop Bar & Restaurant in Miri; Kechala in Santubong; River View Café and ROOTS in Kuching; and The Bikalan in Bau.
The category extended the Global Sustainable Gastronomy Awards launched in Bangkok in December 2025. Its appearance in Sarawak matters. Responsible sourcing, reduced waste and respect for local food systems are no longer decorative garnish for tourism businesses; they are increasingly part of the main course.
Five venues were honoured as TOP International Restaurants: Ceylonese Restaurant, Gu Jin, Maguro Japanese Ala Carte Buffet, Ocho and Zinc Restaurant & Bar, all in Kuching.
The TOP Creative Restaurants were Hachi by Kenny’s, MAK Restaurant and The Chamber in Miri, together with Tai-Tai Restaurant and ZOZO Beans & Booze in Kuching.
Indigenous food earns its rightful place
The TOP Indigenous Restaurants category carried particular weight. Borneo Cultures Museum Restaurant, Budaya Restaurant, Lepau Restaurant, Little Fairy Café and The Lamin were recognised, spanning Kuching and Santubong.
This is where an awards program can do useful work. Indigenous cuisine is not a quaint sideshow to Sarawak’s visitor economy. It is part of the destination’s living identity, shaped by communities, landscapes, seasonal ingredients and knowledge handed down through generations.
For travellers weary of the same international menu appearing in every time zone, that sense of place is priceless. Manuk pansuh cooked in bamboo, jungle ferns such as midin and the sour, bright flavours associated with traditional Sarawak cooking offer something no imported dining formula can reproduce.
The Signature TOP25 Restaurants category completed the field: Choon Hui Café and Kantin at the Granary in Kuching; Kebaya Story in Miri; M&D’s Restaurant in Bintulu; and Oriental Bistro in Sibu.
The geographic spread is commercially important. Kuching naturally secured the largest share, but Miri, Sibu, Bintulu, Santubong and Bau were also represented. That gives tourism operators material for wider itineraries and encourages visitors to look beyond one city, one dining room and one hurried bowl of noodles before departure.
Global recognition, local roots
TOP25 Restaurants founder Bernard Metzger described the awards as “a celebration of the people, places, traditions and creativity that make Sarawak’s culinary identity so distinctive”.
The organisation says its Restaurant Rating Index methodology combines artificial intelligence and data signals with assessment by culinary experts. Its published criteria include food quality, ingredient freshness, service, value, ambience, media coverage and guest sentiment. The Sarawak recipients were grouped by category rather than published as a numbered first-to-25th ranking.
That distinction is worth noting. Awards may raise visibility, but the enduring test will come from diners, repeat business and the capacity of restaurants to preserve quality as attention grows. A plaque can open the door; only hospitality keeps people coming back.
Sarawak begins with a valuable advantage. UNESCO designated Kuching a Creative City of Gastronomy in 2021. UNESCO highlights the city’s distinctive mix of indigenous ingredients, biodiversity, migration and trade, and the role food plays in supporting smallholders and cottage industries.
The TOP25 initiative builds neatly on that foundation. It connects restaurants with a broader destination strategy and gives travel advisers another compelling reason to sell Sarawak as more than an add-on to a Borneo nature itinerary.
Food tourism can spread visitor spending across farms, markets, transport providers, guides, hotels and small businesses. Done properly, it also rewards the people protecting traditional recipes and ingredients. Done poorly, of course, it can turn culture into costume. Sarawak’s challenge is to pursue growth without sanding away the authenticity that made the food interesting in the first place.
A confident seat at Asia’s table
The awards do not, by themselves, make Sarawak one of Asia’s leading gastronomic destinations. They do something more practical: identify businesses, organise a marketable story and place that story before an influential international audience.
For the 25 recipients, the recognition brings applause and opportunity. For Sarawak, it signals a tourism strategy with flavour, cultural depth and economic reach. The state is not asking travellers merely to admire its food heritage from a respectful distance. It is inviting them to pull up a chair.
And if Sarawak’s chefs have their way, nobody will be leaving hungry.
By: Kanda Limw – © 2026.
Read Time: 5 minutes.
Author Bio:
Kanda Limw is one of those rare people every office quietly depends on. She doesn’t fuss or fanfare her way through the day; she simply notices what needs doing and gets on with it, often before anyone else has drawn breath.
Years behind the scenes have taught her that good administration isn’t about control; it’s about care. Diaries align, tensions soften, loose ends disappear. When the day threatens to tilt, Kanda steadies it without drama.
There’s something reassuringly old-fashioned about her reliability. She listens properly, remembers the small things, and does what she says she will.
Kanda has no appetite for the spotlight. Yet ask anyone who works alongside her, and they’ll tell you that when she’s there, everything runs just a little smoother.
