When it comes to Kota Kinabalu, seafood is undoubtedly the number one choice of food. The city is blessed with access to the surrounding ocean with rich habitat for a wide variety of fish, shellfish, and crustaceans, resulting in availability of very fresh ingredients from the ocean with prices that are often quite a lot more palatable compared to many other parts of the country.

During my recent trip there, I met up with a local and we decided to head to Sasa Seafood Restaurant, one of the lesser known seafood places at Penampang, a short drive away from Kota Kinabalu city center.

sasa seafood restaurant
Sasa seafood restaurant

“Sasa” got its name by combining the first syllable of both Borneo states of Malaysia – Sabah and Sarawak, and pride themselves on representing Borneo cuisine. The place was actually rather busy even on the weekday night, and the clientele were perhaps over 90% locals by the look of it, always a good sign.

For the two of us, we got ourselves some butter crabs, boiled prawns, steamed garupa fish, boiled snail, and fried jungle fern, to go with some steamed rice.

fried jungle fern, boiled fresh prawns
fried jungle fern, boiled fresh prawns

We chose to have the prawns prepared the most popular way in most seafood restaurants in KK – by simply boiling without any seasoning. This is the best method for prawns that were still swimming in the tank just a few minutes prior, letting the natural sweetness of the seafood take center stage, a dip in their soy sauce mix is all you need to enjoy this dish.

sea snail & steamed garupa
sea snail & steamed garupa

The boiled marine snail was served with an interesting condiment – fermented tofu, a combination that I haven’t come across before, but one that works quite well indeed, something that you have to try to appreciate.

Steamed garupa was the only fish we ordered. It was perfectly prepared with superior soy sauce and went really well with steamed rice.

butter crab, the quinessential
butter crab, the quintessential

Equally great with the rice were the very unique vegetable dish we ordered – fried jungle fern. I simply love the crunchy texture and fresh taste offered by this uniquely Borneo dish and wish that we can have this in KL too.

I wish to have some steamed or fried mantao to enjoy more of the sauce from butter crab which were equally tasty, but alas, our stomachs couldn’t keep up. It was a very satisfying seafood dinner, definitely a place worth revisiting. I hope the tour buses never figure out this place.

Sasa seafood restaurant map

Address:
Sasa Seafood Restaurant
G/F SH 3-1, 0, Jalan Penampang Lama,
Penampang, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah
GPS: 5.9231122, 116.09824
Tel: 088-701 668

KY eats – Sasa Seafood Restaurant, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah
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6 thoughts on “KY eats – Sasa Seafood Restaurant, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah

  • May 27, 2024 at 12:59 pm
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    Sasa ahh yes, better than Bahrawak Seafood

    Reply
  • May 28, 2024 at 10:33 am
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    So much food for just two of you! I can feel the bounciness of the prawns, yummy~~
    The whole sea nail is edible? I learn that some parts for certain sea nails (some organs or something?) have to discard because it’s non edible. o.O”

    Reply
    • May 29, 2024 at 9:08 am
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      Choi Yen: ohh you better be sure we eat the whole thing that aren’t shell. haha.

      Reply
      • June 5, 2024 at 1:46 pm
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        yaaa don’t eat the guts bro because these creatures are bottom feeders ahahaha

        Reply
        • June 14, 2024 at 10:49 am
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          kekeke: i don’t careeee 😛

          Reply

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