For years smoking in bars, restaurants, hawker centers and coffee shops, also known as food courts to the non Asian readers of this website was no problem in Malaysia. But that is about to change. From January first smoking is no longer allowed in restaurants, coffee shops or hawker centers. Not in airconditioned indoor places but also not in outdoor, open air hawker centers or coffee shops.

And with this new rule, Malaysia surpasses it’s neighbour Singapore. Singapore is known for it’s strict anti smoke laws but every open air coffee shop still has a small smokers section where smoking is allowed.