El Negra Distro & Studio @ Ipoh

The El Negra Distro & Studio is a cafe that will make Ipoh night owls happy as it observes a different opening hours from standard cafe timing, closing at either 1 am or 12 am depending on which day of the week.  

The cafe might be easy to miss because it’s on the first floor but I think the neon calligraphic chalk board will capture your attention, inviting you to go upstairs for a cuppa.

The cafe is bright and spacious with a mixture of contemporary and DIY furnitures.  I love the huge windows which were surprisingly open, and I really mean open all the way so you don’t just see what’s happening down there through the windows, you also hear what is happening down there.

It was a bit hot despite the air-con was on as the windows were open.  I like it that way because it gives you a semi-open-air environment, where you experience Ipoh in a different way – you are sitting upstairs, but it feels like you are sitting on a sidewalk and you can do a bit of people watching.  If you visit the cafe during rush hour like I did, you will literally feel the earth move under you feet as a result of loads of cars and lorries passing by.

El Negra has really simple menu with only two choices – Roast Chicken (RM12) and Alfredo Beef Spaghetti (RM10).  I was kind of surprised but not really because I’ve seen a restaurant in Penang serving only one dish.

The chicken was roasted long enough to tear apart easily, yet at the same time the chicken remained moist and juicy within and at only RM 12, it’s a colorful dish accompanied by a handful of nutritious vegetables.


There were more dessert choices like creme caramel, bred & butter pudding, tiramisu and cupcakes.  The cheese cake (RM7) was lightly cheesy and lemony though I thought the base could be made of a more buttery and more solid cookie crumbs.

Plenty of drinks on the menu to choose from.

The cafe has its cute corners.

I left the cafe at dusk, when nightfall began to slowly seep in.  Illuminated by soft lights, the cafe became much more demure and I think I look forward to my next visit to experience the cafe at night.

More Info on El Negra
El Negra Website
Address: 121 First Floor, Jalan Sultan Idris Shah, 3000 Ipoh.
Opening Hours: Mon – Thurs 4 pm – 12 am.  Fri 4 pm – 1am.
Sat 12pm – 1am.  Sun 12 pm – 12am.
Tel: 05 -241 2544