Lucy in the Sky Cafe Kuala Lumpur

As mentioned in my previous entry (click here), I had a considerable amount of free time since I'm in the transition period between jobs. Today (14th December), I'm in yet another new café launch; Lucy in the Sky. No, it is not related to the one in Jakarta nor is to the song by The Beatles. As for its choice of name, I speculate maybe its meant so people would frequent the cafe; similar to a certain drug. Just a speculation though.

Coffee shops and cafés opened every now and then, marking a boom in the industry right here in Malaysia. But this one left a deep mark in my heart for being the friendliest café. I know I might have used near-similar term in describing other places in the past, but the level of hospitality is at a whole new level. Partly due to the coziness of the café, friendly owner and hugely thanks to the talkative warm reception of the bariste*, Sima. The place gave non-pretentious and warm kinda vibes - similar to what I felt back in VCR. The interiors fused that of the usual rustic and clean design with an alleyway flooded with daylight (a plus point but a bit plain, decorations maybe?). Oh if you're a fellow café hopper, you might recognise the bariste and the occasional guest-baristas from a certain café ;)

Feeka Coffee Roasters

And back to another coffee post. The third wave coffee scene had really been hitting Kuala Lumpur hard with more and more coffee shops offering lightly roasted coffee beans to preserve the original sweetness and taste, not to mention sourcing them from independent microlots to sustain the life of coffee growers. This café (the term coffee shop is not used because it offers more than just coffee and pastries) opened last week at the Mesui street, famous for select eateries, bar and even the infamous jazz venue, No Black Tie. The name Feeka, comes from the term Fi•ka (fē'ka) [Swedish] means to have a social coffee break. It is the brain child of both Asianage Holdings and Coffex Coffee (as mentioned in The Malay Mail).

This café hits my soft spot for its simplicity and ingenious method used in collaborating natural lighting (sun) into the interior; something I learned in environmental-conscious engineering. The raw industrial interior also incorporates several thick I-beams to support the aged structure of the building, of which the former costs a bomb. I visited this cafe on the 23rd of November, just a couple of days from its opening date and was already experiencing steady flow of patrons; similar case happened to VCR back on its launch day. 

PS: Please don't be fooled into thinking that this blog only features the top coffee houses worth mentioning. Nay! I did this because I am lazy (or rather, don't find the occasion) to update my blog regularly. Thus, only a select ones will be entered (usually quality recent third-wave coffee shops). More coffee shops/café will be featured in the future where deemed worthy. 

VCR Coffee Shop Kuala Lumpur

This entry came rather late considering the fact that I actually visited this coffee shop back in their official opening day on the 10th of October. And it's name is just VCR, nothing else comes afterwards. The reason I placed the following words in case you misinterpret this entry as the classic video tape we used to be familiar with (unless you're born after the golden era). 

If you followed my blog, you'd noticed by now that I rarely post a single entry of a specific cafe. In fact, I've only posted the place I'd frequent; Artisan Roast HQ. So why VCR? It's is one of the three coffee shops I found comforting, warm and relaxing. Not superficial in any sense (which a lot other cafe gave), this place give you the feeling of hitting a friendly neighbourhood coffee shop by a friend of yours. Except you won't just hang around for a while, you'd actually want to spend the whole day lazying in this comfortable 'shack'.

(left) VCR bold front fascial, (right) The interior is splashed with natural light.

And what do VCR stands for? I asked Jerng, one of the partners barista, "It's just video cassette recorder." I knew what was VCR, but didn't actually expected that. I thought it would be something like Verve Coffee Roasters or some sort. So why VCR? There is a long story behind the conception of this cafe but let's just simplify it; the cafe is in some kind of partnering/collaboration (not sure whether it's right to use the terms) with a graphic design/creative design firm named Used Tape and the former took over the ex-office of the latter.

Artisan Roast HQ

Despite the solemn title, this is not a food/coffee review about the newly open Artisan Roast HQ but rather a sort of an appreciation. 

I like Artisan Roast TTDI for their perfect cup of latte (as mentioned previously) and this hasn't change a bit even at their new headquarters. Located at Petaling Jaya (same row as UTAR PJ), it is now nearer to home, not to mention being bigger and better! The staffs are friendly and attentive as always. 

Found my cup of latte

I remember few years back, as recent as 5 years, when I was initially exposed to the then niche luxury brands such as Givenchy, Balenciaga, Balmain, etc, nobody (in my circle and places I went) know of them. People would always mention of Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Coach, Versace and Chanel but not the other similar level brands. Wind back to this year, I was shock at how mainstream Givenchy had become (if not Balenciaga). Thanks to Riccardo Tisci, nouveau rich youth these days wear the floral pattern, stars, Rottweiler and shark patterns from Givenchy, other than stuff from Clot, SSUR, 40ozNYC, etc. 

The similar pattern happened to coffee. Back in the days (that depends on your perspective, but to me it was 5 years ago or more), Starbucks or Coffee Bean would be the place everyone want to be affiliated when it comes to coffee. Now, cafe and restaurant offering coffee, good and bad, grown like algae on a rainy day. Yup, not just mushrooms but algae. Even yours truly got into this coffee bandwagon and was on a mission to find myself the perfect cup of latte available in Kuala Lumpur-Selangor. So far, I've found it.

A 'Cuppa' Journey

I would very much like to name this entry an Adventure, but I thought it'd best to reserve that word for future use. Right, journey then. 

I remember my first venture into the coffee territory; I was barely 11 when my mother would bring me to nearby Starbucks for Frappuccino or just settle for an occasional take-away. At that time, I was delighted at the slurp of it, cold and sweet substance gush through my throat. By the time I was 14, I had a group of school mates whom I always hang out with at the Suria KLCC. That was the moment when I fell in love with the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. Their coffee, not to say bespoke, had this special taste that eliminate the Starbucks experience I had before. And not to mention the former actually invented ice blended coffee! 

A few years later, I had grown such an appetite, or you might say addiction, to a special brew of coffee from a selected local kopitiam (coffee shop). Why special brew? Unbeknownst to some, the coffee powder they used to brew kopi (coffee) is actually ground-coffee mixed with herbs and sometimes chicory. The coffee beans were also fried with butter to enhance the taste beforehand. The grounded mix grains are coarse and used in large quantity during filter (with long-thick strainer). Then, resulting filter coffee will be mixed with sweet condensed milk and/or evaporated milk before being served. Why condensed milk? It's because of easier storage back in the days.

La Gomera

On October the 20th, after a myriad amount of tests, reports and assignment, my groupmates and I went for a fulfilling buffet. La Gomera offers Spanish cuisine which is not widely available in Kuala Lumpur. However, given its location, it is not easy to find it unless you consult the GPS or someone been there before.

We went there during dinner buffet, 6pm-11pm, with special promotion, it cost at a very low price; RM29.95+ from ordinary price RM59.90+. Bottomless drinks and grilled meat by-order are being offered, it certainly 'quenched' our hunger for meat. 

The Journey Down South

Last week on the 3rd of July we - Sheng, Shuk and myself went for a random road trip down the south of Malaysia; Malacca, Johor Bahru and Muar. It was so random that we didn't personally planned where to go and where to overnight at. Thought of Malacca, click on the GPS and off we go. But before that, we have a wholesome breakfast, dim sum at Kuchai Lama joined by Kok Leong. Then say good bye and off we go again...

CNY Special - Trip to Thailand

My family and I spent our Chinese New Year in Hat Yai, Songkhla, Thailand. It was tiring and somewhat hectic but I get to taste new food besides of those available back in Malaysia. The weather was nice for photography too! Click the pictures to enlarge. Due to an unexplained reason, Blogspot failed to upload some pictures here. So head to my Facebook album then: Trip to Thailand

 

(left) Real tasty teh ais to cool down, (right) Mini pineapple that's seriously sweet.

An impromptu party

As mentioned in this entry, my friends and I held a rather random party out of the blue without much planning. And boy it was successful!

Late lunch at Teh's,

Boss Teh pan mee.

(left) Teh serving us, (right) Smoking area.

Spaghetti

After a tiring day out in Sunway Pyramid, Mak, Wenni, Shuk and I decide that we cook dinner ourselves; spaghetti. Tried shopping for ingredients at Jusco supermart in Pyramid but failed. Then we rushed to Tesco Midah and got everything except fresh parsley which we had to replace it with dried Oregano herbs.

Then it's all pictures!

(left) Self-prepared Carbonara sauce with Thyme and Oregano herbs, (right) Tasting of his own sauce.

Krispy Kreme at hand

Finally went to Krispy Kreme Doughnuts outlet at BTS during lunch time. First impression; I thought I entered a bank. The queue's tolerable, with a sight of the doughnut making machine on the right side which is tempting for a picture.

The size of doughnut is smaller than J.Co's, while the shape and toppings are irregular. As the name suggest, the toppings are crispy, with sweet cream as fillings and all melt in the mouth while the textures are soft and tender as well.

While queueing, a pretty girl came out from the doughnut production "factory" and gave us freshly baked Original Glazed, for free. It's very very sweet, in fact too sweet to the point of sickening that I will forever blacklist it. On the other hand, Shukri says it's tolerable if the Original Glazed is served with a coffee. No fruit variants, means Sam gonna hate Krispy Kreme.

My verdict: I still prefer J.Co Donuts for their tolerable amount of sweetness and generous centre fillings. Well, unless you like the springy feeling of a doughnut, then try out Krispy Kreme's as the texture of the doughnuts is very soft.

Krispy Kreme Open for Business

As I last stated in my Krispy Kreme in KL entry, the doughnuts cafe is finally opened for business!

Located on the ground floor of Berjaya Times Square (next to Papa Johns), it is definitely the wholesome other choice of doughnuts you can taste besides the usual Big Apple Donuts & Coffee and J.Co Donuts.

The question: Can the long-going heritage of American doughnuts fight the ever standing Asian donuts? The answer will depends on your taste buds. Some claim Krispy Kreme's are tastier and tender, another claim it's the mother-of-all-doughnuts while many hope that the 1 available in Malaysia will be as good as those they tried overseas. Let's hope shall we?

Prices are RM2.50 for original glazed and RM2.80 for assorted doughnuts. A dozen original glazed doughnuts are RM19.90 and if you get 2 dozen, it is RM33.90. A dozen of the pre-assorted varieties are RM23.90 with an offer where you can get a dozen of pre-assorted varieties with a dozen of original glazed for RM37.90.

御馳走様でした

In romaji is "gochisousama deshita" which normally said after a meal as "thanks for the meal".

Thanks Syi Nee for the great dinner.

Appetizer:

Kang San E Korean BBQ

Ok, continue from last time entry.

One busy sms, another 1 busy playing FEAR.

After got some briefing on the menu by the waiter (they know 3 dialects; Korean, Mandarin and English), we made our orders of which I forgot the names.

Dunno what to put

Okay here's some quick update on Christmas eve party and barbecue+birthday party held on 28th of Dec.

Christmas Eve

After the car accident, I went home and posted the previous entry and then to Sam's house to "help" him do preparation for the party. However, I went out with Shukri to fetch his brother anyway. BUT, his brother was busy sleeping so we have to left him in the house and get on without him. *Pfft*

Fast forward>>

The party pictures..... well, sort of, since the boss haven't got time to send me the photographs taken by his camera. Enjoy!