My first taste of the coffee from this famous establishment was immediately after I returned from Sydney in 2017. I ordered my then favourite drink, a mocha. Disappointed was an understatement. I was extremely disappointed. Due to the hype, I expected it to be at par with what I was used to in Sydney. Very wrong.
Fast forward to now, 6 years later, I was encouraged by a high school classmate and the bff to give them another chance. Does help that we know one of the two latte art world champions here, as she used to be the bff's barista when she was operating her cafe.
They have expanded from just using the ground floor to also using the first floor. More room upstairs and another coffee bar, which means shorter waiting time. For those who are susceptible to cold like me, I would advice to opt to be seated downstairs or to prepare a cardigan or jacket of some sort because it is freezing upstairs.
There are way more seats upstairs compared to downstairs, too. It stretches right up to the back of the shop, where you could even look out to the back lane.
I suppose with the refurbishment of the shop comes renewal in the menu offerings, too.
It is hard to browse the menu and not order their Parmesan Truffle Fries (RM26.90). The aromatic smell of freshly fried rosemary salt steak fries topped with grated parmesan cheese, drizzles of truffle oil, sprinkles of truffle salt and a dollop of truffle mayo could be whiffed from afar.
I was really intrigued by the Unagi Pizza (RM29.90) - because I love eating unagi - but was hesitant to order every time. I did not think I could finish the whole pizza on my own. Thanks to one of my high school classmates who assured me that it is a portion for one, I ordered it and oh yes, I finished it alright. Described as a crispy tortilla pizza, it had a thin base and was generously topped with button mushrooms, mozarella and cheddar cheese, unagi bits, Japanese seaweed, citrus teriyaki sauce, fresh parsley and chervil.
The Shiitake Risotto (RM29.90) is a chef's special and it is easy to see why. It is a good serving of Japanese short grain sake risotto with shiitake and portobello mushrooms topped with shaved parmesan cheese, and infused with truffle salsa and oil.
Judging from how the Samurai Don (RM25.90) is ordered each time I visit with different groups of people, I am guessing that this is one of their more popular dishes. Perhaps everyone is familiar with the flavours of this dish - teriyaki sauce, pan-seared chicken chop, onsen egg, pickled cucumber, fresh chives and Japanese seaweed. Simple, familiar, satisfying.
Two dishes that I found had refreshing flavours are the Spicy Tuna Tartar Don (RM32.90) and the Salmon Ikura Don (RM32.90). The Salmon Ikura Don is simple a bowl of rice served with with salmon flakes with wasabi mayo, fresh avocado, ikura and tamago slices.
The Spicy Tuna Tartar Don, as its name suggests, is rice with tuna. Specifically, it is a bowl of rice served with spicy tuna tartare with mayo, fresh avocado, ikura and tamago slices.
There is a variety of cakes to select from the cake display and prices vary accordingly. Those that are alcoholic would be pricier.
As the place is home to latte art world champions, it would more or less be a training ground for the coming generations of latte art enthusiasts. Although the taste of the coffee is so-so for me, the art never fail to impress.
They have expanded their coffee menu to include a selection of creative coffee. More than one person I visited with gave the thumbs up for the Strawberry Latte (RM18.90), an experimental milk-based coffee they curated for the 2016 Barista Competition. It was simply strawberry ice balls that you pour fresh milk and espresso over.
For a pretty looking drink, the Beach Runner is not bad choice. It is a coconutty symphony of cold brew, coconut, pineapple and lychee. It even has coconut shavings on the outside of the glass.
Cola No Cola (RM18.90) is a refreshing cold brew of calamansi, lemongrass, cinammon and tonic water. It even sounds healthy.
For non-coffee drinkers, there is a selection of soda pop (RM16.90) to choose from.
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| Passionfruit mint |
Glad that I gave them another chance. Now, they have branched out to outlets in Chow Kit and Bangsar. However, I still reckon that their food trumps their drinks despite their reputation as a coffee place.
If you are familiar with Sri Petaling, you would know that street parking is limited and double parking is rife. I would say just pay for the parking using your TnG at the parking complex across the road and not worry about being blocked by some random person who may not leave their contact number on their dashboard.
103-G Jalan Radin Bagus, Sri Petaling, 57000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
M: +6012-519 7103; E: help@103coffee.com
Daily 8:15am to 9:30pm
