Summation

 Like many other cafes, I first got to know about this place through an ex-student's post on social media. Any cafe with the words "new cafe in Seri Kembangan" would never fail to grab my attention.

Summation is on an unassuming upper level of a semi-industrial area of Seri Kembangan. To be exact, in one of the newer parts of Taman Bukit Serdang. Leads to the place are not exactly obvious but upon reaching their door step, it is hard to miss with its brightly lit "more espresso, less depresso" sign.

I visited with Dad on a drizzling afternoon, as we were looking for a place to have our afternoon 'kopi'. As we entered into the main cafe area, there was a counter to our right with (to the best of my knowledge) a letter-pressing looking machine.

Along one of the walls is a display of stationery from Summorie, or to be more specific, parts that would make up your unique personalised notebook.

Layout was simple and straightforward. One side for stationery, another for food.

Did I mention that there is an aromatic whiff of coffee as soon as you walk in? My vision was automatically guided by my nose and there, my brain was told to have sum er, some of those that produced that smell.

Apologies for a not-so-advanced mobile phone, but hopefully the photo shows just enough of the variety of dessert they had on display that afternoon. Rather catchy, I would say. The pink doughnut-looking was Taro Coconut, the green one next to it was Matcha Yuzu Tart, the one with a hat was Nutmeg Banana Chocolat, the one with a red centre was Petit Grapefruit Cheesecake and the right-most swirly one was Citron Tart.

On a normal day, I would choose the Citron Tart. But I decided to try something different, since the place is new. I opted for the Nutmeg Banana Chocolat. Admittedly, my palate on the first mouthful took a tad wee of time to adjust but after that, I found the combination rather interesting.

Oh and yes, coffee was good, too.

It has been quite a while, so the place may look different now. They even have another outlet open at RexKL. Probably time for me to pay another visit.

Summation

B-2-1 Jalan 14/3, Pusat Perniagaan Bukit Serdang, Taman Bukit Serdang Seksyen 14, 43300 Seri Kembangan, Selangor, Malaysia

M: +6017-985 0917; E: holasummation@gmail.com

Daily 10:00am to 6:00pm

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The Founders Cafe

 My first trip to Johor Bahru (JB) was 27 years ago. My recollection of the place is the high school I went to for a choir camp - faces the Straits of Johor. This particular trip therefore felt like a first trip, even though it was my second.

As soon as we checked into the hotel and freshened up, we booked a Grab and headed out for cafe-hopping. The two guys I was with were really eager to try out the local JB cafe scene, so they had a list of to-go places ready.

Our Grab driver took us to what seemed like an industrial area. One corner along one of the roads had particularly more cars parked in its compound and along its fence, so we guessed this must be the place. We were a little confused because we were dropped off at the side gate and did not see its signage. Perhaps if we were dropped off at the main entrance, we would be able to better tell that it was a cafe. Nevertheless, we were welcomed by bright red and green neon lights that reminded us that we would be "feeling' good" here.

We managed to be seated even though there was a weekend crowd. I suppose being an industrial lot, it has an industrial look. There are fresh potted plants around to soften the texture of the place. There were also creative pieces on the walls. 

Perhaps there is too many things going on at the same time, too many things to focus on and not one focal point, I felt a little distracted. We also had a speak slightly louder than usual, perhaps due to the crowd. Maybe placing more soft materials around could help absorb some of the noise bouncing off all the hard surfaces.

There is a glass window with photos of celebrities who have visited, and also postcards. It had notes, too, perhaps an attempt to make the place a little more personalised.

Food-wise, almost everything had an interesting name and sounded tasty. As bagel is one of their specialties, we ordered one with smoked salmon, green onion cream cheese, capers and tomato (RM18.50). Felt like we were eating healthy stuff.

As was highly recommended by the waitstaff, we ordered a Quesadilla (RM29.90). From the picture on the menu, it looked like some sort of pancake. When it was served, we totally understood why it was recommended. It has a unique taste, as the fluffy scrambled eggs had a tomyum flavour, and chicken ham pieces and tomato slices mixed with Alexa's Sriracah aioli and cheddar cheese, sandwiched between tortilla sheets generously covered with coriander, grated parmesan, pomegranate and drizzles of pesto oil.

Okay, all the healthiness was usurped by the dessert we ordered. Browsing such a colourful dessert counter really is the worst temptation (or is it?).

Look at all the sinful rolls looking back at me... gawddd

Honestly, we ordered more than we could handle because we just could not help ourselves. 

Not forgetting, the must-have cuppa of caffeine...

The Founders Cafe

Tiong Nam Tebrau, 45 Jalan Tiong Nam Emas, Kawasan Perindustrian Tebrau, 81100 Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia.

T: +607 360 9101; M: +6018-900 4572; E: the founderscafe.co@gmail.com

Daily 9:00am to 10:00pm (Day menu from 9:00am to 6:00pm [last order at 5:00pm], night menu from 6:00pm to 10:00pm [last order at 9:00pm])

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103 Coffee

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.

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 Coffee

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

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Snitch by The Thieves

Situated on the third floor in the centre of The Gardens Mall is a fancy-looking place called Snitch, which is established by the same team behind Breakfast Thieves in the neighbouring hood of Bangsar. I have made several visits since getting to know about the place, either to have proper meals with friends, or just for a quick coffee before my baking class next door at ABC Cooking Studio.

One advantage of dining with a group of friends is that we would get to taste different dishes without having to overeat. Their pasta menu seemed to appeal to everyone, in different ways, as they came in rather international flavours.

The Kaprao-Nara (RM36), as its name sounds like, is a Thai twist to the Italian staple. It is spaghetti cooked with Thai basil spicy chicken mince, fresh bean and shiitake, topped with a fried egg, chilli, coriander and citrus parmesan cream.

 

The menu had plenty for seafood lovers, like the Crab Getty (RM42). Everyone was full of praises for the panko soft shell crab, which was soft on the inside and crunchy on the outside. The flavour of the creamy salted egg yolk infused with the blue swimmer crab meat, ebiko, and capsicum is topped off with spring onion and bird's eye chilli.

I like the names they give their dishes, like Finding Dory Aglio Olio (RM40), which essentially is a seafood aglio olio. The plate is filled to the brim with prawns, calamari, baby scallops, crispy baby prawns, blistered cherry tomato and mushroom. The spaghetti is almost hidden under all these marine treasures and then sprinkled with chilli garlic lemon oil.

Being a spin-off of a Melbournian cafe, we had to try their Aussie Blended Iced Coffee (RM22). It was refreshing, especially for a hot arvo.

Of course, the place would not be complete without coffee and cakes. Freshly baked cakes and other pastries are available to order at the cake display counter, so I am guessing that there is a possibility that they have different cakes every now and then.

Flat white RM13

Note: There is a hidden bar, which you would "unhide" as you make your way to the washroom. So when they close, you could just adjourn to the bar.

Snitch by The Thieves

T-225A & B, Third Floor, The Gardens Mall, Lingkaran Syed Putra, Mid Valley City, 59200 Kuala Lumpur.

T: +60 3 2201 9699; E : info@snitchgroup.com

Daily 11am till late (kitchen closes at 9:00pm)

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