PETALING JAYA, Sept 5 — What do baristas eat?
That is the question I posed to one of the baristas at One Half Coffee in Taman Paramount, PJ.
My friend and I are there for our morning cuppa and some of the freshly baked pastries. The way conversations go, especially when you hadn’t caught up in ages, it was soon lunchtime.
What to eat?
Well, here’s a little secret. When you are at a café and have no idea what coffee to order, it’s always a safe bet to ask the baristas what they would propose or personally prefer.
Sometimes it’s a signature drink; sometimes it’s how the beans are behaving (or misbehaving) that day, so they might suggest a long black or a flat white accordingly.
Why not ask them what they eat? After all, they work in the neighbourhood and ought to know the local food scene better than most folks.
This, plus their (hopefully) discerning palate, means it’s better than haphazardly wandering around the area or checking the abysmal wasteland that is Google Reviews.
Our friendly barista helpfully points out that he and his colleagues, as well as many regulars who work nearby), often head to Restoran Shuang Siew a block or so away from their café for chicken rice.
Given the sometimes sweltering, sometimes wet weather we have been having lately, this sounds a lot better than anything deep-fried or overly spicy. Consider us sold on the idea!
(Remember, receiving a recommendation is a gift, a blessing.)
There is a decent-sized lunchtime crowd at Restoran Shuang Siew when we arrive, but no untenably long queues. We grab a table closest to the entrance, the better to watch the sifu at his craft, deftly chopping chicken to order.
We enjoy some homemade barley water while waiting for our order. One of us opt for iced, something cool to ward off the noonday heat; the other decides to fight fire with fire and a hot barley is the way to go.
There is no wrong or right; to each his own, and we are all better off with the diversity in opinions and preferences.
This notion is particularly important when you’re dining out at a new place, with no prior insight beyond a professional barista liking it enough to eat regularly there, so there is comfort in that.
To eat with an open mind and an adventurous appetite will bring you to places you have never been, for better or for worse.
Soon the server brings our food, all at once and in dishes of different colours. Two plates of oil rice, not too greasy and fluffy enough to see the individual grains, framed in a faded orange hue.
Half a roast chicken for the two of us to share, arranged on a large plate with a herb design. We recite the names: Marjoram and olive, hyssop and gromwell. You know you are having chicken rice at Restoran Shuang Siew when you are transported to an English garden or a Mediterranean grove.
Plenty of lean meat here, still moist. Aromatic and crispy skin, barely doused with the sauce, something I appreciate; some chicken rice restaurants are too liberal with the ladles of gravy, drenching rather than seasoning.
To make sure we get enough protein, a pale green platter of siew yoke, chopped into “soldiers” rather than thicker chunks. These are leaner than some would like but for gym-goers who are in a cutting phase, this would be perfect.
The thinner sticks of siew yoke “soldiers” also means these are easier to dunk into the piquant chilli sauce; you get more with every bite thanks to the increased surface area. In fact, I know some people who eat chicken rice solely for the excuse to get sloshed on the addictive chilli sauce.
No meal is complete without some vegetables. We are in a chicken rice restaurant, so this means a requisite side of nga choy or bean sprouts.
Served on a white plate, bean sprouts don’t really count as vegetables in my book (I prefer dark, leafy greens) but no one would deny they go well with chicken rice. These aren’t as fat and juicy as the nga choy in Ipoh but offer a satisfying crunch nonetheless.
A perfectly reasonable lunch, enough to fill our bellies yet not so heavy we would be unable to carry on our conversation. Having said that, something to ward off the mid-afternoon stupor wouldn’t hurt.
An iced latte sounds heavenly. I just happen to know a café close by...
Restoran Shuang Siew
11, Jalan 20/14, Taman Paramount, PJ
Open daily (except Tue closed) 10:30am–7pm
Phone: 03-7877 2587
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