KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 26 — Food trends come and go.
This year might be the year for rabid reinventions of the classic croissant, from round croissants with circular laminations and cream fillings to crookies – croissants baked with a dollop of cookie dough on top.
I have also been observing ochazuke, a simple Japanese one-bowl dish of hot green tea poured over rice, turning up on menus in many cafes around town.
Ingredients vary, from delicate poached salmon to heartier Hawaiian style poke toppings.
Still, what better way to identify trends than to investigate my own eating habits? Let the personal become the universal, I say.
One thing I have noticed is how I have been eating a lot more bread in 2024. Possibly the most I have eaten since the lockdown days of the Covid-19 pandemic some years ago, when so many of us started baking sourdough bread at home..
Those days are long behind us but we have become more enamoured of breads as a result. Not just the iconic lockdown loaf (i.e. homebaked sourdough bread) but also other breads from brioche and bagels to ciabatta and focaccia.
Even the humble Hainanese toast at our neighbourhood kopitiam feels more exalted nowadays (but more on that later).
The way I have been enjoying my bounty of bread this year has been in the form of sandwiches, or anything resembling some filling slapped on/between a slice or two of bread, really.
This has been my year of sandwiches.
One of my favourites was the Grilled Cheese at Yue Coffee Bar in Taman Taynton View. Here, the right amount of toasting with a panini press means the sourdough bread is crunchy yet still soft.
You can enjoy their grilled cheese plain (i.e. cheese only) or with other ingredients: chicken ham, caramelised onion, mushrooms or homemade pesto. Whichever you choose, expect oozing, melted cheese.
Another hit was the Sourdough Fish Melt at Ebony & Ivory Coffee in the Yulek neighbourhood of Cheras.
Better than anything you’d find in a fast food restaurant, this sailor’s sandwich features a crunchy breaded fish fillet, in-house tartar sauce and Cheddar cheese between soft and fluffy sourdough buns.
The fish melt comes accompanied by freshly fried homemade potato wedges, which are good enough to stand on their own as a snack.
A previous rendition was paired with their refreshing Coastal Slaw; I wouldn’t mind a super-sized version with both the wedges and coleslaw.
If seafood is not your protein of choice, consider the Country Steak Sandwich at Oui Bakehouse & Café, a secluded Parisian style bistro-café nestled off Old Klang Road.
It is a truly meaty sandwich: grain fed strip loin steak, cooked medium rare with a mouthwatering sear, sliced thickly and served atop sourdough toast. The extras - creamy béchamel, a hashbrown, cheesy scrambled eggs and a garnish of chives - bring this to the next level.
Perhaps poultry is more up your alley. The Chicken Nanban Sourdough Sandwich at Shan Mu in Taman Connaught is tantalising with a fried-to-order chicken thigh and tangy nanban sauce encased between two slices of crispy sourdough bread.
Shan Mu is the heaviest hitter in this list (albeit a very personal list) given it has not one, but two of the best sandwiches I have had (and continue to order) this year.
Their Kaya Coffee Butter Sourdough Sandwich is a real winner with the intense espresso butter a match made in heaven for the fragrant kaya.
Speaking of kaya, the traditional spread has been elevated at Twenty-Two Bakery, a 100 per cent sourdough bakery.
Their Homemade Kaya is made with real gula Melaka and chicken eggs (rather than duck eggs; owner Ang Bo Ling told me duck eggs would be gilding the lily given the deep flavour and aroma of the gula Melaka).
Sold in jars (kept chilled as no preservatives are used), this irresistible kaya is best enjoyed with Twenty-Two Bakery’s sourdough Hainanese loaf and some rich butter.
Imagine the best roti bakar with real butter and kaya: that’s the Sourdough Hainanese Toast at Twenty-Two Bakery.
There is nothing fancy or immediately Insta-friendly about these sandwiches. Just simple, straightforward honest products made with good ingredients and lots of care, the way it should be.
I don’t know about you but I am looking forward to even more sensational sandwiches in the coming year!
Yue Coffee Bar
46A, Jalan Mutiara Barat 6, Taman Taynton View, Cheras, KL
Open daily (except Thu closed) 9am-6pm
IG: https://www.instagram.com/yuecoffee/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/yuecoffee/
Ebony & Ivory Coffee
No. 4A, Jalan Kaskas 4, Taman Cheras, Kuala Lumpur
Open daily 10am-6pm
Phone: 013-616 1286
IG: https://www.instagram.com/ebonyivory_coffee/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/p/Ebony-Ivory-Coffee-100049531187754/
Oui Bakehouse & Café
G02, Menara K1, Lorong 3/137C, Old Klang Road, KL
Open daily 9am-6pm
Phone: 03-7770 9355
IG: https://www.instagram.com/ouibakehousecafe/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/OuiBakehouseCafe/
Shan Mu
28, Jalan Cerdik, Taman Connaught, Cheras, KL.
Open Tue-Sun, 10am-7pm (Mon closed)
Phone: 016-362 8266
IG: https://www.instagram.com/shanmu_cafe/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/p/Shan-mu-cafe-100087935125900/
Twenty-Two Bakery 二十二號烘培坊
4-G, Jalan Ara SD 7/3B, Bandar Sri Damansara, KL
Open Tue-Sat 10am-6pm; Sun & Mon closed
Phone: 017-996 0305
IG: https://www.instagram.com/twenty2bakery_/?hl=en
FB: https://www.facebook.com/twenty2bakery/
This is an independent review where the writer paid for the meal.
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