KafeiDian - Jalan Panggong @ Kuala Lumpur [Malaysia]

The hope to have breakfast at the popular Ho Kow Hainam Kopitiam was dashed when we were faced with a long line that like would keep us waiting for an hour or so, without any shade! 

A local friend suggested the nearby KafeiDian, which appeared to look like a colonial house but was in fact a post office built in 1911. With a review score of 3.9 on Google with over 2,000 reviewers, I guess it's worth a try, especially when we weren't keen to wait in line for Ho Kow.

Entrance to the local coffee shop seemed out of sync with the vintage look of the building although it bore resemblance of Chinese shops in kampongs before the 1990s. 

Revealing a large space that can hold a lot of diners; I was utterly impressed with its retro interior design that had pockets of greenery! And I kid you not, such cement screed flooring was common in the old days. 

There was even a second floor, with lesser tables, that had wooden sheets as floor covers! Only thing was that I got the feeling I would fall through should I make a few jumps! 

Sometimes I wonder - would people generally go for decorations or for food? Of course, it would be perfect if both were ranked high but life is seldom that perfect. For me, it's a no brainer that the items that go into my stomach have a higher priority.

My eyes lighted up when I saw the boxes of nyonya kueh! Unfortunately, Alex doesn't share my love for the Peranakan desserts and I had to decide carefully as one box was the most I could stomach. 

Nyonya Kueh - sometimes, prettier things have no substance and that's what I concluded after taking a bite of this colorful kueh lapis; it was dry, sticky and tasted like jelly starch with sugar. 

Half Boiled Kampong Eggs - been a while since I last saw the above device! This was for Alex and while he didn't have any bad comment; he is a lazy ass and very much prefers half boiled eggs that were already cracked for him.

Penang Prawn Paste Chee Cheong Fun - I thought this would be quite a refreshing take on chee cheong fun! It was unique for sure although I personally feel that the strong tasting prawn paste overwhelmed the palate that was more attuned to sweetness.  Maybe I should stop being so adventurous.

Margarine Sugar Toast - looking so promising, I was disappointed when I took a bite. It may not seem charred but taste wise, there was that unmistakable bitterness that was off-putting. And the sugar and margarine combination failed to save it.

Butter Kaya Toast - there's one pet peeve I have when it comes to food; deconstructed. Hence, you can imagine my displeasure when I saw this plate of deconstructed butter kaya toast placed on my table. It's literally butter, kaya and toast! 

Even though the toast was better than the one for margarine sugar, the thing was I had to spread the butter and kaya myself and obviously, I had to use more butter and kaya, which means I didn't have enough to go around. That's downright frustrating! 

Kopi - the best thing I had at KafeiDian.

Enough said.  

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Would I be back? My short answer: no. 

Okay, maybe for the kopi. 

p.s. service was good though.

Address

16, Jalan Panggong, City Centre, 50000 Kuala Lumpur, 

Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Map

As above. 

Operating Hours

7.30 am to 10.30 pm

Pricing

Nyonya Kueh - RM 4.00 

Half Boiled Kampong Eggs - RM 3.50

Penang Prawn Paste Chee Cheong Fun - RM 5.90

Margarine Sugar Toast - RM 3.50

Butter Kaya Toast - RM 3.50

Kopi - RM 4.20

(Subject to Tax)