LOVE LIFE, CHERISH MOMENTS

   I am always a firm believer of quality living. It is not about living luxuriously, enjoying exclusive items and designers' brands, but it is all about treating yourself the way you deserve, living the moment and enjoying the beautiful world God has created for us. After a long day of work, i will make sure i get some me time, be it making a cup of soothing chamomile tea or simply watching my favourite reality TV show would end my day in a perfect note. Some days, when i'm feeling a little more energetic to drag my butt out of the house, i would also treat myself with some good and hearty brunch, to make my rest day even better. Today, i'm going to share with you a new found brunch cafe in Publika, Mont Kiara that has taken over Instagram with its minimalistic interior and hearty breakfast items--Pan & Tamper.



   Located within the vicinity of Solaris Dutamas, this white cafe is easily spotted at the corner lot of Block D1, on the ground floor. I visited this place with Mr J and Zheng when she was in town for a short getaway. We were warmly welcomed by a team of energetic young people, and were led to our table with their simple menu. Pan & Tamper likes to go for simplicity in the menu, offering a few items on each section--brunch, lunch, desserts and beverages. We were tempted to try their pasta but decided to safe it for our next visit. Hence, we ordered their popular dishes like I'm A Fun-Ghi, Pan and Tamper Bake Your Egg and of course their Cave Man Breakfast. For the drinks, Mr. J and i went for a black and a white coffee--Long Black and Flat White.

I'm A Fun-Ghi--RM 28 Potato rosti crafted with an assortment of wild mushroom sauteed with thyme, accompanied with cooked baby spinach and topped with 63 degree Celcius egg.

Pan and Tamper Bake Your Egg--RM 28 Chicken meatballs, baked egg, piquillo peppers, assorted beans, toasted almond, sauteed spinach and yogurt , served with 2 pieces of wholemeal toast.

Cave Man Breakfast--RM 28 Grilled turkey ham and chicken sausage, sauteed onion and baby spinach, baked cannellini beans, fried potato rosti and egg of your choice (scrambled/sunny side up/poached), served with wholemeal toast.

Flat White--RM 10

Long Black--RM 9

#flatlays

    As you can probably tell, Pan & Tamper is being real cheeky when designing their menu. Each and every dishes here have their own unique and hilarious names. For instance, I'm A Fun-ghi? I'm a fun guy? Jokes aside, the execution and presentation of this dish is totally restaurant level. This vegetarian dish is designed beautifully, combining all kinds of earthy flavours such as potatoes, mushroom and eggs, each component bringing different texture and taste, producing a sophisticated and eye pleasing dish. We would prefer the dish to be warmer and less greasy. My baked eggs was top on the notch too, with another unique flavour combinations. I love the addition of yogurt as it offers acidity and a tinge of freshness to this heavy dish. However, i would love to have beef balls instead of chicken beacuse white meat doesn't go well with tomato base. Lastly, Mr. J's Cave Man Breakfast was another interpretation of the famous Big Breakfast, with little twist on its presentation. Coffee was good, with strong acidity and fruity body. Flat White was executed beautifully, with the right foam and art. We couldn't complain much about the caffeine.

Wide selection of unique cakes for sweet tooth

   Overall, Pan & Tamper proved to be a significant force in the cafe scene of KL, with its consumer friendly pricing, lovely service and comfortable dining ambiance. I would definitely return to try out their pasta dishes. Till then, xoxo.

More Information~
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/panandtamper/
Address: 9, G3, Block D-1, Solaris Dutamas, Mont Kiara.

   O-Hai-Yo! Greetings peeps! Those that are following me on my social media would know that i was in Tokyo, Japan for a couple of days, exploring this unique and beautiful metropolitan of the east. Now that i'm back, i can't wait to show you guys my thoughts and experience during the trip! Before that, let me present to you, one of the biggest coffee force in my hometown, Penang--Macallum Connoiseur.

Roasting Room

Cappucino con Cocoa--RM 10 Cappucino dusted with chocolate powder

Homemade Chai Latte--RM 16 Special mix of 7 spices (Black Pepper, Cardamon, Anise, Star Anise, Clove, Cinnamon and Coriander Seeds)

Smoked Salmon Bagel Smoked salmon with poppy seeds bagel, served with wasabi cream cheese, salad and balsamic dressings.

Matcha Sesame Cheesecake

    Perhaps i was expecting too much from this star level cafe in Penang, i was greatly disappointed by their coffee and tea. To begin with, cappucino's latte art was nothing much but a basic 3-layered tulip, flawed some more. Flavour was leaning towards acidic and fruity, not exactly my preference. It would be better to let the customers to choose their beans, just like Earthlings in Kuching, so that every customers is pleased. Homemade Chai Latte was priced at an astonishing RM 16. Speaking of a small pot of tea, filled with simple spices and minimal amount of tea and warm milk absolutely does not cost that high. The portion was so pathetically small and there was barely any chai spices tasted. I would not recommend another cup. On the bright side, smoked salmon bagel was a tad better than those disappointing beverages. I like the generosity of the kitchen, in providing decent amount of smoked salmon. Wasabi cream cheese was an unique twist to this conventional dish. Salad was just ordinary, nothing memorable. Matcha Sesame Cheesecake was delicious as whole, with its soft and creamy cheese layers. However, the two flavours make no sense together. It is unwise to combine 2 flavours of the same nation (JAPAN) together without a harmony of taste.

#flatlays

   Greetings earthlings! It has been over 3 months since i came back from my UK-Europe trip during spring time. Every time i look back at our photos, i can't help but long to return for another wonderful experience. One of the more memorable moments during this trip was in Edinburgh, Scotland. Mr. J and i along with our friends in Glasgow, took a bus ride to the historical city for a one day trip. Laine booked us a table in an amazing 1-Michelin-starred and multiple award winning restaurant called The Kitchin for us to experience first hand, what's fine dining in The UK.

   After a brief walk around the city, we found our way to The Kitchin for our lunch, which we already reserved prior to this. The location is not difficult to find, along the Commercial Street, only stone throw away from The Victoria Quay, across the small stream, right next to The Scottish Government building.



   The Kitchin is the proud brainchild of Chef Tom Kitchin, which carries the philosophy of 'From Nature to Plate' and this is also the main concept for the restaurant.

'From Nature to Plate' is a true reflection of Chef Tom Kitchin's passion for the finest, freshest Scottish seasonal produce and the cooking at the restaurant reflects Tom’s training under some of the world’s best chefs blended with his own Scottish heritage.

The Kitchin presents modern British cuisine influenced by French cooking techniques and an appreciation of the best quality ingredients available from Scotland's fantastic natural larder. The produce at The Kitchin arrives fresh daily thanks to a close team of selected suppliers who supply the restaurant with seasonal produce every day. All the meat and fish is bought in whole and all the butchering and filleting is done in-house daily.

~source from thekitchin.com

Food map, showing us the origin of ingredients used in The Kitchin.

Spring themed set lunch menu

Bread Sticks served with cream cheese

Freshly baked Bread served with house butter

Complimentary cold Amuse Bouche Carrot and pumpkin puree topped with pickled carrot, radish and cucumber.

   Alright, let's begin with appetizer. I had the Scallop while the rest had the Pork dish. There were 3 scallops beautifully placed over a pile of sea salt, served with some fresh squid and garlic sauce. Our scallops were well cooked and the garlic sauce were incredible savoury, successfully complementing the natural sweetness from these seafood. The pork dish was something unique. A croquette is actually a breadcrumbed fried food, normally stuffed with mashed potato or grounded meat. In this case, the croquette was deconstructed, with grounded pork shin as the center, surrounded by a crispy ring that was not directly connected to the center. Best thing of this dish is definitely the leek and potato sauce that was rich and creamy.

Scallop Orkney queenie scallops served with a wild garlic butter and squid.

Pork Clash Farm Pork shin croquette served with a leek and potato sauce and a fried hen's egg

The inside of the master piece.

    Next up, our main courses. Each of us ordered different mains, so we got to taste every single items in the menu. I had the fish dish, which is European plaice, or flounder, while the rest had the Chicken and Ox dishes. My fish dish was seasoned minimally and the creamy sauce was good but not great. Addition of rhubarb was a little bit odd to me. Although it was executed beautifully, but it was not my favourite. On the other hand, the chicken breast was alright, great flavours and varied textures. Personal favourite has to be the ox dish. As weird as the dish sounded, the flavours were impeccable, with explosion of flavours, from spicy to sweet, from salty to savoury. Each of the item within was well thought and perfectly done.

Plaice Seared fillet of North Sea plaice served with a braised fennel, rhubarb and sea purslane

Have a closer look

Ox Inverurie ox tongue boudin served with braised ox tripe and red pepper

Chicken Haulkerton Farm chicken breast served with Jerusalem artichoke potato risotto and confit leg

    Finally, we got our desserts. We had both of the Coffee and Rhubarb desserts. My coffee souffle looks incredible on the outside and tasted even better on the inside. The souffle has an excellent height to it, freshly baked from the oven. Its texture was warm, fluffy and airy, with intense coffee punch and chocolatey flavour from the ganache. Espresso ice-cream couldn't scream more AWESOME, with its incredibly strong espresso and creamy texture. Rhubarb is not a common ingredient in Malaysia. We seldom come across this food in any cuisines from home. Hence, when i tried out the rhubarb, i wasn't sure what to expect. The texture was soft and tasted sour, pairing with the sweet and rich vanilla cream, creating a perfect dessert. However, the rhubarb sorbet was too sour to our liking. Nevertheless, this dessert was still stunning and mind blowing.

Coffee Coffee souffle served with chocolate ganache and espresso ice cream

Rhubarb Rhubarb jelly and set vanilla cream served with poached Tomlinson's Farm rhubarb and rhubarb sorbet.

Look at this beauty

  Overall, The Kitchin offered us a wonderful and memorable dining experience with its delicate food presentation, freshest and organic ingredients, quality and cutting edge cooking style along with top notch service and ambiance. None of the fine dining restaurant back home can compete with Chef Kitchin's one of a kind dining concept. He wisely combined the French technique with his origin--Scottish spirit in his cooking, creating a colourful, vibrant and impeccable dining experience for guests. The Kitchin is definitely the place to be when you are in Edinburgh and craving for quality fine dining at an affordable price. I hope you enjoy today's write up and i can't wait to show you more!

Mr. J and i

With the gentlemen

Thanks Laine for the recommendation!