Wood carvings, sculptures, lamps, even ornamental ostrich eggs _ African art takes center stage at Inside Africa, a Petaling Jaya poolside crafts shop & cafe.
Simple South African snacks are the highlight. Call in advance if you plan to order the "braai broodjie," a barbecued sandwich packed with cheese, tomatoes & onions. Sounds simple, but it really satisfies, thanks to its toasty, flavorful feel.
Also worthwhile: "vetkoek" fried pastry stuffed with spicy chicken, kinda like a cross between a doughnut & a curry puff.
For a rich dessert, hop to Out Of Africa a few meters away for the Cape Brandy Pudding _ a hot, densely rich South African date cake with brandy syrup & walnuts.
South African Rooibos bush tea to soothe our souls.
Inside Africa only serves beer, but Out Of Africa boasts these boozy concoctions: Dom Pedro (kahlua, milk, ice cream _ like the best alcoholic milkshake ever) & Amarula Cream Liquor.
South African wine: the Bellingham Chardonnay.
Mama Cafe @ Inside Africa,
PJ Palms Sports Center, Petaling Jaya.
Tel: 03-7960-0025
Whoa an Africa themed cafe ... never imagined there would be one here ;D ... with Rooibos, too! Used to drink that every day when i was in Joburg last year :D
ReplyDeleteTiming: cool, rite! i wish the menu here were wider, but i think their focus is on the handicraft instead of the food =)
DeleteHow do you keep discovering such "themed" places all the time?
ReplyDeleteMichelle: ooh, i like exploring themes! maybe cos it's part of my actual day job too _ to find themes about what's happening in the country & to write about them :D
Deletei cant c how that simple cheese toast needs calling in advance..is there some special method?
ReplyDeleteJoe: nopes, but it seems like the cafe gets rather few customers, so they keep a very limited stock of fresh food (even if it's just bread, tomatoes & onions, heh!) :D
DeleteI haven't even been to Out of Africa yet! And it's been open for so long dy :(
ReplyDeleteRebecca: Out of Africa feels like a real survivor! think it might stick around for many more years!
DeleteAre Inside and Out of.. Africa connected? Haven't bere to the latter for years. I do enjoy a good Amarula sipper though. :-)
ReplyDeleteThe Yum List: i thought they'd be sister outlets too, but no, it looks like Inside Africa is kinda trying to ride on Out of Africa's well-established coattails, heh =)
DeleteWow, african food! How come you only ordered so little? LOL
ReplyDeleteCK: the menu at Inside Africa is very limited! have to go to Out Of Africa (the restaurant next door) for more food! :D
DeleteWow I've never tried African food, it's a little bit out of my comfort zone hehe!
ReplyDeleteAugustdiners: i have a hunch that i'll never be able to visit africa, but i'd like to try as much of their traditional food as possible =)
DeleteThe 'vetkoek' looks like a karipap gone wild! Woo-hoo! :D
ReplyDeleteKenny: wonder what a malaysian curry puff gone wild might transform into ... maybe it'd be stuffed with char siew & salted egg yolk! :D
DeleteOh man - that sounds like an amazing idea... char siew salted egg yolk curry puff! Sure bestseller wan! :D
Delete(We can call it Eat Drink Karipap in your honour, hahaha.)
Kenny: i also want a gourmet curry puff, filled with foie gras & truffles! :P
DeleteWe can call your gourmet curry puff "Eat Drink Broke Liao" :P
DeleteVetkoek direct translate basically means fat cake...it actually taste nothing like those in SA..but good effort..anyone know where to find biltong in malaysia imstead?
Delete-$}{3R!n@_<-: thanks for the info. i think biltong can be found at Out of Africa restaurant, also at PJ palms sports center =)
DeleteThis is the first time I've read about African food, and in Malaysia nonetheless! I can't wait to check out this cafe when I am back in KL:)
ReplyDelete-Food Diary of a Pickyeater-
Christy: hope you'll enjoy the food (and the ambiance!) :D
DeletePS... Sean... what is/are your favourite place/s in Solaris Dutamas at the moment? Heading there Thursday...
ReplyDeleteThe Yum List: i think you might enjoy paradiso lounge (it's facing publika's open square, but on level G3). they're open for both lunch & dinner, and they're passionate about their cocktails! there's one concoction that combines absinthe, bombay sapphire & greek yogurt! :D
DeleteThanks, shall check it out :-)
DeletePJ Palms Sports Center, Petaling Jaya??? Vare the heck is dis?? :P
ReplyDeleteCiki: oh, it's the former kelab syabas! same row as A&W, not far from amcorp mall! :D
DeleteThere is an African restaurant there? Wow, times have changed. I passed by there yesterday and didn't even notice it...
DeleteWaverly: oh yeah, i guess from the outside, it's difficult to see what's inside the building! :D
DeleteYea how come the cheese toast needs pre-order ah?
ReplyDeleteBaby Sumo: oh, it seems to be prepared only on order, and sometimes they run out of stock. ya, strange, since it's rather common ingredients =)
DeleteHey had tons of fun eating and drinking wine across Sth Africa! I would visit Out of Africa just to invoke nostalgia and lament my lost backpacking youth!
ReplyDeleteMin: oooh, one of my buddies had a two-week backpacking trip in south africa last year. he and you should swap stories someday (he has tales of almost getting car-jacked & stuff like that) :D
Deletethe barbecued sandwich looks tasty with its cheesiness :)
ReplyDeleteLatest: Sinful Indulgence
Fish: it was quite surprising! I didn't expect it to taste that good! :D
Deletethe drinks all look good! and i certainly wouldn't mind a cup of Rooibos right now with the dates cake.
ReplyDeleteMissyblurkit: oh ya, tea/coffee with cakes is a nice way to end a nice meal :D
DeleteThis is quite embarrassing, Ive been to South Africa long time ago, but I don't remember anything except for the abalone. I didn't know they have so many interesting dishes.
ReplyDeleteSmitten By Food: i kinda think i'll never visit south africa ... but i do like their wines! :D
Deletewow now you've even ventured to the poolside cafes?!! This is a pretty unusual restaurant.
ReplyDeleteEiling: heheh, it's nice to eat beside a pool! i wish there were a seaside in KL for us to eat by, but i guess since we don't have one, a pool will have to do :D
DeleteOMG! How interesting the place is! I wish the wall color was not white but light brownish sort of color hehehe.
ReplyDeleteBut the food names are interesting and quite curiosity producing! I would try several different dishes if they were not too expensive ehehe.
The date cake looks very yummy! I like sticky on the top sort of cakes. And, the ice cream drink also looks attractive to me just by the brief description you put there :p
Rad: okie dokies, if/when you're in KL, this might be another place to put on the list for your eating expedition! :D
Deleted vetkoek looks interesting.....
ReplyDeleteis it all african food? open by african ? or the cooks is an african?
I have an african colleague from Italy who come once a while.. shall bring him if he comes..
Simple Person: there are two eateries here: one is a basic cafe called Inside Africa, which only serves simple snacks. But the actual restaurant next door is Out Of Africa, which has a lot of good south African recipes. I think there's no African chef, but the recipes seem correct :D
DeleteI actually learned how to swim at Kelab Syabas. Out Of Africa has to be one one of the longest running restaurants in PJ!
ReplyDeleteUnkaleong: gosh, and there are still plenty of kids frolicking in the pool here these days! i guess that thousands of people out there must have fond memories of kelab syabas :D
Deletehow do i contact this place,their phone is always off
ReplyDeleteAngie: that phone number's the only contact info available
Delete