At the end of a rustic residential laneway, Kung's Cafe is a charming retreat for a simple Laotian lunch of noodles or rice amid a leafy, hidden-secret setting filled with potted plants.
This post first appeared on eatdrinkkl.com
Wednesday, May 26, 2021
Tuesday, May 25, 2021
Staple Eats: Reimagining rendang, burgers & brownies as health-focused, guilt-free indulgences
With health now at the forefront of everyone's minds, a restaurant like Staple Eats with an imaginative outlook on wholesome cooking feels increasingly resonant.
What makes Staple Eats stand out is its reassurance that we shouldn't be forced to sacrifice indulgences that we enjoy.
This family-run venue promises everything from burgers to brownies, chilli pan mee to char kuay teow, recreated for health-conscious customers, from keto diet advocates to someone simply seeking a nourishing meal.
When we first visited Staple Eats in September 2020, siblings Danial and Mimi Yik, together with Mimi's fiancé, mixed martial arts champion Keanu Subba, and chef Jerry Siah, impressed us with how nasi lemak and cheesecakes could be the cornerstone of their then-new kitchen.
This bright-white, leafy venue has evolved further this year, introducing intriguing new specialities (Dad's beef liver soup is a must) and inventive ingredients (ELAIESE's red palm fruit oil brings a nutritious punch to prawn salsa), currently available for takeouts and deliveries.
Exploring Staple Eats' repertoire means embracing mindfully sourced ingredients.
Wild-caught local sea prawns are grilled with ELAIESE red palm oil sustainably cultivated in a single-origin plantation on Selangor's Carey Island, tossed in a house-blended medley of herbs and spices for the Red Palm Salsa Prawns (RM18).
It's a playful Malaysian reinterpretation of salsa, vibrant and lively with rich, perky textures, plumply succulent with fresh crustacean flesh, paired with Staple Eats' own-baked keto toast for crunchy dipping, crafted with almond flour instead of wheat.
Staple Eats takes pride in produce that spans organic-certified vegetables to free-range, grass-fed beef, 100% free of gluten, GMO ingredients, MSG, sugar and preservatives.
But it isn't afraid of healthy oil - the restaurant recently began experimenting with ELAIESE red palm oil by Sime Darby Oils Nutrition, rich in carotenoids, Vitamin E tocotrienols, phytosterols and other nutrients that wellness geeks will appreciate.
ELAIESE's red palm oil - a premium superfood to add to Staple Eats' arsenal of balanced, beneficial recipes - is now also part of the restaurant's red palm oil salsa, served with corn-free chips, melted cheese and house-made sour cream for a tantalising twist on a Tex-Mex classic. ELAIESE's palm fruit is collected and processed within 24 hours of harvest for maximum freshness and minimum oxidisation, preserving all its nutrients for these modern nachos.
If you've been a fan of Staple Eats over the past year, you'll know the kitchen constantly tinkers with fun ideas. You might find the red palm oil in future dips such as tomato-chilli sauce or kombu cream sauce, with deep, dynamic colours and flavours that work wonderfully with toasted bread and chips.
For protein enthusiasts, Staple Eats' main meat is beef - Danial and Mimi's father loves beef, savouring it with eggs for breakfast, steak for lunch and liver soup for dinner. Incredibly, his children reveal that he remains one of the healthiest people they know, staying fit with chiseled six-pack abs instead of a dad bod.
Inspired by Dad, the Grass-Fed Beef Rendang Rice (RM30) is a full-bodied family effort. The rendang is robust, with tender strips of beef cooked in a lightly spicy paste conceived by Danial and Mimi's mom, complemented by a choice of fragrant cauliflower rice, low-GI ponni rice or wild rice. Mimi makes the acar, jazzing up this platter with a crisp, juicy tang, keeping true to Malaysian culinary traditions.
Burgers might embody decadent cheat-day gluttony, but the Staple Cheese Burger (RM38) is sustenance that's only seemingly sinful, more virtue than vice.
The roughly one-inch patty is built with grass-fed beef, more primally satisfying than commercial, filler-mixed patties, layered with melted cheddar, caramelised onions, lettuce and tomatoes in keto buns baked with almond and coconut flour and plenty of eggs, with shaved jicama chips on the side.
It's a bold refashioning of a conventional diner burger, with all the bite we expect from a brilliant burger and the flavour-packed chew that keeps us munching merrily to the finish.
Offal buffs, bookmark Staple Eats for your fix of beef lungs and liver.
The Aromatic Beef Liver Soup (RM33) lives up to its name, with lots of lovely liver that's beautifully brined to mellow out its gaminess, swirling in a broth potently enhanced with lemongrass and ginger, a complete hearty meal on its own. We hope it'll endure on Staple Eats' menu for a long time, especially since liver is so densely packed with potassium, iron and Vitamin B.
Staple Eats' first-time patrons are sometimes surprised and skeptical to see street food on the menu, spanning prawn noodles to pad Thai.
A taste of the Chilli Pan Mee (RM22) puts any persistent doubt to rest. The konjac noodles, mingling with organic mushrooms, bak choy, anchovies, a free-range poached egg, house-made chilli shrimp paste and a side of umami-rich, anchovy-based soup with baby spinach, are a lip-smacking, slurp-worthy triumph. All the pan mee essentials are represented with top-quality respect in the bowl, a bevy of diverse ingredients brought together in delicious harmony, soaring beyond the blah blandness that health food often evokes.
If you have a sweet tooth, you shouldn't hide it at Staple Eats. Mimi makes desserts that you can relish regularly, with sugar substituted with Lakanto monkfruit sweeteners, zero-calorie and all-natural.
We'd be nutty not to fall in lust with the Keto Brownie, baked with almond flour and garnished with walnut bits, heaped with dairy-free vegan ice cream, tasting as moistly scrumptious as Reese's cup with ice cream, and the Pecan Tart, with soft almond flour pastry, creamy and buttery, potent with pecans.
Coolers (RM18 each) keep us high on hydration, revivingly quenched with the Watermelon Punch (pure fresh watermelon juice with Lakanto and a whole lime's worth of tang), Cucumber Cooler, and the Virgin Mojito (minty and herbaceous without a drop of rum).
For an eatery that's less than a year old, Staple Eats has swiftly matured into something truly special, a distinctive destination that succeeds in channelling its thoughtful philosophies to tasty effect. Many thanks to the team here for having us back.
Staple Eats
D-1-8, Block Davidson, Plaza Arkadia, Desa ParkCity, 52200 Kuala Lumpur. Open Tuesday-Saturday, 10am-6pm; Sunday, 10am-4pm. Tel: 016-331-2548
This post first appeared on eatdrinkkl.com
Monday, May 24, 2021
Simply Better: Curated marketplace with community group-purchase discounts
From cakes to coffee beans to Chinese herbs, bedsheets to body wash, claypots to cutting boards to cutleries, Simply Better brings together a top-quality range of lifestyle products from carefully chosen merchants on an online platform that's a breeze to browse and a pleasure to purchase from.
This marketplace offers a bargain-hunter's twist to the experience: Every purchase on Simply Better counts as part of a group purchase that ultimately leads to a substantial discount, earned through a like-minded community.
Let's say a bottle of kombucha needs 10 purchases to trigger a 23% discount. If you buy two bottles and other customers buy eight, everyone enjoys the group discount. Simply Better lets you know how near or far you are from the discount, with group purchase prices locked in at 4pm on Mondays and Thursdays.
Check out simplybetter.life and take a peek at some of their offerings below.
Simply Better has painstakingly put together products sourced from entrepreneurs who pour their heart into their work.
These include food and beverages with a wholesome perspective, such as SHEAbrew’s Malaysian home-brewed Apple & Elderflower Kombucha (standard price RM13; group price 23% off). Pop it open to be soothed by its floral fragrance, with the full-bodied flavour of ripe apples in each sip of this small-batch effervescent drink.
If an apple a day keeps the doctor away, we're gratefully covered by KIMINO’s Ringo Sparkling Juice (RM13; group price 15% off), made with handpicked Fuji Ringo apples from Japan's Aomori region, whole-pressed with Hyogo mountain water. It’s a remarkably refreshing low-calorie drink, with the flavour of fresh apples flowing through what feels like a clean, crystal-clear beverage.
We're also happy to wake up to the granola goodness of GanTan Kitchen’s home-made GMO-free granola. GanTan's Brownie Granola (RM26; group price 11% off) is a brilliant blend of rolled oats, rice puffs, dried blueberries, cashews, chocolate chips and desiccated coconut, with a touch of Himalayan salt and pure honey. Crisp and nutty, free of added sugars and artificial flavouring, it goes great with milk for the whole family's fast, fuss-free and fulfilling breakfast.
You can store the granola and other treats in WECK’s MOLD 743 multipurpose jars (RM28; group price 20% off), crafted from 50% to 70% recycled glass to withstand extreme heat or cold.
These German-made, Martha Stewart-featured jars are dishwasher-, microwave- and freezer-safe, BPA-free with no added chemicals in their production, so you can easily use them to keep cookies, overnight oats and more. For elegant serving in a jar, try WECK's TULIP 744.
We also like the look of the TINY Round Ceramic Stackable Mug (RM25.90; group price 10% off), a high-fire stoneware mug with an easy-grip, wide squarish handle. It's stackable for convenient storage if you buy in bulk, sturdy enough to stand the test of time. Our 400-ml mug came in Sage Green with a freckled matte finish for a lovely character; it also comes in Pink Belacan, Lumut, and Light Grey.
Moving from the kitchen into the bathroom, Simply Better offers Mandi’s brand of premium bath and personal care products for luxury in hygiene.
The Velvet Dunes Body Wash (RM39.80; group price 25% off), a co-creation with a Swiss fragrance house, blends aloe vera and seaweed for an exquisite sheen and slickness that's soap-free and pH-balanced to curb skin sensitivities for normal skin. Soothing and softening skin, it pampers the senses with its scintillating scent and sensibilities, produced with high-grade, silicon-free ingredients.
Mandi's Sereni-Tea Toothpaste (RM19.80; group price 25% off) is the rare toothpaste that promises an exceptional taste experience, with a refreshing medley of mint and green tea to leave your palate feeling peppy, fluoride-free and rich in natural minerals, with a buttery-soft, gentle texture.
Simply Better's non-edible catalogue extends to bags, kitchenware and home living, reaching the bedroom too.
Make your sleep better with Kapas Living’s Bedsheet Set (RM189; group purchase 20% off), a local brand that takes pride in honestly priced bedsheets, without middlemen and markups. The sheets are certified Standard 100 by OEKO-TEX®, meaning they're free of harmful substances at all levels of processing, including formaldehyde, a carcinogenic substance for anti-wrinkle treatments. These 100%-cotton bedsheets prove you won't need a 1,000-plus thread count for sheer comfort.
Navigating Simply Better is simple, with Categories and Brands to browse - you can even shop by Lifestyles, offering sections like Health & Wellness, Nordic Living, Artisans, Breakfast Served, and Sweet Tooth to suit your needs.
Selection and checkout are all intuitive, with various payment methods, including cards, FPX and Grab, supported.
Simply Better handles all deliveries - no matter how many different brands you choose, you only pay one delivery fee. Standard delivery is RM7.50, every Wednesday and Saturday. Next-day delivery costs RM9.50 for orders completed by 4pm (though some items might be ineligible for next-day delivery).
Note that you can still enjoy group purchase discounts even if you choose next-day delivery! If your product hits the threshold for group discounts by 4pm on Monday and Thursday, you'll secure the discount even if you've already received the products - Simply Better only makes the charge for payments on Wednesday and Saturday.
Simply Better lives up to its name throughout its range. A platform with plenty of potential, it's barely half a year old, but it's expertly run by two professional app developers who are exploring innovative possibilities, including a potential try-before-you-buy feature. Expect to also see Simply Better at markets and bazaars once the Klang Valley reopens.
Simply Better
On iOS
This post first appeared on eatdrinkkl.com
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