Walking into the cafe, one cannot but be taken with the deliberately sparse seating, art decoresque furnishings with Asian accents, and
expansive ceiling-to-floor windows overlooking the adjacent National Threatre. Each area with its own mixture of furniture, creates a proximate yet separate oasis: casual, comfy and chic-casual. Handcraft items
displayed in the outer hall - origami, clay, silverware, cards - may pique the casual visitor's interest but what the cafe has going for it is its laidback-yet-character-imbued ambience (and those expansive
windows!).
One could curl up with a book in an armchair windowside and daydream the afternoon away. Yet with a few friends, that is the very spot to enjoy a little cultured tete-a-tete. It is easy to see
the arty crowd and the advertising and public relations fraternities fawning over this place.
Foodwise, should the place call for a spot of private entertaining, head chef Gerry Francis is, more likely than
not, able to rustle up something for the discernible palate. And Francis has skinned some culinary pelts, having served on board the luxury liner, the QE II and several of Kuala Lumpur's celebrated boutique restaurants.
Meanwhile, his menu at the cafe is, for want of nomenclature, a brand of essentially - traditional local fare treated with a little Western finesse. If anything, nothing is quite what you expect; like the
guava salad with dim sum - the salad tossed in light garlic oil, honey and chili is made the unconventional centrepiece while dainty pieces of har gau (steamed prawned dumplings) surround it.
Nor the
stuffed pillows that are tau pok (a bean curd variation) turned inside out before being stuffed with seafood paste and deep-fried.
More surprises in store: Chicken meat is barbecued skewered on
sticks of lemongrass + its citrusy tinge giving the meat a perky twist of flavour.
But as far as the novelty goes, the banana and strawberry roll has to take a bow. Egg is sandwiched with banana slices
and strawberries between a soft roll, reminiscent of carbo-attack snacks from the ol' school days.
With Francis and Jason Toh (as Arts Cafe's art director Toh oversees teh cafe's creative details, from decor to
retail merchandise and food) both possesing a keen eye for presentation, the dishes are a visual delight.
Like the Green Piece - guava and mango slivers and garden greens are laced with a honey-tinged mustard
dressing, gorgeous on both scores of taste and presentation, jauntily topped with an assortment of kacang putih (roasted nuts)
More gung-ho but no less pleasing to the eye is the Sandwich in a bowl -
generous tuna chunks, quail eggs and garden greens are tossed in a creamy roasted pepper dressing and served with triangles of toast on the side. Laidback style that allows the customer to discard his cutlery for a
little casual dining.
In a cafe whose personality the eatery's star staple, the nasi campur seni - rice with combo of stuffed pillows, chicken satay and mango salad, vegetables and baked seabass topped
with homemade coconut chili paste - sums up perfectly: colourful, local flavoured, a-typical.
And like the Ice Flower Lemon Tea (a chrysanthemum-lemon concoction) it serves, Arts Cafe is surprisingly but
pleasantly palatable, and refreshing.
Find Arts Cafe on the first floor of the National Art Gallery, Jln Temerloh, Off Jalan Tun Razak, KL.
Phone 40252315
Opens daily, 10am to 6pm. Halal. Ample parking.
