COCONUTS HOT SPOT — “People like to make their own decisions, especially when it concerns their food!”
Based on this philosophy, Chef Steve Allen (CEO of the Delicious Group) came up with the concept for Simply d, the latest cafes to hit town. There are currently three outlets in the Klang Valley – NU Sentral, The Curve and Avenue K – and they have been creating quite a buzz in the cafe dining scene. Operating on a “fast-food counter” style, diners place their orders there and food is served pretty fast after that.
Diners get to choose the types, styles and toppings of their noodles or pasta in Simply d.
There are more than 10 styles to choose from, ranging from carbonara, dry-tossed sambal to sweet basil and cashew nuts pesto. There’s even a “salted egg pumpkin” option.
Once you have decided on the style, choose your noodles/pasta… from the nondescript local yellow mee to popular foreign noodles like soba or spaghettini. Lastly, the best part: choose your add-ons/toppings from simple fares like ikan bilis (anchovies) to funkier items like grilled lamb kofta, tea eggs or char-grilled chicken.
Want a westernised “pan mee”? Taking cue from the immensely popular chilli pan mee, Simply d’s Chilli Chicken Pastamee (RM13) is unexpectedly good. Choosing linguine as my pasta option, the condiments of fried anchovies, minced chicken, fried egg and sambal all hit the right spots. The only tiny grouse I had was that there was not enough heat in the sambal.
My other favourites were the Beef Short Ribs Herbal Soup with soba (RM12.50) and Simply d Curry Laksa (RM12). The Beef Short Ribs are fork tender and full of bovine character, enhanced nicely with herbs and spices. Slurping the soba, I totally relished the comforting taste of the dark aromatic broth.
My curry laksa had al dente spaghettini in it. The version of curry laksa here is a bit toned down but Chef Allen is careful to maintain the right balance of spices in the laksa broth. For more oomph, do ask for more sambal to go with it.
For those who would rather not make too many decisions on noodles and prefer a quick sandwich or burger, Simply d has a few to keep them happy like the Chicken Avocado & Pine Nuts Tortilla Wrap (RM12) and Mushrooms, Tomatoes & Pesto Sandwich (RM12.50). I love the Beef Burger (RM13) with its thick juicy beef patty lodged between layers of cheese, lettuce, tomatoes and caramalised Onions in a brioche bun. Honestly, that’s one of the best simple beef burgers I’ve had in a long time.
Desserts – there is a whole wide range of sweet temptations in the glass case. This is a spin-off from Delicious, remember? From the variety available, I like the Coconut Pandan Cake. It’s a crowd pleaser – there’s nothing not to like when coconut and pandan are fused together in a light spongy cake.
Coffee lovers, if you are there on a Monday afternoon (between 3-4pm), look out for the
“Pay anything you like” for a cup of 8oz coffee! Yes, any amount, starting from 10 sen. I was told the highest amount paid for this was RM20 and the lowest amount was 10 sen!
Simply d
Lot G9 NU Sentral
201 Jalan Tun Sambanthan
50470 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: +6012-512-9221
Opens daily 8.00am-10.00pm
Chris Wan also blogs at Pure Glutton
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