X marks The Spot

Salt beef sandwich was quite tasty.

The long narrow building with a real tree on the porch peeking through a hole in the roof, had drawn much interest months before it opened early in the year.

Located on a small strip of land in front of TMC supermarket in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur, The Spot by Chinoz is surprisingly spacious inside.

Thin Tarte Flambe is great for sharing as a starter snack.

A long central table takes centre stage, and an old polished wooden bench, rescued from an old jewellery shop in Petaling Street of the capital city, leans against the wall on one side.

The Spot is the latest project of Sandra Samad and husband Teng Wee Jeh, and together they also run the nearby restaurant Chinta on Jalan Kemuja also in Bangsar.

The Laksa’s gravy was thick and delicious. Pictured here is a halved portion as it was shared between two.

They were founders of Chinoz on the Park in KLCC which ran for more than 20 years.

Why the random name “The Spot”?

“We didn’t feel that Chinoz was appropriate as it’s a much smaller premises,” says Teng.

The long spacious interior at The Spot.

“We kept having to describe the location to people and after a while, it was easier to show them ‘X’ marks the spot on Google map!”

The menu is still a work-in-progress, but there’s more than enough to draw in café-goers. It was late in the afternoon, so we opted for a few simple items such as the House-cured Salt Beef Sandwich,

Angel Hair Prawn Aglio Olio and Laksa.

Angel Hair Prawn Aglio Olio. — Photos: PATSY KAM

Sandra offered us a snack of Tarte Flambe to start with – a thin crispy pizza drizzled with olive oil, topped with onions and thin pepper strips – as we sipped on an iced Lychee Rooibos tea.

It was addictive!

“It’s a nice option to garlic bread,” says Sandra.

“Normally, it would have crème fraiche and beef bacon too. It is not on the menu yet as I’m still thinking what to call it!” she says with a laugh.

The Salt Beef Sandwich (RM33) on rye bread with gherkins was served with a heap of French fries and a thousand island dip.

A real tree juts out in the middle of the porch of The Spot.

The beef tasted lightly salted and juicy, balanced with a little tartness from the chopped gherkins. The portion is large enough to suffice as a full meal for lunch.

The Angel Hair Prawn Aglio Olio (RM36) was a light pasta, with umami from the prawns perched atop it.

Cherry tomatoes added sweetness, and there was a little heat from the chillies in it.

The fragrant gravy for the Laksa (RM23) had homemade rempah (spices) of buah keras (candlenut), belacan and dried shrimp, and finished with santan (coconut milk), bunga kantan (torch ginger flower) and daun kesum (Vietnamese coriander).

It was a delightful laksa with a difference, using angel hair pasta instead of the usual rice noodles. A legacy from her Chinoz days,

Sandra proved that her laksa was still every bit as delicious as it was then.

What’s tea time without some cake?

The luscious cakes on the counter were staring at us, so we settled for a Coconut Cream Cake that was moist, textured with grated coconut and not overly rich.

There were also tempting Onde Onde and Carrot Walnut cakes available, with the variety of cakes changing daily.

Apparently, you can catch the morning sun at the porch, making this a lovely spot (forgive the pun) to catch a morning cuppa if you’re off to work, or after sending the kids to school and meeting other mothers for breakfast!

The Spot by ChinozJalan Ara, Bangsar

Kuala Lumpur

03-2201 6422

Business hours: Daily: 10am to 10pm