Ground Coffee Uptown
Words: Alicia Kennedy
Photos: Rich Callahan
I love to explore new coffee shops here in Kuala Lumpur, and we are definitely spoiled for options. Still, when Monica invited me to meet her at Ground Coffee Uptown, I knew I was in for a real treat. Monica had shared the menu with me in advance, so I had some idea of the morsels and coffee options that we were going to savour on this Saturday morning, and what we experienced from the moment we walked in was a relaxing, green garden oasis tucked away in a corner location in Damansara Utama staffed by some highly experienced baristas and chefs, and full of satisfied customers. Ground Coffee Uptown has a second location in Bandar Utama and is also managed by the same management team as Touche Pastries in Section 17 and the Dough Factory in Bandar Sri Damansara.
Ground Coffee Uptown Drinks Menu
Ground Coffee Uptown is a family-run business specialising in ground coffee. They even sell their own house blend and espresso beans, so customers can continue to enjoy this unique coffee experience well after they have left. I would recommend their house blend, which is a Colombia Tolima Ibague Supremo blend or their Pink Panther JWC espresso blend. Both are full of flavour, rounded, and of superior quality.
A unique coffee tasting experience is the Barista’s Breakfast (RM18). The barista explained that to make sure they serve the best coffee each and every day, they start each morning by tasting their own espresso and coffee with milk and drink a glass of water in between both beverages. This is when I got my first taste of the Pink Panther espresso beans, which actually tastes like strawberries. It has an invigorating finish too. Their espresso is as refreshing as their Pink Guava Kombucha (RM15), which is a fermented, lightly effervescent, and sweet tea drink that has purported health benefits.
Ground Coffee Uptown would not live up to its name without having a well-balanced, full flavoured Flat White (RM12, header photo). We also tried their Matcha Latte (Hot RM14, Cold RM15), which has a pleasant, sweet, and high-quality taste.
Ground Coffee Uptown Food Menu
Ground Coffee Uptown’s food menu offerings include: sharing platters, brunch, mains, pasta, sandwiches and poke bowls. On this particular Saturday morning, we started with the Mushroom Cauli Frito (RM23), which includes a selection of mushroom and cauliflower tempura that is golden, uncomplicated, and is served with a delicious buttermilk sauce. Their Babagnoush and Sourdough Bread (RM23) is a must-try! It is a delicate blend of eggplant dip, and spices and is served with toasted house sourdough bread. You cannot go wrong with this combination. It must be noted that their sourdough is some of the freshest, lightest, and tangiest bread in town.
Sandwiches
We were delighted to enjoy their Smashed Avocado Egg Sandwich (RM22), which was also made with their homemade sourdough bread. We chose to have this open-faced sandwich with turkey ham instead of beef bacon, but we were offered both choices. This breakfast sandwich is also layered high with avocado, scrambled eggs, cherry tomatoes, and parmesan cheese and served with a garden-side salad.
Mains
The chef’s special, Pollo Diavola (RM32), is a luscious, succulent, and savoury roast chicken that is browned with oil and lots of spice and comes on a bed of fluffy mashed potatoes accompanied by a fresh garden salad. Although this traditional Italian dish translates to ‘devil’s chicken’ because of the spicy marinade, it is heavenly because the heat and flavour are balanced just right. It is the type of food we crave when the weather gets hot. The mashed potatoes are light, creamy and buttery and the perfect side dish for this aromatic meal.
Ground Coffee Uptown’s Braised Beef Bowl (RM32) is a healthy blend of rice, tender beef, beef jus, and is topped with a sous vide egg. This brilliantly custardy yolk works to combine the grilled miso eggplant, glazed herbed carrots, baked cherry tomatoes, onion jam, and Japanese cucumber with its other ingredients. The chef’s clever use of coriander, groundnut and fried onion make this meal-in-one poke bowl a delicious addition to their menu. It is packed with flavour, texture, and reminds me of the delightful meals I like to eat when I am craving both Japanese and Korean food.
Pastries & Desserts
Do you like warm, gooey, soft and nutty cookies? We do too! While we waited for our delicious dessert to arrive fresh from Ground’s main bakery, the baristas served us these warm-out-of the-oven cookies. Ground Coffee Uptown serves a couple of varieties of cookies. It was such a treat to be offered these mouth watering, sweet, cinnamon beauties. I loved the addition of a melted marshmallow on top of the “ABC” – Almond Biscoff Cinnamon – (RM9).
A visit to Ground Coffee is not complete without tasting something from their wide selection of delicate homemade pastries and delicious desserts. We finished our meal with a Sea Salt Kouign Amann (RM7.8), which is a round multi-layered cake that is dense, sweet, and buttery. It is served warm, which allows you to appreciate this flaky, crispy perfection.
Ground Coffee Uptown Review
For a coffee lover like myself, I highly recommend this cafe not only for its wide selection of teas, coffees and drinks but also for its food and dessert menu. I am now looking forward to visiting their other locations. Ground Coffee Uptown will not disappoint.
Reasons to visit: a welcoming and green setting; excellent coffee – try the Barista’s Breakfast; we loved the vegetarian options; yummy house-made kombucha; fantastic warm cookies and pastries.
Ground Coffee Uptown
No. 27, Jalan SS 21/34, Damansara Utama,
47400 Petaling Jaya,
Selangor, Malaysia
03-7731-5334
https://www.facebook.com/groundcoffeekl/
Ground Coffee Uptown Opening Hours
Open daily, 10am-10pm
Find more of our favourite cafes in Kuala Lumpur here and stay up-to-date with the latest gourmet and travel recommendations for the country here and here.