Minimalism does not necessarily operate through the idea of subversiveness. We’ve reclaimed that idea and transmuted it into perceptions that are comforting and inviting. The maximalism-minimalism continuum does not exist in isolation of food and beverage. It is very much characteristically unique to the branding of the restaurant and we see these motifs carefully intertwined within the food we eat through its presentation and the rapture we derive from ending the longing for satiety. 

Minimalism is not sterile and maximalism is not garish and the oxymoronic combination of both is not unoriginal. 

117 Coffee Dine located at Cheras invites you in through this very perception of comfort and serenity. A perception that certainly does not deceive you. The unorthodox floor plan, the clean (maybe a little bit sterile) and monotonous colour scheme, the strategically placed labubu tchotchkes– they’ve balanced this curation of colours to seemingly allow the vibrant (maybe also slightly garish) colours of their food and beverages to seep very carefully into your eyesight from your peripheral vision, effectively positioning it into the stars of your visit. 

We were served with four beverages and four separate main courses. Between the beverages, we had three coffee options, all of which were brewed using beans from HANI Roastery, and one light fruity drink. Dong Ning Cha exuded a fragrant smell, a combination of all the ingredients used to make the drink– green mango, lemon, and brown sugar. Garnished with a dried orange slice, the drink championed both sweet and sour flavours. The concept of sweet and sour drinks seems difficult to pull off, mostly attributed to the fact that it is so incredibly overdone. However, classics are classics for a reason and a mango-lemon pairing works really well. 

The White coffee was perhaps the only ‘unoriginal’ item we’ve consumed. Unoriginal because it’s very much another classic. Surprisingly, it was not as strong as your typical lattes. It has the less caffeine associated bitterness and just a tad more sweeter because of the milk used. It would be a good pairing with heavy main dishes to counteract the overfilled tummy. 

We were offered two of their signature coffees. The Noir Latte was served iced with a rather unfamiliar combination of ingredients. The noir is attributed to the charcoal used in the drink, producing a striking black liquid-filled glass. The type of black not necessarily related to the existence of espresso– even though espresso was evidently in this drink– it was more so the blackness achieved by adopting fatalism into your governing philosophy. The latte was prepared using oatmilk and topped with two biscoff cookies sitting neatly on a thick layer of biscoff foam. The drink was certainly sweet but that’s the whole point. However, the sweetness is not artificially manufactured, it does not produce a saccharine-like taste, one that you are forced to endure when cafes load up your daily caffeine fix with unpleasantly sweet syrups. The drink felt whole and complete with the charcoal effectively cutting down on the sweetness of the biscoff by just a little and the oatmilk contributing a nutty element.

The second signature coffee beverage offered was their Toasty Salt which was pleasantly surprising. It paid homage to Malaysian culture while elevating the simple yet effective drink you get from your local kopitiam. This was a combination of genmaicha tea, espresso, and oatmilk as their central elements along with added layers of salt and whipping cream. It was surprising because it felt more of a savoury drink than a sweet one. Certainly does not make much sense since the ingredients evidently demonstrate sweet elements. 

Their main dishes sprawled into our arms. 117 Coffee Dine espoused the chazuke dish. Chazuke accurately translates to “tea submerged” giving rise to the concept of genmaicha tea and allowing it to cascade down a neatly decorated pile of rice. We were served with Salmon Silk, consisting of a plate of japanese rice, an egg still soft at its center, the characteristic furikake, and finally topped with a slice of flaky salmon with its skin intact and cooked perfectly. It lacks extraneous flourish. Paired with this dish, of course, was the hot genmaicha tea soup to construct the implications of a chazuke. This dish combination emanated a management of ingredients that is almost ruthless solely due to the fact the Japanese rice did not immediately turn mushy and pulpy after sitting in the hot tea. This dish has a transportive charm in aspects at which you would find yourself wanting to simply avoid jetlag and stay in Malaysia instead of making your journey to Japan. Tiger Zen was the second chazuke dish we were served with. Most stayed consistent with the Salmon Silk dish, except salmon was switched out for spicy tiger prawns and there exists a scattering of garlic across the plate. The prawns were deskinned but just a tad tough. However, it was definitely atoned by the completion of the dish with other elements. No faults were really found in their chazuke dishes. The execution was perfect but this definitely compliments the actual polish of the dish where much can be derived from the amount of time and effort that went into curating this selection of dishes. 

117 Coffee Dine operates outside of their specialities. Their Car-bonara was sufficiently creamy and utilised the egg yolk in such profound ways. This dish, centered around spaghetti and topped with their in-house Italian chicken sausage and gratings of parmesan cheese, was genuinely a tool to sate your hunger. It’s ultimately a crowd-pleasing dish. The diversity of their menu allows for an interpretation of intermingling cultures, authorising a wide range of selection to choose from by their naturally diverse customers. The spaghetti was cooked al dente and the egg yolk took the tune of the dish an octave higher. 

We were also offered an option from their butcher’s series. The Butcher’s Patty was a quaint dish in comparison to the rest. The dish comprised of a pile of rice with garlic soy sauce which was then topped with a 130 grams of chicken sausage patty flavoured with caramelised ingredients. The chicken patty was of course, difficult at first to break into but once you reach the meat, it pulled apart very nicely by the tines of the fork, forming tender and still perfectly moist swaths. It didn’t feel chalky or dense. The greenage sitting pleasantly on the patty itself provided a crisp crunch to compliment the meal. 

The intentional amalgamation of cuisines and the very palatable interior (and dishes) works for a fantastic curation of a dining experience. We will be back. 

Atmosphere: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Food: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Drinks: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Interior: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Service: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Written by Yashven Jayabalan