Review Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Highly Recommended)
Address: 51, Jln Geroda 2/1, Pusat Perdagangan Larkin, 80350 Johor Bahru, Johor Darul Ta'zim, Malaysia
Google Map Link: https://maps.app.goo.gl/s3VyDHe2FYThSF8B9
(Please refer to the Timings provided in the Google Map Link for the Operating Hours.)
🍹 Specter = RM9.90
🍗 Salted Egg Butter Chicken = RM17.90
🍌 Pisang Goreng XL = RM13.90
Service Charge 4% = RM1.67
SST 6% = RM2.49
Click here for the Full Menu and Receipt (Opens in a New Tab, Price is accurate as of Posting Date)
What is a Speakeasy?
According to Wikipedia, a Speakeasy is a Bar in the United States that sold Alcohol Illegally during a Period called the "Prohibition Era" (1920-1933) where Alcoholic Beverages was illegal throughout the Whole Country. 🇺🇸🍹 Nowadays, its more referring to a Retro Style that replicates these Historical Bars.
I came across this Very Unusual Eatery in a TikTok Video actually and thought it looked Super Unique. 🤔 As you can see in the Attached Video, even the Main Entrance of this place is like a Faux Hidden Secret Door purposefully built into a Fake Bookshelf! 😅
Upon entering, I can totally see why its being described as a Faux Speakeasy because the Furnishings within had a Very Atas and Posh look that looked like an Interesting Fusion Blend of both Malay 马来风味 and Old School 1920s? Western Style. ❤️
Its also a Very Large Restaurant too comprising of 2 Levels with an Ornately Looking Spiral Staircase leading to the Top. (There are No Elevators) The Lightings within have a Dimmer Look and totally looks like some Exclusive Gentleman's Club. ❤️ I felt as if I had Time Travelled and stepped into a Past Bygone Era. 😅 The Whole Renovation totally looks like an Atas Level of Alcoholic Lounge although they don't serve any Alcohol here.
The Music Background they played was originally some Modern American Hip-Hop which didn't quite fit the Ambience of the Place, 🤔 although they did switch to more Instrumental Classic Music halfway. 🎵🎶 I suspect they did it because there were Children when I visited and this was to prevent them listening to any Potential Explicit Lyrics. I thought this was quite a Nice Touch by them. 👍 I would be Completely Floored had they played the Classic Godfather Movie Theme though! 🎵🎶😅
The Perfume used in this Place.
I wanted to include this in the Review because some People in Google Reviews for this Place have complained that it felt a Tad Too Strong for them comparing this place "More like a Perfume Store than a Restaurant" 🤔
Apparently, this got a Personal Reply from the Owner who explained that this Perfume is called "Ritz Carlton" used by the same Hotel Chain that they pay RM700 monthly for which I thought was very interesting. 🤔 I personally had no issues with it although you might want to take note of this if you are someone who is very sensitive to smells like this. 🤔
The Staffs are Friendly and Polite and go about their duties with a sort of Quiet Respectful Poise. 👍 They were All Smiles when I requested to take Photos and Videos of the Place as you can see in the Photo Collection. 📷😄 Despite how Atas and Posh the surroundings look and its Mature Reference to a Historical Speakeasy, this Restaurant is actually quite Kids-Friendly as they even have Specific Kids Meals in their Menu. So you should not have any issues bringing your Kids here too. 👦👧
A QR Code Ordering Menu that requires a Malaysian Phone Number to Order.
Ordering of Food is through a QR Code Menu although I thought it was Amusing when this Menu needed a Compulsory Malaysian Phone Number in order to process it at the end. 🇲🇾🤔 There is No Workaround. Die Die must have a Malaysian Number. Never seen a QR Code Menu that enforces such a Requirement. 🤔
Being a Tourist, of course I couldn't proceed and had to seek a Staff Member for assistance. He literally had to request to take my Mobile Phone and input his own Mobile Number into it. 🤔 If you are someone who dislikes a Complete Stranger touching your Mobile Device, you might want to take note of this. 🤔
Personally I thought this Requirement for a Malaysian Phone Number was Very Unnecessary and not Very Tourist-Friendly. 🤔 Perhaps they can look into removing this because other QR Code Menus i've experienced in other Restaurants have no such Requirements at all. 🤔 What I do like however is that this QR Code Menu have options that allows you to state if you would like Desserts served During or After the Meal. 👍 This was a Nice Attention to Detail that surprisingly not many Restaurants adopt.
Anyway, all the Dishes I've ordered and showcasing here are considered Signatures in their Menu. 😋 It took 5 Mins for the Salted Egg Butter Chicken, 6 Mins for the Specter Mocktail, and 9 Mins for the Goreng Pisang XL. In total it took 9 Mins for Everything to be Served Up.
🍹 Specter (Mocktail) = RM9.90
This is of course one of their Mocktail Drinks. 🍹 For one thing though, the Actual Drink doesn't match the Menu's Picture and doesn't have its Unique Orange Peel. 🍊 What it does have though that the Menu doesn't show is a Spherical Ice Ball which I thought looked nice. 🧊 The Actual Overall Look of this Drink was still well thought of and put together nicely as a Decent Looking Mocktail. 🍹
For People who have drank Alcoholic Beverages/Cocktails, you know that 酒精味 that you get when you drink a Real Alcoholic Beverage? 🤔 There is a Slight Bit here. Obviously this is Non-Alcoholic, and I have no idea how this was Achieved, but I am quite impressed with this Quality here. 👍 That said, obviously this is a Very Sweet Drink so if you need to watch your Blood Sugar, you might want to skip this. 😅 They do have other presumably Zero Sugar Drinks in the form of Brewed Teas in their Menu. ☕
🍗 Salted Egg Butter Chicken = RM17.90
This is their Main Signature Dish that has garnered the Most Amount of Praises in their Google Reviews, so of course I had to give this a try. 😋 Firstly, I was impressed with how it was Plated and Presented. 👍 The Dish had a Full and Colourful Appearance and looked Very Appetizing. 😋 At its Core, it is a Plate of Buttermilk Chicken with Rice served with a Side of Salad Green and an Additional Small Bowl of Buttercream Sauce.
🍯🌶️ The Buttercream Sauce (Spicy)
This is of course the Main Soul of the Dish. I appreciated they provided an Extra Small Bowl of this for you to Lum. 😋 Yellow Creamy in Colour, the Sauce had a Very Milky Creamy Butter Tone. The Menu describes this as Salted Egg, but I feel the Actual Salted Egg Flavour is not very prominent and rather Subdued actually. 🤔 It also doesn't have that Familiar Salted Egg Grittiness you expect when you are eating a Salted Egg Sauce. 🤔
What is interesting is that you can choose either Spicy or Non-Spicy version of this. The Spicy version I chose actually does have an Elevated Level of Spiciness 🌶️ but doesn't Bite Hard. I'm glad I ordered the Spicy Version because I found this Spiciness to actually help in reducing any Potential Jelakness significantly. 👍 Despite having a Muted Salted Egg Flavour, I still found the Overall Taste Delightfully Savoury Creamy with a Nice Tease of Spiciness. 🌶️
🍗 The Butter Chicken
Consists of 6 Bite Sized Pieces of a Mix of what tastes like Breast and Thigh Cuts. 🐔 They are Pre-Fried with a Crispy 脆皮 Skin that has that Buttercream Sauce lum all over coating them completely. 😋 Even for the Breast Cuts, I thought the Meat was Moist and Tender to the Bite. 😋 This Butter Chicken Works because the Butter Cream works as it gave a Delicious Combination of both Cream and Chicken that gel together Very Nicely. 😋 And because I ordered the Spicy version of the Cream, there is an Additional Spicy Heat to it. 🌶️ Delicious.
🍚 Rice (Nasi Putih, Nasi Kurang)
Nothing particularly Special about this Rice, as its just Standard Jasmine Rice. Standard Look, Standard Smell, Standard Taste. 🍚 I did request for Nasi Kurang (Less Rice) but the Amount of Rice given looks about the Same as their Menu so I'm not sure if they really Kurang or not. 😅 Not that I minded, I thought the Amount given felt Acceptable. Of course the Rice acts as a Neutral Canvas for you to Banjir (Flood) them with that Butter Cream Sauce and it then takes on a Noticeable More Sticky Texture and Consistency making it Very Yummy to eat. 🍛😋
🥗 Side Salad Greens
Nothing particularly Special about this, its just a Couple of Lettuce Greens and Cherry Tomatoes. 🥬🍅 Their Main Purpose is of course to both help with a More Colourful Presentation and a Palette Cleanser to help reduce any Jelakness you may have felt from the Butter Cream. 😋
Eating Everything Together completes the Whole Dish. 😋 Abit of Soft Creamy Rice followed with some Crispy Butter Chicken. 🍗 Protein and Carbs mixed like this is always Very Welcome. Again, its the Delicious Buttercream that brings the Whole Dish together as a Whole. 🍯👍
Now with all that Cream Cream Cream, is it too Jelak? 🤔 I would say yes abit, but the Amount of Rice and Chicken given feels just about right as the Meal ended just before I reached Jelak Level. 👍 At least that was the case for me. Filling and Not Overly Jelak, this was a Right Balance. 不多不少, 就是刚刚好. ❤️
🍌 Pisang Goreng XL = RM13.90
This is of course the Dessert of the Meal and as I mentioned, you can actually request in their QR Code Menu to have this served up only AFTER your Main Meal if you desire. 👍 Again, I was impressed with the Presentation Effort. 👍 There are 2 Fried Bananas 🍌 that were Propped Up Nicely on a Layer of Sweet Honey 🍯 sprinkled with bits of Fried Goreng Pieces and topped off with a Small Scoop of Ice Cream. 🍨
Not sure what type of Banana is used but they felt Larger than Normal and its not because of a Thicker Fried Batter. 🤔 In fact, I thought the Batter coating them was Very Well Done and is not the Thick Thick Hard Crunchy type but more of a Delightful Light Soft Crisp. 😋 The Bananas themselves were Super Soft and Creamy 🍌 and when I cut them, I was delighted to see that my Knife just went through them as Smooth as Butter with Zero Resistance. Wow. ❤️
Bite Texture was Smooth and Creamy and practically melts in my Mouth. 😋 I especially liked that they were actually Noticeably Warm to the Taste. 😋 For some reason, I also felt they don't taste Too Overly Banana-ry for lack of a Better Description but also Not Bland. The Banana Taste for me somehow felt just right. 😋
The Ice-Cream 🍨 has a Noticeably Smaller Scoop than usual, maybe 3/4 of a Full Scoop? 🤔 Its a Creamy Coconut Flavour that has a Robust Natural Coconuty Taste. 🥥 Doesn't taste like those Cheap Supermarket Level type of Ice-Cream Tubs and I have a feeling this is Homemade because of how Delicate it tasted. 👍 If you like Coconut Ice-Cream, you will probably have no issues with this one.
Eating Everything together like how its meant to be is a Very Delicious Experience. 😋 Imagine sinking your Teeth into the Light Airy Crispy Batter followed immediately by a Mouthful of Soft Warm and Superbly Creamy Banana Filling 🍌 followed again with a Sudden Ice-Cold Touch of the Coconut Ice Cream 🥥🍨 injecting a Touch of Tropical Flavour and you will basically get a Rough Idea of how this tastes like. I especially like the Hot and Cold Contrast between the Warm Banana Flesh 🍌 mixed with the Ice-Cream 🍨 which really elevated this Dessert to a Whole New Exciting Level. ❤️
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Conclusion and Closing Thoughts
At the Price of RM9.90 (S$3.10) for this Specter Mocktail 🍹was worth the Money for what it is. It doesn't taste like a Simple Fruit Juice and actually tasted Rather Complex. 👍 As I mentioned, I am most intrigued with how they are able to reproduce a Very Close Approximation Faux 酒精味 even though the Drink is Non-Alcoholic. 🤔 If you are able take a Sweet Drink, I can recommend to give this a Try as I felt this was Well Made. 😋
At the Price of RM17.90 (S$5,60) for their Signature Salted Egg Butter Chicken also felt worth the Money. 👍 At its Core, its just a Plate of Rice with Butterchicken, 🍛 but its their Buttercream which is the Real Soul of the Dish. 🍯😋 This Dish works because this Buttercream works. 👍 It is really the Driving Force for Everything.
Whether you like this dish or not really depended on it. 🤔 I personally liked it myself and thought it was Well Made and I would recommend you to choose their Spicy Version because that Added Layer of Spiciness 🌶️ really gave an Exciting Kick to the Already Creamy Delicious Sauce. That said, don't expect to taste any Salted Eggs in this however and you will enjoy this more for what it is. 👍 Overall, this Dish was Affordable, Well Presented, Filling, Delicious and Not Overly Jelak for me. 👍 I can totally understand why it is so Highly Raved among Google Reviewers for this Place.
At the Price of RM13.90 (S$4.20) for this Pisang Goreng XL Dessert, 🍌🍨 this is considered one of the Pricier Choices among their Dessert Offerings, coming close to even their Main Course Butter Chicken at a RM4 difference. 🤔 Despite that, what you're getting here is in my Opinion, a Well-Designed and Well-Crafted Dish. 👍 This is not merely a Simple Basic Goreng Pisang. 😅 The 2 Main Factors that impressed me most was the type of Banana itself 🍌 which I thought was Larger than Usual with a Very Creamy Texture and the Delightful Light Airy Crispy Batter.
That said, while I have no issues with the Coconut Ice-Cream 🥥 and it does taste like a Quality Homemade, I'm personally not a Fan of this Flavour myself. 🤔 I do wish they have the option to customize what Ice-Cream Flavour you want with this Dish. That said, I do still respect their Culinary Choice as I felt it still Complimented the Fried Bananas giving the Overall Dessert a Lighter, More Tropical Sort of Flavour. 🌞🌴 A Heavier Tasting Ice-Cream like Dark Chocolate for example, may completely deviate and clash too harshly and lead this Dish into a Completely Different Direction. 😅
At a Total Combined Price of RM45.85 (S$14.00) on the Final Bill for Everything I ordered even with Services Charges included, this was Definitely Worth Every Penny both in terms of Ambience and Taste of the Foods. 👍 Heck, depending on your choice, an Upsized SG McDonalds Meal already cost much more than this! 😅
Everything from the Theatrical Aspect of it, specifically constructing a Literal Secret Door Main Entrance, 😅 to the Lavish, Posh and Atas Retro Faux Speakeasy Style Furnishings, ❤️ to the Quiet Dignified Polite Poise of the Staffs to their Well-Designed and Delicious Dishes impressed me Very Much. ❤️
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