Cookhouse's Huen Su San with her latest F&B venture, The Artisan's Playground. — Pictures by Choo Choy May Follow us on Instagram and subscribe to our Telegram channel for the latest updates.
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KUALA LUMPUR, March 30 — Opening on April 1, The Artisan's Playground by Cookhouse will be a place to not just savour but also learn more about food.
The various concepts will be spread over an ample space measuring 33,000 square feet and also includes an event venue that can cater up to 200 people.
Located at The Riverwalk, Third Mile Jalan Ipoh, the place is easily accessible and just 15 minutes away from Mont Kiara.
It is designed as a "playground" for chefs and artisans by the people behind Cookhouse who are known for their hybrid cloud kitchens that also offer on-site dining experiences and event spaces.
Expect Italian pizzas made in a wood-fired pizza oven by Italian Stefana Ferrara or coffee beans roasted in a Giesen coffee roasting machine.
Your cup of coffee will be brewed using a Black Eagle coffee machine from Italy. There are various ovens too ranging from Kolb and Unox brands to Josper Basque grills and ovens.
For those in the F&B industry who are looking for a cloud kitchen space to work with, they also have that option where you can share the equipment and cold room facilities.
Even with their micro restaurants concept, the operator can just focus on cooking without the burden of managing the front of house operations.
An important element is also the learning experience as The Artisan's Playground will play host to various workshops. As Cookhouse's Huen Su San explained, "We want people to learn about food and not just eat it."
Look forward to the espresso sensory experience and latte art workshop by Drum Coffee Roaster in May. For June and August, Langit Collective will hold workshops for people to experience heirloom rice, Sarawak pepper and Bidayuh dishes.
The place will also feature items you may want to equip your kitchen with like Japanese knives from Thailand's Cutboy. These handmade knives are prized by home cooks as well as professional chefs.
Anchoring all these unique dining concepts are well-known names in the culinary circle such as Chef Raymond Tham of [email protected] and Beta fame. You also have the Sri Lanka experts from Aliyaa and Chef Diego Reali of Natalina Italian Kitchen.
Extra Super Tanker will also be offering halal roast meats, a first for the Chinese restaurant. For sweets, there will be beautiful creations by Chef Otto Tay and Chef Loi Ming Ai, who hail from the winning team that was awarded the World Pastry Cup in 2019.
There will also be Drum Coffee Roaster headed by Gan Junqi who hails from Kota Baru. She will be roasting coffee beans, serving her coffee creations and also teaching workshops for people to appreciate the finer art of coffee.
If you're looking for a place to host a cook-out for friends or family, there's a private dining space that can seat up to 20 people for hire. It also features a show kitchen with all the equipment to whip up Western or Chinese dishes.
You can also hire the existing chefs from The Artisan's Playground to create a special menu for your intimate party.
Make plans to visit Tucker by Cookhouse for their Australian-style brunch. You can graze on tapas-sized sharing plates that will let you enjoy more variety. The food has an interesting mix of Asian and Middle Eastern flavours.
Snack on fluffy eggplant tempura given a punchy hit from the tangy Indian inspired tomato kasundi, while you enjoy corn fritters with paprika yoghurt, couscous tabouli, poached egg and sumac.
There's also a quinoa and barley bowl salad with roasted pumpkin for light eaters. For a decadent creamy treat, you can enjoy the mushroom fricassee with barley or the comforting chicken chilli con carne with their unusual Jerusalem bagel.
Don't miss out on the tender pulled spiced beef brisket served on their house made potato hash, poached egg drizzled with a miso hollandaise.
It is topped with pickled fennel and apple that lightens and refreshes the palate. You will also want to order the fluffy hotcakes served with a creamy orange curd and berries compote. Tucker will be open from 8am to 6pm. Prices range from RM15 to 25 for the dishes.
As you enjoy your meal here, grab a latte or even filter coffee from Drum Coffee Roaster Coffee who are using a selection of coffee beans from Colombia and Ethiopia. You can also watch the coffee beans being roasted on site from 10am to 12pm on Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday.
They will also offer some interesting coffee mocktails such as a refreshing Oj Spresso with lime and orange accents or Estraordiberry with wildberries, lemon and pomegranate.
If coffee isn't your thing, there's also kombucha. Drum will be open from 8am to 6pm. Currently opening hours may be adjusted depending on demand for coffee later in the evening.
You can also dine at Mabel by Cookhouse that offers a casual vibe but sophisticated dishes for lunch or dinner which are ideal for sharing.
Zoom in on the super addictive onion mousse with toast. The sweetness from onions is captured in this spread that one cannot stop eating with the bread.
Nibble on cauliflower and potato croquettes paired with cumin aioli or snack on bruschetta paired with roasted mushrooms, pumpkin puree and crispy sage.
If you love molluscs, there's a creamy clams and mussels dish served with shimeji mushrooms. If skinny breadsticks aren't your thing, you will enjoy the plumper brioche grissini with candied orange peels to make sure you get all of that creamy sauce.
Enjoy tender beef eye fillet paired with a not overly rich cashew cream, chimichurri and gula Melaka soy sauce burnt butter, or almond and herb crusted grouper paired with clam veloute and freshened up with preserved cucumber.
Mabel will be open from 12pm to 10pm. Prices start from RM9 for the onion mousse with toast. The other items range from RM15 to RM38 which is for the beef eye fillet.
There will also be a chance to tuck into the highly popular lobster rolls and lobster dishes from Mobster Lobster by Chef Fhaizal. Started during the pandemic, it has become a crowd favourite for many who ordered during their time at home.
Tucker by Cookhouse, Mabel by Cookhouse, Drum Coffee Roaster Coffee and Mobster Lobster will be available at The Artisan's Playground from April 1 onwards. Oopsy-Icy will also be on hand to serve artisanal ice creams to help you beat the heat.
There will also be classic favourites such as banana split, hot fudge vanilla, peach melba and a Magnolia Bakery inspired banana pudding.
With 400 seats, there's ample space for everyone whether it's right next to the wood fire oven action or just gazing out at the quiet river scene at the back. There will also be "live" music at the venue when night falls.
More dining concepts will be opening later in April. You have fluffy apams by Aliyaa to pair with their famous crab curry. The Sri Lankan food specialist will also be offering thali sets for RM25 where people can enjoy their curry, vegetables and rice together.
There's also the Pie Guys, an offshoot of Natalina Italian Kitchen that offers wood fire oven pizzas. If you love exquisite petit gâteau or little cakes in French, look out for Voila by chefs Otto Tay and Loi Ming Ai. There will also be a bakery, butchery, hidden speakeasy and 15 micro restaurants too.
In May, Extra Super Tanker will be opening their first pork-free eatery known as One Fine Duck. You can tuck into their Sandwich Duck that combines crispy roast duck skin and crunchy popiah with mantou buns. There will also be their one-of-a-kind Wagyu beef char siu.
You will also be able to catch the hot action at Burnt & Coal by KARLS Group by scoring a seat around their open kitchen. Watch chef Raymond Tham and his team firing up the Josper grill and oven to create magical dishes.
Payment at The Artisan's Playground is made by scanning a QR code at the table. It's a full service place and all the food served at The Artisan's Playground is pork-free.
The Artisan’s Playground by Cookhouse, Level 1, Block H, Plaza Riverwalk, No. 1, Jalan Selvadurai, Off Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah, Kuala Lumpur. Open: 8am to 10pm. Instagram @artisansplayground.my. To get there, follow Waze https://waze.com/ul/hw2861fere At night, sit back and relax with 'live' music at The Artisan's Playground.
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