KEN HUNTS FOOD: Arang Coffee @ Bayan Lepas, Penang.

Friday, November 20, 2015

Arang Coffee @ Bayan Lepas, Penang.

As the year end holiday approaches, there is no better time to cafe hop. The neighborhood of Relau/ Bayan Baru continues to grow; the new development right beside sPICE and Olive Tree Hotel is now ready, Arang Coffee is amongst the first few tenants moved in. We'd probably expect a few food-focused shops opening and within a walkable family-dense residential population (Ideal and Elit Avenue); this place is definitely one of the interesting places to visit in this growing neighborhood. While Arang Coffee is presently in their soft-launch state, their menu is not quite ready yet. On our visit, there were only three options available: Garden Salad (Rm 9), Grilled Chicken and Cheese Sandwich (Rm 18) and Seafood Aglio Olio (Rm 26). The airy and pleasant interior decor is industrial-influenced with a playful element- caged charcoal hanging in the air... but I guess that fits in... for their name "Arang" (which literally means Charcoal in Malay). To find the place, follow the route exactly to Olive Tree Hotel, you should be able to see it while turning into the main entrance of the hotel.

Not too sure if it was Squid Ink Pasta or Charcoal Pasta (no hint of Squid though) but they presented their Seafood Aglio Olio (Rm 26) like a piece of art- coiled and graced with Squid and Shrimps. The Spaghetti was deftly cooked to the right texture and reasonably seasoned. It carried a hint of garlic with a sleek spiciness. The seafood was alright (though not spectacular) and the flavor combo was amazing but we thought the price tag was rather steep for the portion. My concern: I am not too sure if Penangites are willing to pay Rm 26 for this dish.

A pretty toast-centric dish- Grilled Chicken and Cheese Sandwich (Rm 18); it was a let down that Arang Coffee uses ordinary White Toast to sandwich the filling. They did not manage to get the texture quite right, the Toast was too thin and did not possess the fluffy-soft texture that a usual artisan bread would possess. I thought it was a lackluster. The Chicken and Cheese filling on the other hand, was delectable. We acknowledged their generosity and the amount of Cheese was right on the dot (not too salty nor cheesy that it overshadows the poultry). We would also like to commend on their home-made Fries; they were crispy and were nicely done sans the greasiness. They made a lovely side to the Sandwich. They will need to make some refinement to their bread, sourdough might be a good idea.