While the name of the cafe certainly raised an eyebrow or two, the dishes served at I’m Not A Chef Cafe are assuredly appetising. Inspired by a book written by Pitaya Phanphensophon titled “I’m Not a Chef… But I Sure Am a Good Cook!”, Natalie drew a metaphor that a person does not have to be singer to sing but once he or she starts to act like one, eventually the person will be a successful singer. Being one half of the dynamic duo, she has certainly been in the food industry for quite some time prior to opening up her own cafe at Kota Damansara. “I was already working in the food industry while studying in New Zealand. Basically, I was studying full time and working full time as well”, she laughed. When Natalie came back to Malaysia, she catered food to numerous offices, events, functions and etc. One thing leads to another and she eventually landed herself with managing the present cafe with her other partner, Stef.
“Stef has a keen eye for artsy stuff and is the person behind all the doodles in the cafe including the cute looking menu. Even our stools were hand drawn by her depicting what a cup of cappuccino should be like”, Natalie added.
Together, both of them created a warm and homely ambiance at I’m Not A Chef Cafe which makes their customers feel right at home. Even the wall panel just next to the entrance prominently states that the cafe offers a casual dining experience. In fact, she questioned the need to dress up exquisitely to dine. “I always believe that food should be consumed in the most casual way possible”, she added.
Hailing from the land of Hornbills, Natalie’s offering of Mushroom Kolok Mee (RM 5.50) certainly harbours memories of a home cooked dish with minced chicken, braised egg and black mushrooms throw into the mix together with flat noodles. The inclusion of a bowl of ‘soup of the day’ which varies according to what she has in her kitchen was a thoughtful idea.
“This is one of our most sellable dishes apart from our Signature Noodle”, she said.
Price wise, it is pretty affordable and somewhat on par with hawkers’ prices albeit with a much more comfortable environment to dine at.
Natalie was equally adept at whipping up an awesome plate of western cuisine as well. Her Chiaki Deep Fried Chicken with Apple Sauce (RM 18.90) was a complex dish with the apple sauce deservedly taking the limelight.
Apart from the apple sauce, Natalie also prepares cream and honey mustard sauce to add in a variety of flavours to experience.
“I prefer to deep fried the chicken rather than grilling it as it has a drier texture akin to pork knuckles which goes better with the sauces”, Natalie said. Fondly recalling her Japanese friend, Chiaki who taught her to how to cook the dish, she substituted the pork from the original recipe with chicken since the cafe serves pork-free food.
Stef thoughtfully reminded me to enjoy the meal by dipping the sauce with a small chunk of deep fried chicken and a slice of apple. True enough, there was a pleasant yet contrasting flavour between the savoury taste of the meat and the sourish flavour of the slice apple mixed with the lightly sweet apple sauce.
Apple Crumble (RM 10.90) is another creation from Natalie with a light crisp crumble resting on top of its delicious apple fillings. This classic dessert alone makes it worthwhile to return to this cafe just to eat it again.
While I’m Not A Chef is located in a relatively new commercial area at Kota Damansara, its cozy ambiance and delicious food certainly left a favourable impression for me. Those who are on a shoe string budget would be happy to note that the cafe does not charge any government or service tax.
Fuelled by the deep passion of both Natalie and Stef, this cafe will be one to look out for in the near future with other exciting new dishes making its way to their menu.
I’m Not A Chef Cafe
No. B6-2-5, Jalan Teknologi 2/1E
Signature Park Kota Damansara
47810 Petaling Jaya
Selangor Darul Ehsan
Tel: 03-6143 7440
Business Hours:-
9:30 a.m. – 10:00 p.m. (daily)
Closed on Sundays
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/imnotachef.cafe