When I saw the board up for 8oz Eight Ounce Coffee at KLCC, where Coffee Bean used to be I was looking forward to a new coffee place to hang out at. Had high hopes for it too. Excited to see it open for business yesterday when I walked passed yesterday.

It's great when one of the many mushrooming coffee places decides to set up shop in KL. The latest Feeka Coffee Roasters recently opened at Jalan Mesui and it's the perfect place to just hang out. It's from the people behind Food Foundry and Butter + Beans at Seventeen in PJ both of which I've only been to once as I really couldn't be bothered to wonder off so far. Apparently the look they were going for is a fusion between the two.

I went for a Coffee Cupping Session on Saturday. It was a first for O Gourmet @ BSC who worked together with Cafe Barbera for the session. (Click for my Italian Escape)

The beans smelled lovely!

Ever wondered why a bag of coffee beans can cost so much. Well a lot of work goes into the process of getting the beans out of the cherry (coffee fruit) and eventually in a coffee lover's cup.

Andy Chan a coffee expert from Cafe Barbera, shared with us quite a bit about coffee from it's origins, to how the beans came to be from a cherry (coffee fruit), types of coffee and the best way to experience the taste and aroma. The three main species of coffee are Arabica, Robusta & Liberica. Arabica is the type which specialty roasters search for.

Dark Roast/French Roast great for coffee

It has a more rounded taste

Smell the coffee first.

Breathe slightly through the mouth as well as the nose. Move your nose closer to catch the heavier, roasty, aromatics and further away to catch the lighter, floral and fruit notes.

It has 3 distinct layers:

1) Crema - A light coloured cream on the top

2) Body - A deep brown middle

3) Heart - A dark rich bottom

The layers are more obvious here.

When tasting, take a small slurping sip to distribute it evenly over the entire tongue & palate. The after taste of coffee developes over time.

An espresso must be drank within 10 minutes.

Apart from enjoying coffee as a drink, it can also do wonders when added to food! A chef from Cafe Barbera shared some recipes which were really easy to follow.

Coffee Caramel

Freshly baked Croissants dipped with Coffee Caramel

Thick & rich

Fingers crossed they start selling it at O Gourmet ;)

Coffee Vinaigrette

The ingredients

Espresso

Garlic, Shallots, Parsley

Pour in the Espresso!

After the espresso, add in salt, brown sugar & mix

Add Olive Oil

The creamy one is Coffee Mayonnaise - slight hint of coffee.

It was yummy!

The other three are the vinaigrette

Coffee Vinaigrette with Garden Salad

I personally think the Coffee Vinaigrette is an acquired taste.

Tried to make a run with the dressings..

After the vinaigrette demo, they asked for volunteers to try their hand with the coffee machine. Woohoo!! No points for guessing who volunteered first. Lol!

Gosh..

This sure brings back memories of my summer job ages ago.. :)

Look.. no hands.. :P

O Gourmet was generous enough to bring out more pastries for us to have with the coffee. The pastries there are delicious. My faves are the Pain au Chocolate, Cherry Lattice & Almond Bar. Will always get these when I'm there. *droolzz*

They're calling my name!

Yeah I tried it again.. :P

With Ling Ang (Food Hall Manager)

With Andy Chan of Cafe Barbera

O Gourmet plans to have a lot more sessions like this in the future. So be sure to follow them on the O Gourmet Facebook for latest updates.

It was loads of fun and I learnt a lot more about those lovely tasting beans!

A brief visit to a charming Italian villa was just what I needed over the weekend. I wish! Located away from the busy Jalan Maarof was Cafe Barbera along Lorong Maarof. It was renovated to look like and have an Italian-esque feel to it. Is that even a word? This was one of my "Lets try a new place" trips. 

A Lil Background 

This cafe is a franchise of an Italian-based food and beverage company, Barbera Caffè Co. It can be found in30 countries across the world. Opened in Malaysia on Christmas Eve last year, Barbera coffee has its origins in Messina Italy, since 1870. It offers gourmet Italian coffee, sandwiches, pastas, pizza, pastries and desserts.

Ambience
Welcoming. Feels cosy. The garden outside looks like a great place to chill in the evenings when its not crazy hot. The music playing inside was suitable with the Cafe's concept.

Various types of coffee mixes decorates the wall.

Hmm.. What shall I have for  tea?

Pana Cotta? Maybe next time..

Specialty

Italian Coffee! Classic Italianos - Hot, Classico Italianos - Cold, and Fantasy In Coffee. I could not resist ordering something from the Fantasy In Coffee section.

What I chomped on

1) Napoli (Fantasy In Coffee) - RM10.50
Neapolitan Espresso, hazelnut syrup, chocolate syrup, chilled milk foam.

Napoli - Left. Topped with coffee beans.

Strong coffee. Since there are two types of syrups in this drink, it tends to be on the sweet side.

2) Roma (Fantasy In Coffee) - RM10.50

Italian Espresso, cinnamon syrup, chocolate sauce, chilled milk foam.

Roma - Right. Pretty art topping.

Strong coffee. Since there are two types of syrups in this drink, it tends to be on the sweet side. But quite like the light taste of spice the cinnamon syrup adds to it.

3) Chicken and Cheese Focaccia - RM14.50

The quarter end was already being chomped on..

Side of salad with coffee dressing.

Melted cheese.

Served with a side of salad and.. a coffee based dressing. This is new to me. Its definitely an acquired taste. I did not really think it complemented the greens too well.

Focaccia with a light spread of mayo, generous portion of chicken ham and melted cheese on a piece of lettuce. It was basic and ok.

4) Apple Pie with Ice Cream - RM9.50

Basic vanilla ice cream. It kinda tastes like it came out of a Walls tub. Puff pastry base with lattice top. Light but not puffy enough. Though I thought the apple filling was slightly dry, perhaps due to the lattice top. Not too sweet. It was alright. I would not really order this again.

Other Bits
The supervisor was very sharp, she noticed that I was taking pictures of the drinks, food and place, also scribbling down stuff. She showed me the conference room and told me the place looks great at night. The service was good and friendly.

Considering going there again, in the evening to try out more coffee and take more pictures. It's a nice place to hang out.