Having had some friends visiting from Kuala Lumpur, we decided to check out this new place in Kalumpang called The Mulberry Cottage Kitchen. Well, it's not really that new per say. I believe they were previously located in Taman Universiti, Tanjung Malim and moved to this new location in Kalumpang a couple of months now. This restaurant specialises in British style grills and is located in Kampung Keliang, Kalumpang. The address can be a little tricky as it mentions Kerling but in actual fact, it is just a stone's throw away from the Tanjung Malim toll plaza. Assuming that you are coming from the toll plaza, at the end of the road, pass the traffic lights, turn right and keep driving straight. In a matter minutes, you would be able to see this place on your left.
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| Grand Entrance To The Restaurant |
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| This Would Be The Turn In From The Old Trunk Road |
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| Love The Garden Theme |
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| Lovely Lighting |
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| Outdoor Garden Seating Area |
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| Garden Seating Area |
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| Rustic Indoors |
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| The Ambiance Was Lovely |
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| Cute Little Toilet |
It now makes sense to me as to why they had moved away from the conventional restaurant in Taman Universiti. The owners surely had a vision in mind. We have many such Western restaurants in town but this was a dine in the garden concept, one that is found in Kuala Lumpur and I am glad that he had brought the idea here to this quaint little town. Long Garden driveways leads to a lovely garden style seating and a rustic indoor dining area. Owned by the couple Mr. Al and Chef Rose, they have done a tremendous job in transforming this piece of land to what it is today. I can see lot's of work in progress, perhaps they are doing the transformation in stages which perfectly makes sense. Having had some rain earlier in the day, it was lovely sitting outdoors amidst this garden like feel deep in some remote village. Parking for now was limited, perhaps this is one that they should work on or perhaps they are already working on it. The moment we arrived, we were greeted by Mr. Al and he was indeed quite a chatty chap. Walked over with a smile and handed the menu over to us. There were quite a number of customers that he had to attend to and it make perfect sense to just hand over the menu, attend to the rest that are ready to order and come back to us shortly once we have glanced the menu.
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| The Menu |
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| The Menu |
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| Budget Menu |
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| Budget Menu |
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| Budget Menu |
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| The Menu |
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| The Menu |
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| The Menu |
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| The Menu |
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| The Menu |
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| Specialty Dishes |
The above are just some of the pages from the lengthy menu. It was quite comprehensive, ranging from budget meals right up to some luxury dishes. Some may feel that the prices are steep but I don't quite think so. Think of this as a concept pricing and you'd be able to digest it better. A coffee in an Indian Muslim restaurant is say RM 1.40 and the same at Starbucks is RM 14.00 . Why do we pay more? For the coffee beans? Nah! It's the concept that Starbucks provides and it the same here. A Chicken Chop out there could be RM 10.00 and here it's slightly pricey, nevertheless for the concept, I would say that it's very much worth it. After having given us our space in deciding the orders, Al returned in a while and he was quite helpful with the order making process giving us recommendations and even to some extent of explaining the dishes themselves. With Al's help, we were done in a matter of minutes and left to catch up on our conversations.
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| Cutlery |
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| Cutlery |
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| Orange Crush @ RM 2.50 |
Within minutes of registering the orders, the cutlery were sent over and I was very glad to see that these were some proper cutlery. Not those flimsy ones but real knives that could actually cut through meat. Thanks Al for providing these. We had ordered one of those budget meals and as such, we added on one of those add on drinks. Priced at RM 2.50 per jar, the Orange Crush was served ice cold and the volume was decent.
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| Asam Boi @ RM 10.00 |
Another quality drink that was served was the above Asam Boi. Not those diluted versions but one that came with a zing to it. I would rate this at 8/10 .
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| Mocha @ RM 6.00 |
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| A Blend Of Four Different Tea Leaves @ RM 7.00 |
They have a good selection of Tea and Coffee and from what I understand from Al, they are planning on adding another Coffee Bar with a Barista in the future to be able to serve those Tea and Coffee connoisseurs too. As for this evening we had a Mocha that was priced at RM 6.00 and another blend of four different tea leaves and this came with a price tag of RM 7.00 . Both were nice and I would rate them at 7/10 .
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| Ice Lemon Tea @ RM 8.00 |
Just like the rest, this too lived up to expectations and was served unadulterated. A lovely fix and I would rate this at 8/10 .
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| Grilled Chicken Wings @ RM 10.00 |
One of the starters that we had ordered was the above Grilled Chicken Wings. These were not served dry with Barbecue sauce but were topped with a blend of Mushroom and Black Pepper Sauce which apparently is the house specialty. Portion was huge and came with some Salad on the sides. The Chicken Wings were fleshy, not those bony ones that we get in Pasar Malam's and the sauce surely added a twist to the conventional taste. I would rate these at 7/10 .
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| Lamb Burger In Basket @ RM 10.00 |
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| Lamb Burger In Basket @ RM 10.00 |
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| Comes With Cheese |
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| Strips Of Streaky Lamb Slices |
This Lamb in a Basket was one of their budget dishes and for RM 10.00 , I would say that the portion was very good. Streaky and juicy Lamb slices were topped with a number of sauces, vegetables and cheese and these were served with crinkle cut fries on the sides. The lamb was juicy and one really needs to get their finger's messy to truly enjoy this. I absolutely loved it and would highly recommend this dish. For me, this would rate at 9/10 . The fries were perfectly done too.
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| Chicken Chop @ RM 15.90 |
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| Chicken Chop @ RM 15.90 |
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| Mixed Sauce |
This Grilled Chicken Chop was another preparation that lived up to our expectations. A huge portion of tender chicken grilled to perfection was served with some salad, corn on the cob and a mix of the house specialty sauce. The chicken itself was succulent and sweet and the sauce complimented it well. I would rate this at 7/10 .
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| Us Enjoying Our Dinner |
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| Bill For The Evening |
In short, good food, lovely ambiance, amazing service and reasonable prices. A perfect evening that we had. If you think that the prices were steep, let me share something with you please. We arrived at 8.30 pm and were here till 1.00 am. That's how long we spent chatting after the hearty meal and there was no one that was looking at us strangely, expecting us to leave. That's the kind of hospitality that we got here and for that, the price paid was very reasonable. I even remember asking one of the guys there what time they close and he answered that they officially close at around 1 am but as long as there are customers, they are willing to wait. Just loved that statement and guess what, even as we were leaving, there were more people coming in for supper and they happily served them. If you are looking for a place to have a relaxed dinner, then look no further. This shall be your destination in this part of town. I wish Al and Chef Rose all the best and keep up the great work guys!
Address: No. 46, Jalan Besar, Kampung Keliang, Kalumpang,
44000 Kerling, Selangor, Malaysia.
Opening Hours: 1800 - 0100 Daily
Closed on Thursdays
Telephone: +6012 380 9188 & +6012 651 9188 (Mr. AL)
