The Humble Chef, Plaza Damansara - *cheap cheap*

Venue: Damansara Heights
Overall comment: Really cheap pasta, omelette, pitas - taste is acceptable although it really feels like eating at a school canteen....no frills, babeh! Hahaha...it's "cheap" food, but not entirely "value-for-money"...
Halal: Yes

It was Friday & as usual deciding on the place for lunch is like a "soalan cepu emas"/golden question (what's the correct term?? *eek*). Thus, DY suggested to have cheap lunch at Humble Chef at Plaza Damansara. He SO knew that it would be very interesting to see the look on our faces upon the arrival of the dishes ordered :P

Humble Chef has been operating as a "van-stall" at the Damanlela area in Pusat Bandar Damansara. The stall operates only at night next to McDonald's on the flyover bridge from roughly 9:30pm - midnight, serving a small variety of pastas, pitas, sandwiches, & omelettes. You can expect quite a crowd, especially students from the HELP University nearby.

From that humble stall birth this humble cafe at Plaza Damansara. Ran by Malay owner(s), this simple-looking cafe offers a very simple menu (just like its "van-stall") with dishes at pretty low prices. With such prices, one would not expect that much, and SHOULD NOT expect that much as well! The one thing you can expect, no doubts, is the cafe filled with office workers & students during meal times. We were there earlier, so the place was still empty. By the time we left, it was full, especially with our fellow Muslims who could enjoy halal western food that this place offers.

Interior deco was very simple with painting for sale hung on the wall, mostly by the same artist, Hafiz Hajeedar. I really wonder how can this cafe sustain to pay for the shop rental at such a area like Damansara Heights *hmmmm*

The Menu

Cheap, right? Who would have imagined satisfying the mere craving for pasta with just RM5, eh? The only drinks they sell were 3 types of packet drinks i.e. Soya Bean, Ice Lemon Tea, & Lychee for RM1.50/packet. Totally simple.

Our Bill

If you're only having a plate of pasta without drinks, it's only RM5.00. No tax too! *joy* 

My Lamb Pesto Spaghetti (RM5.00/serving)

It's not too bad for the price I've to pay. I wished for more "umph" but seriously, I just paid RM5 le...so this is good enough for a plate of pasta. To the very least, it's quite fragrant with the smell & taste of the pesto & the minced lamb wasn't too bad. Portion wasn't sufficient for a hungry person like me...hahaha...I could do with more...perhaps I should have had 2 plates instead? *don't be greedy, PerutBesi!* 

Beef Bolognese (RM5.00/serving)

I found this slightly too sour for my liking. You can taste the tomatoes (I think it's those cheap canned ones...hahaha...perhaps the puree), but certainly lacking in herbs & spices. I shan't complain since it's RM5.00. 

The size

It's not that big a plate la...given a choice, I would pay twice the price for twice the goodness/great taste at Pinos or even pay slightly more at Vary Pasta! I won't order 2 plates of pasta here & pay RM10...Pinos or Vary Pasta gives greater value for the flavour, taste, & ambiance. Plus Vary Pasta serves pork for pork-lovers!

Spaghetti Aglio Olio Seafood (RM5.00/serving)

Okay, with the price one's paying, seafood will equate to just prawns. Hahaha. I thought this variant wasn't tasty at all. One word - FLAT. *sigh* Could do with more salt, pepper, herbs, & olive oil?

Lamb Carbonara (RM5.00/serving)

It's creamy alright. Not carbonara but cream sauce. Haha. It's definitely better than the seafood aglio olio! And yes, lamb is good...surely more flavourful than chicken...

Guess what's this.... 

JS's Friday lunch!

She was quite satisfied since she only needed to spend RM9.00 for a so-called western/Italian lunch....but she certainly wasn't full! Wait 'til she gets to places like Vary Pasta...twice the price she paid here for a meal with pasta & drinks, but way better in taste!

Tadaa! Omelette with beef (RM2.50/serving)

That's what you get in that packet...haha. It's ok-lah. Acceptable. Just like eating murtabak minus the pastry & fragrance from the onions? It's fried egg with minced meat + melted cheese inside...

From this lunch experience, here's my rating for the pasta:
#1 - pesto lamb (because it's more unique & fragrant)
#2 - cream sauce lamb/aglio olio lamb
#3 - beef bolognese
#4 - seafood aglio olio

Will I come here again? Perhaps not. Parking is crazee...and although it's just RM5.00/serving of pasta, it's not all that tasty. I rather pay RM5.50 for my bowl of yummilicious fish head noodles with extra Chinese cooking wine at Jalan Batai (near office)....oolala...big bowl & very satisfying too. Or pay twice the price at Pinos/Vary Pasta if I really want to have cheap & good pasta.

If you wanna talk about value for money, I reckon I could give some sound judgement. Heh.

For more on Humble Chef at Damanlela (the night van-stall) click here. I came across this informative post from another blogger :)

At times, you never try, you never know, eh?


Humble Chef Cafe
Unit 54-G, Jalan Medan Setia 2
Bukit Damansara
50490 Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: (+6014) 2296 854
Business hours: (I know it's opened for lunch & dinner, but not certain of the time)
GPS: 3.1493797,101.6539997






Ratings:
Presentation: * * 1/2
Price: * * * *
Environment: * * *
Taste: * *
Service: * *




Overall

Cheap but not entirely "value-for-money",