Chef at Home : Away from home..

Driving around Kuching is an experience by itself, and I find it (mostly) calming (minus traffic jam, accidents and pot holes on certain roads). On more than a few occations driving along Jalan Sherip Masahor heading towards the Third Mile roundabout, a banner would catch my eye : Chef at Home. I never did got the chance to try dining there, mainly because I don't have any company to try it out. 

They used to operate in a (what looked from the main road) big house with big compound, much like Swanky Sarah (this, however is located off Greenroad and is non-halal) but have since moved to a new location in the cluster of shophouses across Saberkas (nearby landmark would be the Astro office, Unimas Holdings / Klinik Sebayor, and SK St. Paul). Featuring Western Menus and local (as well as imported) coffee and tea (quite rare will you find eating pasta accompanied with nescafe or Milo) as well as signature desserts (which I forgot to try because I was too full!)

Going with a friend always adds more fun to trying out new things and places to eat. I went with a good friend sporting Baju Melayu in the spirit of Hari Raya Aidilfitri - albeit having Western dishes for dinner! 

Although the new Chef at Home is located on the ground floor of a shoplot, they managed to create a somewhat homey ambiance : well spaced tables, seats for four (and less), seats for 6 and two family size tables with probably 8 or 10 seats. Me and my friend sat on one end of this table while a family of three sat on the other end with plenty of spaces between us. There is also an indoor section if you prefer it. One of the drawback was that since it is a shoplot, parking space literally meets the outdoor seatings, so when the drivers park into or exit out of the parking, you get the gas smell from their exhaust for those few moments as the car engine runs. 

That aside, me and my friend agreed on a main course each and share a bowl of soup. Because it was my first time, I let my friend select the soup (plus I wasn't really that interested in soup - until it arrived, that is!). I didn't pay attention when he placed the order : Mushroom Soup served in a Bread Bowl. I figured since we're sharing then together with the soup was a bowl of bread - again not putting any more thought into how wrong that actually was! When it arrived, the 5-year-old in me popped out in awe, because the soup was literally served in a bowl made out of bread!

Mushroom Soup served in a Bread Bowl

Next to come was my main course : Cheesy Linguine in Carbonara Sauce. I love pasta, and between the common Bolognaise and Carbonara, I prefer the later because of the creamy taste that fills me up with delight! >.<!  A few minutes later came my friend's main dish : Beef Steak cooked medium. On the side was some carrots, broccoli and potato stewed in aluminium foil. 

Cheesy Linguine in Carbonara Sauce -->

<-- Beef Steak cooked to medium

I have to say I rather enjoyed myself dining at Chef at Home. On a yummy scale of 0 to 5 where 0 is blueeekkkk! yucksss!! and 5 is THAT WAS SCRUMPTIOUSLY DELIGHTFUL CAN I HAVE SECONDS AND THIRDS PLEASE??!!! I would say the soup was a 4.5, linguine carbonara a 4 and the steak a 4.5 (because I wish there was a proper salad instead of just a couple of cut carrots and broccoli). I also wished they'd be a little more creative with putting up the sign for the new location (because it is at a shoplot) to add something like Away from home! or something since they no longer operate literally from a house. Then again, my two cents on this matter does not in any way hamper quality of food and services at Chef at Home. Definitely coming back here!