You know you're a true foodie when you love exploring halal brunch cafes and checking off every halal afternoon tea spots in Kuala Lumpur. At times, the food hunt continues until you've savoured every delicious halal eats along the city's famous LRT stops.
Credit: Giphy
Not to be outdone by Malaysia's capital city, Selangor is brimming with awesome food gems of its own. More often than not, there are hidden from the public eye and requires a bit of detective work (mostly, social media stalking) to find it.
Some say the best secrets in Subang Jaya can be found in the unlikeliest places. Jibril, a hidden cafe at SS15, Subang Jaya is probably your first guess and you're right. Since it's a secret cafe situated inside Sangkaya, an ice cream shop, figuring out where is Jibril's secret door is part of the fun (Here's a clue: it's at the brick wall!).
After you pushed the heavy brick door, step into the dimly-lit Gatsby-esque cafe that's decorated with wooden furniture and antiques. Established in 2015, Jibril was named after a play that co-founders, director Imran Sheik and actor Akmyr Ahmad Azwan were part of. Together with other co-founders Nurin and Atiqurrahman Sulaiman, they established a speakeasy cafe that serves delicious Asian and Western cuisine.
The salted egg butter chicken is a crowd puller, and the reason why Jibril is packed to the brim on most days. Cooked with a touch of chilli, seafood lovers can even enjoy mouthwatering salted egg butter with squid and prawns.
Anyone who loves Malaysia's national breakfast will order nasi lemak butter chicken from the waiter. If you're accustomed to classic favourites such as beef rendang, ayam goreng and sambal paru, the butter chicken will showcase another way to enjoy Malaysia's breakfast of champions.
Other menu highlights are the red butter chicken, coconut butter chicken, and butter chicken chop pasta. Get into the Gatsby-eque mood by ordering something tasty from the Western menu. New Zealand beef ribs, pan-fried chicken, fish and chips and carbonara chicken ham are some of its must-tries.
If you can't turn away from rice, order the pineapple fried rice that will probably turn heads as soon as it arrives on your table. Otherwise, ayam penyet fans can give Javanese fried chicken and fried noodles a shot.
Nothing makes a dining experience sweeter than desserts. Fried Snickers bar, churros, brownies with ice cream or salted egg croissant are pretty tempting, but you can go local with pisang goreng XL. Served piping hot with a side of coconut ice cream, we're not surprised if you wish to replicate this dessert at home.
Jibril has a bar that whips up fruity non-alcoholic mocktails. Potter, a Harry Potter-inspired non-alcoholic butter beer, is a favourite among the regulars. Since the co-founders are the mixologists behind the drink menu, they also created other celebrity-inspired drinks such as Bond (non-alcoholic red wine and grapes), Monroe (non-alcoholic white wine and berries) and Gandhi (teh tarik, lychee and gula Melaka).
Credit: Giphy
If you're exploring the neighbourhoods of Subang Jaya, your next hangout spot should definitely be at Jibril. With salted egg butter chicken, nasi lemak butter chicken and Potter mocktail waiting, seek and you shall find this hidden halal cafe in Subang Jaya.
#HHWT Tip: Finding a parking spot at Subang Square Business Centre (where Jibril is located) can be tricky during weekends, lunch and dinner hours. We recommend heading there during the non-peak hours or book a Grab ride to Jibril.
Halal status: Muslim-owned
Average price of main dishes: RM22
Opening hours: Open daily; 12PM-11.30PM
Address: 25, Jalan SS 15/4B, 47500 Subang Jaya, Selangor
Contact number: +6017 488 4300 or +6010 245 8056