Bisque Cafe at Damansara Perdana: Review

Look for the red entrance – it’s your passageway into Bisque, not only a paradise of cakes but a haven for hearty hot meals, fulfilling a long-nurtured aspiration by founder Juliana to open her own cafe in collaboration with her brother & close friends.

Bisque’s team has crafted a thoughtful & tantalising menu that represents the kind of food they love – expect interesting items like poutine (RM26); Bisque’s interpretation of Quebec’s best-known recipe is pure comfort fare, comprising fluffy-fresh fries heaped with beautifully tender, three-hour-braised beef striploin & sauteed mushrooms, soaked in warm, savoury gravy & sprinkled with slivers of mozzarella cheese, evoking a 1 Utama mall kiosk snack that Juliana recalls from her younger years.

Of Bisque’s three temptingly distinctive pastas, we couldn’t resist the fettuccine tossed with mushrooms in browned butter sauce, topped with pan-grilled, 24-hour-brined chicken breast & crispy spinach (RM26). Other customers might be more seduced by spaghetti with seared duck & tomato confit in red pepper pesto (RM22) or spaghetti with fried shrimp in sambal & olive oil (RM22); Bisque showers significant care on how everything from its meat to kitchen-made sauces is prepared.

Want waffles? Bisque whips ’em up at budget-conscious prices – this savoury-&-sweet combo with fried chicken, syrup & cream (eat everything together for best results) clocks in at RM12. Waffles with macerated strawberries & a Belgian chocolate drizzle cost RM10, caramelised bananas & peanut butter are RM9, while salted butter & syrup are RM6. If you’re determined to cut calories, Bisque is not the place for you – there’s not even a salad on the menu, but that’s fine; we weren’t craving one.

Juliana likes pancakes, but she was keen to offer a less run-of-the-mill variety; after lots of research & a long search for a proper cast-iron pan, she’s come up with Bisque’s take on the Danish aebleskivers – light, sphere-shaped pancakes served piping-hot with a filling of Morello cherry preserve & sides of vanilla dipping sauce & sliced watermelon – an enjoyable treat that two can share for RM12. Hoping to pop a few more cherries? Check out the cherry crumble, complemented with ice cream.

Before this cafe opened, Bisque was best known as an online supplier of whole cakes. One of the brilliant facets of this new cafe is that it offers petite versions of those unique cakes – ideal for those of us who never order entire seven-inch cakes but would be happy with a slice. Bisque even goes a step further; instead of typical slices, it serves individual layered mini-cakes – the golden Lagenda (gula melaka cake with pandan, coconut cream frosting & honey sprinkles), Maverick Mint (Valrhona choc cake with mint frosting), The Elvis (banana cake with peanut butter, raspberry jelly & salted maple syrup beef bacon) & much, much more, from Creamy Cookies to Crusted Caramel to Butterscotch Bliss – too many highlights, too little stomach space.

Bisque has an easy-going vibe – take a table at the shaded alfresco area (note: no air-conditioned seating is available, but that’s OK; we were here for lunch & it was never uncomfortable) & linger over a slice of the Michelangelo (a creamy-crispy work of chocolate-hazelnut art), a Belgian choc brownie, a luscious mint panna cotta or a truly heavenly banoffee tart, accompanied by an espresso (the beans hail from PJ’s Roast & Grind). Many thanks to Bisque for warmly hosting our visit.