Review: PCLO Cafe at Modvier, Bangsar

Bangsar’s Hidden Cafes, Part III: This month, Bangsar welcomes not one, not two, but three new cafes hidden in unlikely locations, each extremely different from the others. The one that’s the most secretive could be PCLO Cafe, an outdoor hangout on a Taman Bukit Pantai hill slope.

PCLO makes crafty use of a narrow space between a wall & the new Modvier hijab-and-jubah boutique, which (for extra privacy) conceals the cafe from the view of passers-by. Directions: From Maarof, driving from the Hindu temple toward Telawi, turn left on the tiny road immediately before the Petronas station. You’ll see Modvier on your right.

For now, this partly shaded cafe might mainly be a one-man-show; on a recent weekend afternoon, Jeremy, an amiably chatty chap who says he’s had eight years of experience in coffee distribution work, efficiently tackled everything from taking orders to making coffee and serving customers.

Personalised Coffee

We liked the latte and double-shot espresso; both hit the spot for our personal preference in terms of taste, texture and temperature.

Satisfying Snacks

PCLO serves simple, satisfying snacks sourced from local independent F&B businesses, including no-frills shepherd’s pies, well-made cakes and very pleasant brownies.

Churros are on the menu too (RM5), crispy on the outside, soft and moist inside, with cinnamon sugar and chocolate sauce.

Preservative-free popsicles by Pops Malaya, perfect for beating the heat. Flavours include pulpy orange-and-dried-apricot and honeydew-vanilla, made with real fruits and organic sugarcane sugar.

PCLO operates in collaboration with the colourfully stocked hijab shop. Interestingly, PCLO (a reference to the piccolo latte) has another cafe that might be more masculine-skewing in Bangi, at the Bikers Rendezvous motorcycle merchandise store.