It’s not really Kiwi food, but you can’t go wrong with brunch and bacon.
If you’re coming here hoping to get a true taste of New Zealand, you’ll find that everything looks and tastes like non-specific white people food. Antipodean Cafe bills itself as a Kiwi food cafe, but I don’t see Hokey Pokey or beetroot burgers anywhere on the menu. Kiwis, apparently, eat waffles and pizza just like the rest of us.
Ambience & Amenities
Antipodean is located on Mid Valley Megamall’s outer ring and you won’t notice the cafe from inside. From the mall’s centre court, exit through the west entrance – it’s down the corridor with the Chanel and Swarovski. Turn right once you’re outside to get here. Antipodean Cafe’s tiny chunk of real estate at the edge of the mall means that the seating is almost entirely outdoors, although this area is roofed.
A handful of booths are located inside the cafe in a tight corridor by the kitchen service window. A few tables are set up close to the cafe’s front, and across from this, there are nicer tables on a raised wooden deck. These two square deck sections have glass walls and ceilings which give off a greenhouse vibe. This bright space has a few comfortable booths and good people-watching opportunities.
When the cafe is packed, there are also counter seats at the edge of the deck, but these seats are pretty horrible. You’ll have mall guests constantly passing behind you, and in front of you, you’ll be staring at another diner less than half a metre away. The table is also so shallow that it doesn’t look like a plate will even fit on here. These seats were only meant for guests who are just having coffee.
Antipodean does not have its own toilet, and the nearest mall facilities are a little far away. You have to re-enter Mid Valley Megamall and go through the hassle of temperature checks and all. Usually, you could get into the mall through a small entrance that is right next to the cafe, but since this is COVID, you have to enter via the mall’s main west entrance that is off on the right next to the Burger King. Once inside the mall, turn left and keep walking until you get to the Pandora jewellery shop. On the left will be a corridor that leads to the washrooms.
Menu
The Antipodean Cafe menu is accessed by a small QR code that is on every table. The online menu labels the vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options and guests can use the filter to quickly see all the dishes that meet their dietary requirements. Although the filter is not that smart as eggs are listed as vegan and bacon dishes are “vegetarian.”
Sample Menu
Click here for full online menu
A physical menu only exists in the form of blackboards around the cafe. These are not ideal to browse, since they’re all awkwardly placed behind a table which will likely have people eating at it. One modest-sized blackboard has the drinks. The blackboard listing the food, however, is massive with the items at the very top being at least twelve feet high. Hopefully, you have a smartphone with a QR code scanning app… or at least good eyesight.
Antipodean Cafe is non-halal. While pork products aren’t classically New Zealand, Kiwis don’t shy away from eating it so there are quite a few dishes with bacon. To go the whole hog on their non-halal status, the cafe has a selection of breakfast-oriented cocktails.
Everything under the “Breakfast” category is served all day, with mains and salads only available after 11 am. While the majority of the dishes are super western fare like avocado toast, crepes and sandwiches, there are also international options like Vietnamese noodles, Middle Eastern kebabs, even a homegrown nasi goreng. If you’re in the mood for something small and sweet, there are a variety of cookies and cakes by the slice at the counter that are not on the menu.
Antipodean’s specialty is coffee. They don’t seem to believe in showy gimmicks like nitro cold brews, slow drips or Dalgona coffee, just quality beans. If you enjoy the beverage at all, the menu has much more than just the boring flat whites and long blacks. Real coffee fanatics should check out the bags of take-home roasts that the cafe sells behind the counter.
Pricey mineral water is on the menu, but plain water is free and is already available in a big bottle when you sit down. This water is infused with lime and cilantro. The cilantro was barely noticeable, thank god, and the water just had a slight herbal tone to it along with the citrus.
Food
When ordering Mike Moore’s Lamb Burger (RM26), the server asked if we wanted cheese and bacon on it. The online menu description says nothing about how much this would have cost so we passed, but I think I can make out on the physical menu that it would have cost RM7 extra. We were also asked about our desired doneness of the burger, and we opted for medium.
The no-frills version of the lamb burger has mayo, lettuce and thick slices of tomato and red onion. Accompanying it on the side was a good helping of crispy, well-cooked fries and a “salad” with no dressing on it. The size of the lamb patty is disappointingly small compared to the bun, but it is very flavourful. Our choice of medium doneness resulted in an incredibly juicy patty that was dripping before we even took a bite. For a cafe, this is a great tasting burger.
The Chorizo Pizza (RM30) is a decently-sized pie that came with what I think is a cucumber yoghurt dip. Each of the six biggish slices had a blob of mystery condiment. It looks like sambal, but neither of us was able to fully discern the taste. The closest I can relate it to is a tomato paste relish. While the flavour of this relish isn’t particularly strong, definitely spread this all over the slice to heighten the overall flavours. The amount of the signature ingredient, chorizo, was acceptable and evenly spread out across the pie. I didn’t like the base, as it was really thin and made the entire thing more like a flatbread pizza. I wouldn’t get this again as I’m not a fan of pizzas so thin that the crust is more like a cracker.
Saturday Worthy?
I’m always grateful to find restaurants at Mid Valley Megamall that serves food that actually excites me. Antipodean’s extensive menu has tons of things that I would be happy to eat. As long as it exists here at the mall, I will absolutely be back at Antipodean Cafe to try more of their food.
Price for 2 Pax: RM64.95
Mike Moore’s Lamb Burger: RM26.00
Chorizo Pizza: RM30.00
10% Service: RM5.60
6% SST: RM3.36
Rounding: (RM0.01)
Antipodean Cafe
Lot GE-011A, Ground Floor (outside), Mid Valley Megamall, Lingkaran Syed Putra, Mid Valley 59200 Kuala Lumpur
Opening Hours: Daily, 10am – 8pm
Alcohol Served: Yes
