Bookmark Coffee @ Cheras

Signature Chocolate - Hot (RM11)

How is everyone coping with conditional movement control order (CMCO)? Honestly both MCO and CMCO haven't affected me that much since I'm an introvert anyway teeheee, and I'm lucky that I get to work from home in the midst of this pandemic. The only thing that I sorely miss is cafe hopping. It's been too long! 

In conjunction with Mother's Day, I asked my mum if she'd prefer to eat out nearby or simply get a whole cake somewhere, and she answered without any hesitation: LET'S GO OUTTTT! I guess she's really tired of staying at home and cooking all day err day for us. Let's take a moment to appreciate all mothers in the world; I would've starved to death without mine lol. 

We ended up at Bookmark Coffee in Cheras because it's the nearest cafe for us which offers great food and service. And guess what, this was my first time stepping out of the house since MCO began on 18 March hahaha. #dontjudgemeimsavingtheworld 

Lemon Zest Pan-seared Chicken Pandan Rice (RM22)

I only tried the potato wedges because the portion of the dish was big even for my dad, and the potato wedges were really nice and crunchy. However, my mum mentioned that the chicken was so so in comparison to her duck.

Smoked Duck Pandan Rice 黯然銷魂飯 (RM20)

To be fair, this almost feels like a signature dish here because so many people have ordered it in the past, including me. While I'm not a fan of duck, I have to admit that it's richly flavored here. Definitely give it a try when you're here.  

Fried Mushroom and Egg Rice 菇蛋飯 (RM18)

As for me, I made a conscious decision to be a vegetarian starting from this year (with occasional cheat meals during the transition period) but I didn't manage to stick to my diet because of MCO. It might sound like an excuse but I didn't want to annoy my mum by nitpicking about her cooking during this difficult time LOL. But now that I'm back to business, I focused on the "meatless dishes" section of the menu (thank goodness for this).

Coincidentally, Bookmark Coffee was having a promo whereby you get a free beverage (as long as it's priced less than RM15) when you order the dish of the day. What a steal!

The dish of the day was fried mushroom and egg rice when I visited, and I chose signature chocolate as my free beverage. For those of you who don't understand Mandarin, the dish is also referred to as 孤單飯 based on the pronunciation of mushroom and egg in Mandarin, which literally means lonely rice. Such a witty name! It seems more appropriate now with COVID-19, given that we have to distance ourselves from everyone else as a safety precaution.

My mum gave me a side-eye for my choice of food because of its simplicity, but immediately changed when she realised the dish came with various types of mushroom, including monkey head mushrooms.

The highlight of the day was undoubtedly the signature chocolate due to its visuals. When the staff asked me if I'd like to have anything drawn on the beverage, I merely asked for something related to Mother's Day and this was the end result. Needless to say, my mum and I were happily taking photos of it the whole time. I guess I shouldn't be surprised since this is Bookmark Coffee's specialty after all: you can request for anything on your coffee.

Since the coffee art was so pretty to look at, I was reluctant to ruin it until the end hahaha. I was amazed that the coffee art even lasted for that long. 

It was kind of weird to see a much quieter Bookmark Coffee since it's really popular, but it was perhaps for the best given the gravity of the situation now. Nevertheless, I think Bookmark Coffee is doing a great job - everyone is required to wear a face mask at all times except while eating, we were asked to sanitise our hands and get our temperature measured at the entrance, and we had to leave our contact details before we were allowed to dine in. The staff have also rearranged the seating and marked some seats with X to ensure that the customers will not sit face to face with each other.   

Bookmark Coffee

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P/S: PJ folks rejoice! No more bracing for traffic jam to and from Cheras as Bookmark Coffee has a branch in PJ. Click here for the location.