KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 2 — In a city where cafes are now a dime a dozen, it’s refreshing to discover Thirdwave. The family-owned business feels like an extension of a communal kitchen with creative food lovingly cooked to be shared on a long dining table.

Even their staff or Team Thirdwave, as they’re called, are a friendly bunch, making you feel at home right away. This is definitely the place for sharing good food, a cup of coffee, conversation and laughter.

The idea for the cafe started with coffee about two years ago with brothers, Beh Kok Boon, 31 and Beh Kok Aun, 26. “We love coffee. Since we often drank good coffee overseas, we thought why don’t we have that in Malaysia.” Despite their love for the drink, the duo were clueless about making coffee, hence they decided to open a franchise cafe.

However a spanner was thrown in the works, when their sister Chewyeng Beh, 27, returned to Malaysia after graduating from her law course in England.

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She helped her brothers review the agreement and found it unfavourable to them. Eventually things turned sour and they decided to not pursue that avenue.

“We felt we were cheated, so we decided to study ourselves,” explains Chewyeng. The trio attended a course with Barista Guild Asia and toured cafes in Singapore to talk to the owners for guidance.

Team Thirdwave are a close knit bunch. From left to right: Heng Xin Min, Chewyeng Beh, Astrid Low Peak Suan, Joanne Jun Lee Sun Sun, Beh Kok Aun, Daniel Yee Min Earn (back), Kan Ka Yan (front), Beh Kok Boon.
Team Thirdwave are a close knit bunch. From left to right: Heng Xin Min, Chewyeng Beh, Astrid Low Peak Suan, Joanne Jun Lee Sun Sun, Beh Kok Aun, Daniel Yee Min Earn (back), Kan Ka Yan (front), Beh Kok Boon.

They also discovered the informative Has Bean Coffee’s online guide with videos detailing coffee know-how. Chewyeng also visited Has Bean Coffee in Stafford to learn from their experience. With all that knowledge gathered, the trio were confident about opening the cafe on their own.

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Early this year, Thirdwave opened its doors at Nexus, Bangsar South. There’s a dual meaning to its name that goes beyond the third wave coffee movement. “We grew up on Pangkor island and we wanted a bit of ocean element, hence the wave came up,” says Kok Aun. As the Beh siblings are the third generation in Malaysia, this gave birth to the name... Thirdwave.

The trio believes in serving medium to light roast coffee, rather than the usual darker roast coffee. “Usually, it’s roasted darker to preserve it longer and hide the not so pleasant smell of the coffee beans. When you roast it lighter, you can’t really hide the flavours, which allows you to enjoy the true flavour, like the varietal and the altitude,” explains Kok Boon.

Sit at the brew bar, as barista Heng Xin Min makes your coffee and answers any of your questions about your cup.
Sit at the brew bar, as barista Heng Xin Min makes your coffee and answers any of your questions about your cup.

On site, there’s two bars — an espresso and brew bar. The brew bar allows customers to mingle directly with the barista to ask more questions as they brew the specialty coffee.

Initially, the cafe was designed as a place to enjoy coffee and cakes. However circumstances led them to start serving cooked food. “When we first opened, there was only Starbucks and us in the new mall. The office crowd would keep asking us for food.

The cafe offers a vast and comfortable space to relax throughout the day.
The cafe offers a vast and comfortable space to relax throughout the day.

“After a few weeks, we decided to serve 4 to 5 simple pasta dishes and the place would be packed during lunch time. They were sien of the other eateries around here already.”

Even though weekdays would be packed, it was a different story during the weekends. “We decided to do something interesting with the menu to attract outsiders to come to the cafe.”

Beh Kok Aun plates up their best selling dish, their homemade beetroot gnocchi paired with crispy kale, sage and toasted pine nuts (left). The homemade pappardelle with a tender beef goulash makes a wholesome rustic meal (right).
Beh Kok Aun plates up their best selling dish, their homemade beetroot gnocchi paired with crispy kale, sage and toasted pine nuts (left). The homemade pappardelle with a tender beef goulash makes a wholesome rustic meal (right).

The task fell on Chewyeng, a self-taught cook who got bitten by the cooking bug during her studies in London. “I love to shop for groceries and since I stayed alone, I used to watch a lot of cooking programmes on the BBC channels.”

The menu is a varied one that takes inspiration from dishes she’s tasted in London. For instance, the Borough grilled cheese sandwich with Swiss raclette cheese, banana and smoky bacon or turkey slice, was inspired by a cheese stand she used to frequent at London’s famous Borough Market.

For a dash of nostalgia, order the Retro Scotch Egg from their breakfast and brunch menu served with cauliflower mash, shredded beet and carrot and alfalfa sprouts.
For a dash of nostalgia, order the Retro Scotch Egg from their breakfast and brunch menu served with cauliflower mash, shredded beet and carrot and alfalfa sprouts.

“We also try to introduce new things to the market. I try to do something different for almost every dish.” For example, the Goodman burger includes an unusual Lebanese sauce she calls zhoug, which she first sampled in a Middle Eastern restaurant, Her version is made from green chillies and coriander.

Chewyeng would also throw in local ingredients from her hometown to create items with a familiar taste. “We add a lot of things as it’s more like a playground for us since we’re not really restaurant chefs.”

For example, the Pulau grilled cheese sandwich uses a blend of Pangkor Island’s ikan bilis sourced from their father’s fishery with herbs. She pairs it with gooey mozzarella cheese and capers for the sandwich.

Another heartwarming dish on their breakfast cum brunch menu is A Taste of Home — a soup made with ikan bilis paired with fish slices, vegetables and dill that was served during their childhood.

The menu also includes items that are unique in the city. For instance their bestselling dish is a light but oh-so-delicious pairing of crispy kale, spinach leaves and homemade beetroot gnocchi topped with grated Parmesan cheese and toasted pine nuts.

The Hidden Gem makes a light and tasty meal with it’s risoni stuffed squid paired with chargrilled watermelon and feta cheese.
The Hidden Gem makes a light and tasty meal with it’s risoni stuffed squid paired with chargrilled watermelon and feta cheese.

There’s also a slant towards seafood with menu items like Hidden Gem, squid stuffed with risoni, or even the bar snack of air-fried stingray. “We like seafood so we try to do more seafood items.” Since they’re fussy about the freshness of their seafood, it’s only sourced through trusted suppliers.

The trio are particular about their food, keeping everything natural at the cafe. “Every thing we introduce in the cafe has no artificial flavourings like MSG. Even the chilli sauce is made by us.” explains Kok Boon. However, not all customers can stomach this and prefer the bottled variant. Even their baked beans was originally made from dried beans as they are against using the canned version that contains too much sugar. However after complaints from customers who prefer the pillow soft waxy beans from the can, they compromised and serve the canned plain beans with their homemade tomato sauce.

Everything is homemade and prepared fresh, like this beetroot gnocchi that is cooked only upon order (left). The Darling’s Egg is good for a comforting breakfast with it’s wobbly 63 degree eggs, crispy polenta, chicken salami and an unusual tomato sauce with French roses (right).
Everything is homemade and prepared fresh, like this beetroot gnocchi that is cooked only upon order (left). The Darling’s Egg is good for a comforting breakfast with it’s wobbly 63 degree eggs, crispy polenta, chicken salami and an unusual tomato sauce with French roses (right).

They admit that it can be hard to balance serving it the genuine way versus what diners in Kuala Lumpur are more familiar. One example is their carbonara pasta, made the true blue Italian way without cream but just mixed with an egg yolk. Customers often ask where the white cream sauce is! It’s a similar story with their fresh handmade pasta that one customer associated with pan mee. The pasta has a silky texture, as it’s a mix of semolina with wheat flour.

The trio has also started a long-term food project known as My Dear KL: Let Us Feed You. “We know we can’t compete with professional chefs, hence we decided to use local ingredients and be creative with new things to feed the city.”

One of the initiatives includes their weekend special smØrrebØrd. The open-faced sandwiches were inspired by a backpacking trip Chewyeng made to Sweden.

Look for the cafe on the first floor of Nexus Bangsar for a quiet dining spot.
Look for the cafe on the first floor of Nexus Bangsar for a quiet dining spot.

Each of the homemade dark rye bread slices is topped with various ingredients, like their house-cured salmon, homemade sauces, roast beef and fresh seafood. A local twist is also given with the addition of refreshing rose apple or jambu air. The small bites are also perfect for those on a low-GI diet.

The next project is a proposed joint collaboration with another cafe, where they’ll be introducing a new dish that will sold in both the partners’ establishment. All the proceeds raised will be donated to charity.

Thirdwave, Unit 1-11, First Floor, Nexus, Bangsar South, Kuala Lumpur. https://www.facebook.com/thirdwave.my