The Locker & Loft may have only been in operation for several months, but it’s quickly gaining popularity. Come on a Friday night and you’ll be looking at a packed house. Business is brisk even during the weekday, and it’s not hard to see why.

It’s location requires a little bit of effort, it might even took you a while to figure out where the door is. But once you come through the entrance, you’ll be greeted by a rustic looking bar that is also industrially chic, with cozy dim lighting to make you feel at ease.

As Kevin and I walked in for the review session, we were led to a long table. Now I must mention that for the two of us, sometimes hanging out with strangers can be very trying. But when our old friend Sarah sashayed through the door, you can feel the two introverts (fine, one of us is only semi-introvert) visibly relaxed. haha. Anyway, back to the bar.

Owned by Deepak Gill, lawyer by training with background in journalism, or otherwise known as Thirsty blogger (his lifestyle blog with focus on well…booze) and Paul Dass, who’s been in the industry for many years,  we can be reassured that the drinks here won’t disappoint us. But I was also suitably impressed with the dishes they dished out. It’s evident that plenty of research has gone into crafting the menu and I dare say this is one of the most exciting dining experience we’ve had this year.

Let’s start with the cocktails, with their signature house cocktail here:

Kelapa Rock (RM22) that will make your Kepala rock. Fresh coconut juice with 1.5 shots of Vodka and a touch of syrup. I’m partial to coconuts so this sits really well with me. There’s a punch bowl version, maybe next time I’ll just order THAT.

Brown-brown (RM30). You won’t find any cocaine or gunpowder in here. But get this: it’s Milo Ais with 2 shots of Vodka. My childhood is complete. Let’s not even discuss how wrong that sounds.

Bang Pow (RM25), with hibiscus-infused gin (45ml), with homemade rose syrup, Creme de Cassis, lime juice and egg white. Apparently made for CNY but become permanent by popular demand. Very refreshing and floral. Read: Girly.

Kg Pandan Don (RM30) has rum, Don Julio Reposado tequila, lime, pandan syrup, coconut milk and homemade pandan bitters. Dangerously good.

Olivier (how cleverly named) RM25. A concoction of basil and Olive oil-infused gin, lime, homemade tonic syrup, egg white and lemon bitters. Prominent herbaceous note and something a little different.

Southern Quack (RM30) is made with black truffle-infused vodka,lemon juice, spiced-syrup, and orange bitters. What a decadent treat! I’d definitely go back for this one.

With that amount of alcohol in sight, we needed some food to line our stomach. But here at Locker & Loft, it ain’t going to be just your regular bar snacks. The menu takes on the direction of Asian fusion, and not in the cliche kinda way either.

First up we have the minced pork and sweet potato leaf queso with thick toast (RM17). Queso here refers to a Tex-Mex dish of Chili Con Queso, a creamy dip made with chili peppers, melted cheese and cream, which sounds yummy enough on its own but here it’s extra moreish with its explosion of (local) flavours. Spicy, meaty and rich, it’s good to the last drop.

Mutton varuval quesadilla with mango chutney (RM17), so good you’ll have to fight for the last piece. It reminds me of murtabak, but with more toothsome texture, and of course a lot tastier with the spiced goat, and the tangy sweet chutney.

Potato and bitter gourd pakora with mint yogurt dip RM12. The Fried Bitter Gourd from Nirwana gets an upgrade! I love this one to bits, literally.

Grilled watermelon with Japanese dressing, lychee, feta, tomato chips and kesum leaves (RM20). Watermelon with Feta is such a classic combination, but here it’s elevated with lychees, made more floral by the herby kesum and watch out for that dressing! The wasabi does pack a punch.

Many restaurants serve disappointing pastas, but we are really impressed by their Smoked Duck Aglio Olio Linguine (RM28). Featuring Linguini tossed with smoked duck breast, lap cheong, Thai chilli flakes, garlic, coriander and cashews. The doneness is just perfect and I have no idea how they manage to coat each strand of linguini with that much flavour. This is definitely the MVP of pasta in our book.

If you’re partial to sweet and savoury combo, the Slow-Cooked Char Siew Baby Back Ribs (6 ribs RM55, 12 ribs RM98) should be right up your alley. The ribs are grilled to perfection, succulent and meat falls straight off the bone. The flavours are unmistakably Char Siew, though it’s just a little bit too much on the sweet side for us.

Grilled mutton rack with percik sauce (RM55) is served with fluffy baked potato and a very refreshing cucumber salad, love how the cucumber comes in ribbons. The meat is juicy, smoky, with a slight bite, and the percik sauce does complement it well. Superb!

By the way, you can even find a very good Tuak here. The bottle is RM85, and it’s available by glass for RM18 too.

In the midst of our dinner Kevin suddenly blurted out “The service is really bad here” much to my horror (apparently my expression was a Kodak moment); turned out he was referring to the mobile reception there. Fear not though, as you can always use their wifi to keep your social media account active. Or just stay off the phone and enjoy the food (and drinks). Actually the service here is pretty good, I shall add.

At this point we were almost bursting at the seams already. But we couldn’t do without desserts. No way!

The Sago Gula Melaka here is served with a scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream and some mango bits to refresh it. It’s pretty decent, but I felt the sago were a little overcooked and mushy.

Butterfly Bun (char koi), served with homemade chocolate kaya and ice cream (RM14). This one tastes like local version of churros and it’s very, very good. Must try!

Crispy Pain Perdu, topped with homemade butterscotch sauce, served with mango and ice cream (RM16). The french toast here is coated with cornflakes and almond, what a pleasant surprise.

I somehow lost the photo of the Yellow Sub, which is an alcoholic milkshake (!!!) with Vanilla Ice Cream, Fresh Nangka, Rum and Bailey’s. Very delicious, and probably very lethal too.

Blogging about this makes me want to return tonight! Though Mondays they are closed, so I would have to wait another day. Thank you so much for your hospitality!

The Locker & Loft
40A, Jalan SS 20/10,
Jalan Damansara,
Damansara Kim,
47400 Petaling Jaya,
Selangor, Malaysia
+603 74967222