10 ice cream/bingsu/soft serve cafes in Uptown Damansara – Sangkaya, The Ais, Every Sundae, Hail’s Softserve, Villa Ju Bakery, Bingsu

1. Every Sundae Soft Gelato Bar by Cielo Dolci
Having tasted considerable success since they took Klang Valley by storm with their eyebrow-raising flavours (yes, we are referring to the infamous Nasi Lemak gelato, among others) and subsequently winning third place in the Gelato World Tour 2015 in March 2015, Cielo Dolci the sister of Every Sundae is a seasoned brand when it comes to the world of ice cream/gelato and soft serves.

Thus we had high expectations for their outlet in Damansara Uptown when it opened in May 2015.

We paid our dues and visited once; but left uncertain as the offerings wasn’t agreeable to our palate.
Anyhow, change is inevitable and we went back this week to check out their new offerings.

This time, we left on a positive note, happy with our order, though I was appalled that this cost RM16.
It wasn’t even a full size waffle and I thought the size of the sundae could be a little taller. LOL.
Note: I took this picture immediately after it was served so the excuse that it has melted doesn’t apply. 

This under their “mix and match” your own dessert, where I opted for a waffle as base and topped up with their soft serve TWIST (meaning 2 flavours in one) for an additional RM2.
A 5 % tax is applicable.

Our latte is RM10, which is a pretty standard latte price. The flavours I chose was sweet potato and passionfruit ginger; one creamy and the other more of a sorbet.
I would have preferred the ginger accents to be stronger but understandably that might not be the preferred choice of the masses.

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2. Sangkaya, Uptown 7

In a business where variety is compelling, Sangkaya manages to draw the crowd with just one flavour, the mighty coconut.
They had since added Thai milk tea to the menu, as well as a Malaysian flavour one, the Chendol to the menu.
Other items here are coconut based beverages such as coconut shake and coconut water.

The ice cream is easy to like; creamy and unmistakably rich in coconut milk flavour. Not surprisingly, since it is dairy and eggs free and only the freshest coconut milk is used in the production.

Their signature, RM10.50 consisted of 4 small scoops served in a halved coconut shell together with the coconut flesh. You can add your own toppings from a selection that includes corn, toasted coconut flakes, red bean and peanuts.
I reckon one of the factor of their success was in its presentation, which is popularly photographed and shared on social media.

I however, liked mine with in a smaller portion and without much topping. Thus the RM7.30, 3 scoops with ONE topping was enough for me.
For variety sake I requested for a scoop of Thai Milk Tea with double scoop of the original flavour.

But am I addicted to it?
No. I thought it is nice, but it didn’t leave me a devout.

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3. Miru Dessert Cafe
The first Shibuya toast outlet in Empire Damansara had queues outside its shop when it first opened. A glance at the menu gave me a jolt; RM22 upwards for BREAD, ice cream and some toppings??

But hey, it could be a heavenly toast with imported Japanese ice cream so the price might be justified. I for one, haven’t joined the queue and are not likely to.

At Miru Dessert Cafe however, their Shibuya Honey Toast starts at RM15 with no taxes and it comes with 2 scoops of ice cream.
Furthermore, on a weekday night business was brisk.
Since I was in the vicinity after a depressing visit to the doctor’s I decided that ice cream could be the cure for my blues.

Service was warm though slow. Our cafe latte (RM11) arrived 10 minutes after our order while my toast (Pandan Coconut Toast (RM16)) was served 30 minutes later.

I’m a huge fan of coconut ice cream and kaya and hence this was my pick from the 8 options available.
I read somewhere on their FB page that they churned out their own butter and was suitable impressed upon hearing such effort.

I however, wasn’t as impressed when I took my first bite.
For one, the coconut ice cream bordered on icky. It was sickly sweet and rich, the unfortunate part being that the rich part was more cloying than delectable.

With the ice cream melting all over my toast, it was difficult to actually taste the finer flavours of the butter. The toast was buttered on all sides within the cut-out cubes so that could be the reason for the delay in my order. I can well imagine the time required to spread the butter within the toast, especially if it is done by a new staff.

The kaya was overly sweet as well.
All in all, both of us had difficulty finishing one toast, and even pushed aside the ice cream. That, I assure you, it is not a common occurrence, since we are both ice cream lovers.

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4. Bingsu Cafe, Uptown
Bingsu is an expensive dessert, no doubt about that.
As much as I love the bingsu for its characteristic fine milky ice, there are times I couldn’t help comparing it to our humble ais kacang, which is ALMOST similar and works just as well as a thirst quencher or heat-dissipator.

I have a friend who supplies the ingredients for Korean desserts in Singapore, and he had admitted many outlets would take short cuts as the imported ingredients are expensive.
However, the crucial element is the ice, which should be made by a special machine to snowflake/snow ice-fineness.
This machine, as I was made to understand, is a heavy investment.

In March 2015 we visited Bingsu Cafe for a taste of its Bingsu (earlier review HERE). Back then the menu was simpler; with choices of bingsu, toast or ice cream and sorbet.
Today Bingsu has a wider range of premium ice cream (all natural and using fresh, hand picked fruits), belgium waffle and bingsu bites.
Just this week, they launched a new Bingsu flavour- the popular Matcha.

My recent visit was 2 weeks back so I could refresh my memory of their bingsu for this article. We ordered a bingsu as well as a waffle since I’ve not tried their waffles before.
Their housemade ice creams melt fast but they were creamy, rich and not overly sweet. Whatever the intended flavour was, there were enough intensity in each flavour for satisfaction.
Yes, the ice cream here is worth recommending for sure.

Bingsu’s waffles was good with a nice crisp on the crust. It would have been perfect (texture-wise) if it was properly cooked through. As you can see below the batter was still soft and sticky within.

Dual Berry Waffle (RM14.90). Black sesame and Red Bean Bingsu (RM14.90).
I used a Seeties offer so the extra scoop of ice cream was free. 

The bingsu ice wasn’t as milky nor was it as fine as Villa Ju Bakery’s but at least it wasn’t as bad as dal.komm’s!
But would I revisit and recommend this to my friends?
No, not with Villa Ju Bakery nearby. But I would recommend the ice creams here.

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5. The Ais
Fun fact: Do you know that The Ais originated from PENANG?
Well, I didn’t, till I read about it on their FB page.

The Ais claimed their ice cream to be specially handcrafted using the finest ingredients and with no added preservative, coloring & flavoring.

While all that sounds fine and dandy (hey, I’m all for healthier ice creams!) the ice creams here bordered on bland, other than a prevailing sweetness.

In my quest to decide on the double scoop I wanted, I requested for a few tasters.

However, after my 5th tasting spoon, I began to feel alarmed. Oh dear, the flavours are way too mild, I had thought to myself. I was having trouble deciding on 2 flavours, which is not a common occurrence for an ice cream lover like me.

By now the lady behind the counter is understandably, fidgety. She must thinking I’m one of those who enjoys free samples. LOL!
But seriously, all the flavours were so mild & lacking in richness, body and flavour that in the end I ordered one scoop out of courtesy, for I didn’t like any!

Anyhow, I ended up on a gamble, picking a flavour that I’ve not tried and hoped that it is good.
It happened to be an “artisanal flavour” which means a top up of RM1.50 from the standard price of RM7.90.

This RM9.40 Irish Baileys ice cream is one of the worst I’ve ever had for an alcoholic version. The kindest description I’ll give it is ‘mild vanilla ice cream with some hint of Baileys“.

He had wisely chose an Affogato with Vanilla ice cream (you can select any ice cream of your choice) – RM9.90.
Even his vanilla ice cream bordered on plain. Luckily the coffee helped to make it go down easier. In fact, I gave up on the Baileys after a few spoons and dumped it into the coffee as well.

Here are the other flavours I sampled:
Banana walnut – strange (sourish??!) banana flavour
Gula melaka – stronger flavour compared to the rest but sweeter too
Lemon poppyseed – didn’t try
Dragon fruit – didn’t try
Coffee and nut – decent coffee flavour
Coconut – tasted weird, like iced milk with mild coconut flavor
Horlick Kit Kat – didn’t try
Prune & cinnamon – sickly sweet
Dark chocolate – didn’t try
Volcano – this is chilli flakes on chocolate ice cream and the chilli flakes were more salty than spicy.

No points for guessing if we would return.

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6. Dal.Komm Coffee

Dal.Komm’s bingsu is official one of the worst I’ve had.
The ice was coarse, the milky flavour wanting and it is possible that I’ve just spent RM16.90 for a milky coffee.
This is their Coffee Cube Bingsu with a shot of espresso and a scoop of just-decent ice cream.

Venue-wise it is a recommendable mobile working environment with power sockets and nicely spaced out tables. The air con is chilly but outdoor seating are available if you have low tolerance for the cold.

I think they are the only outlet that offers Cruffins with toppings. The Bread Shop in Damansara offers cruffins but I believe they are without fancy toppings such as these. dal.komm has Shibuya Toast as well.

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7. Baskin Robbins
Baskin Robbins…
With so many artisanal ice cream available and cafes serving healthier, preservatives-free, freshly made-in-house ice cream/soft serve/gelato, where does that leaves Baskin Robbins?
Well, I’m sure there are still many BR fans in Malaysia. So if you are one and you are in Uptown Damansara, here is where you can head in for your fix!

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8. Hail’s Soft Serve (To be updated).

This new kid on the block (literally) will be having their official launch TOMORROW- Saturday 7th November.
I’ll try to drop in and try some softserve and update this list before I leave for Hong Kong!

Stay tuned!

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9. Villa Ju Bakery

RM10.90 nett for one shot of espresso with 3 (THREE!) big scoops of homemade ice cream?
Only at Villa Ju Bakery, I assure you.
The ice cream is rich, creamy and not too sweet. And their bingsus are equally sizeable for the price.

Available in 3 sizes from ‘Friend’, ‘Family’ and ‘Party’, Villa Ju Bakery is a worthy visit if you are a fan of bingsu.
I would recommend here over Bingsu (also Uptown), dal.komm, OW:L Expresso @ SS15, Crazy Penguin (Kota Damansara) and Cafe Bene.

The ice is rightfully milky and truly fine. Overall flavour is not too sweet and its components (matcha, rice cakes etc) are mostly imported.
Portion is huge for the price (certainly bigger than any of the other bingsu outlets mentioned earlier) so although each bingsu starts from RM16 – 30, it is certainly shareable.
Service is shaky as the owners are Koreans but they do have a local staff to assist.
Ambience is comfortable, hip Korean music (comfortable decibel), not too cold and tables are fairly spaced out.

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10. Softsrve Ice Cream and Dessert Bar 

We visited Softsrve back in February when they first opened (link HERE) and we balked at the size of the softserve versus the price.

Today, for the reason of this article I made a revisit to update myself of their new offerings.

Softsrve had since expanded their repertoire. I enjoyed the Hojicha softserve though the churros was obviously fried in advance but at least it remained crispy.
The chocolate version was satisfyingly rich enough.

If you compare the pictures from my earlier posting to the ones below, you would have noticed that the softserve portion is much taller (meaning more!) now so that is a positive development.
In fact, for this size and price, I personally would revisit for further softserve-loving sessions.

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ADDRESSES:

1. Every Sundae Soft Gelato Bar by Cielo Dolci
9 Jalan SS 21/37, Damansara Utama,
Petaling Jaya, Selangor – Same row as Village Park Nasi Lemak.
Hours: Daily 12pm – 11pm
Prices: RM10 and above.
Coffee: Yes.
Pork-free/Halal: Pork-free. No alcohol served.
WIFI: No.
Tax: 5%.
Service: Warm and helpful.
Your orders are served to you.
Ambience: Comfortable. Casual.
Aircon: Yes.
Outdoor seating: Yes.
Powerpoints for charging: No.
Parking : Uptown area, expected to be challenging.
Payment: Pay at counter upon order.
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2. Sangkaya, Uptown 7
No.80, Ground Floor, Jalan SS21/39
Damansara, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (same row as The Ais, The Library Coffee Bar)
Phone 012-283 0249
Hours: Mon – Sun: 12pm to 12am
Prices: RM3 onwards for a cone.
Food: No.
Pork-free/Halal: Pork-free. No alcohol served.
WIFI: YES.
Tax: No.
Service: Warm and helpful.
Self-service – Pick up your orders upon payment.
Ambience: Comfortable. Casual.
Aircon: Yes.
Outdoor seating: No.
Powerpoints for charging: No.
Parking : Uptown – mostly challenging.
Payment: Pay upon order.
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3. Softsrve Ice Cream & Dessert
31, Jalan SS21/1A, Damansara Utama, 47400,
PJ, Selangor Malaysia. (same row as Capitol The Fat Spoon, Wondermilk)
Hours: Tues – Sun: 12pm to 11pm
Contact: 03-77339515
Prices: RM10 onwards for a serving.
Food: No.
Pork-free/Halal: Pork-free. No alcohol served.
WIFI: YES.
Tax: No.
Service: Warm and helpful.
Self-service – Pick up your orders upon payment.
Ambience: Comfortable. Casual.
Aircon: Yes.
Outdoor seating: Yes.
Powerpoints for charging: Limited.
Parking : Uptown – mostly challenging.
Payment: Pay upon order.
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4. Miru Dessert
62, Jalan SS21/58, Damansara Utama,
47400 Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.
Contact: 0197730138
Hours: Tue – Thu: 2:00 pm-11:00 pm
Fri-Sat: 2:00 pm-12:00 am
Sun: 2:00 pm-11:00 pm
Prices: RM15 onwards for a Shibuya Toast, coffee and tea starts from RM8.
Food: No. Other desserts like brownies yes.
Pork-free/Halal: Pork-free. No alcohol served.
WIFI: YES.
Tax: No.
Service: Warm and helpful. Your orders are served to you.
Ambience: Comfortable. Casual.
Aircon: Yes.
Outdoor seating: No.
Powerpoints for charging: No.
Parking : Uptown – mostly challenging.
Payment: Pay upon order.
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5. The Ais
78-M, Jln SS 21/39, Damansara Uptown, (same row as Sangkaya, above The Library Coffee Bar)
47400, Petaling Jaya, Selangor
Contact: 012-345 6837
Hours: Daily 12pm – 12am
Prices: Ice cream starts from RM7.90.
Food: Mini pancakes.
Pork-free/Halal: Pork-free. Alcohol added in some flavours.
WIFI:NO.
Tax:
Service: Helpful.
Your orders are served to you.
Ambience: Casual. Tight space.
Aircon: Yes.
Outdoor seating: No.
Powerpoints for charging: Limited.
Parking : Uptown – mostly challenging.
Payment: Pay upon order.
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6. Bingsu Cafe Uptown

28, Jln SS 21/35, Damansara Uptown, (facing the LDP)
47400, Petaling Jaya, Selangor
Contact: 03 – 7733 3086
Hours: Daily 12pm – 12 am
Prices: Ice cream starts from RM10.
Food: No.
Pork-free/Halal: Pork-free.
WIFI: Yes.
Tax: No.
Service: Helpful.
Your orders are served to you.
Ambience: Casual. .
Aircon: Yes.
Outdoor seating: Yes.
Powerpoints for charging: Yes, limited.
Parking : Uptown – mostly challenging.
Payment: Pay upon order.

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7. Dal.Komm Coffee

No.61, Jalan SS21/37
Damansara Utama, Petaling Jaya.
Contact: 03-7722 5199
Hours:Mon-Thur: 9am-12am
Fri: 9am-1am
Sat: 10pm-1am
Sun: 10pm-11pm
Prices: Bingsu starts from RM14.90.
Food: Shibuya Toast, cakes.
Pork-free/Halal: Pork-free.
WIFI: Yes.
Tax: No.
Service: Self pick up from the counter once order is ready.
Ambience: Casual.
Aircon: Yes.
Outdoor seating: Yes.
Powerpoints for charging: Limited.
Parking : Uptown – mostly challenging.
Payment: Pay upon order.

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8. Baskin Robbins
Baskin Robbins is in this list for the sole reason of it being an ice cream outlet in Damansara Uptown.
No reviews from me as my days of eating Baskin Robbins ice cream are past me now. There are just too many other choices! 🙂

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9. Hail’s Soft Serve

28, Jalan SS21/58, Damansara Uptown, 47400,
PJ, Malaysia.
Contact:  +60 3-7732 7077
Hours: Daily 11:30 am-12:00 am.
Prices: TBA.
Food: TBA.
Pork-free/Halal: Pork-free.
WIFI: TBA.
Tax: TBA.
Service:  TBA.
Ambience: Casual.
Aircon: Yes.
Outdoor seating: No.
Powerpoints for charging: TBA.
Parking : Uptown – mostly challenging.
Payment: Pay upon order.

10. Villa Ju Bakery

26, Jalan SS21/58, Damansara Uptown
47400 PJ, Selangor.
Contact: +603 – 7733 2423
What they serve: Breakfast sets, pastas, sliced cakes and buns.
Prices: Affordable (for buns). RM5 – RM40.
Coffee beans: Not focused on coffee but beans imported from Korea.
Food: Yes.
Cakes: Yes.
Pork-free/Halal: Pork-free. Korean run & owned.
OOTD/Instagram friendly: So-so. There are a few spots for photography.
WIFI: Yes.
Tax: No.
Service: Warm and helpful.
Your orders are served to you.
Ambience: Comfortable. Casual.
Aircon: Yes.
Outdoor seating: No.
Powerpoints for charging: Yes.
Parking : Damansara Uptown is challenging and it is advisable that you park at the underground or the dedicated parking building at Uptown 7 since the MPBJ is diligent here.
Payment: Pay upon order.