This Garden-Themed Cafe in KL is the City’s New Hidden Gem!

Filled with lush greenery, this cafe provides a mini-retreat from the hustle and bustle of city life.

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If you love being surrounded by nature while enjoying your cup of coffee, you must visit the Foliage Coffee. Located in Taman Desa, Kuala Lumpur, Foliage Coffee is a serene cafe with an emphasis on greenery. Every corner of the space is filled with plants and blooms dangling from the floor to the ceiling of its interior and exterior, giving the impression of sipping a drink or eating inside a garden. Meanwhile, its eye-catching floral wall, as well as the cafe's signature cupcakes, make for an Instagram-worthy photo opportunity (more on these later!).

Foliage Coffee shares its space with RAP Plant Shop, so not only you’ll get to enjoy your cup of coffee here but also shop for plants at the nursery next door. We had the opportunity to speak with the owners of Foliage Coffee to learn more about this beautiful garden-themed cafe that is currently popular among plant lovers and coffee connoisseurs!

About the owner and the cafe

Hi, we’re Neal and Nigel Edwin. We run Foliage Coffee together with our parents, backed by an amazing team. It has been open since March 2021 and is located in Taman Desa, Kuala Lumpur.

Foliage Coffee was originally intended to be a personal event space. Customers who shop for plants at our nursery started walking in and asking if we served food and coffee here because this space is located next to our nursery. This sparked the idea of opening a cafe, and we decided it would be a good idea to give it a shot.

We serve all types of coffee, as well as tea, chocolate, and cold-pressed juices at Foliage Coffee. Our nasi lemak is one of our best-selling menu items, and our pandan gula melaka is a crowd-pleaser.

How they came up with the cafe name, Foliage Coffee

During an interview with BFM radio station about two years ago, we actually talked about opening a little garden cafe and the host suggested, “Why not call it Foliage?”. That’s how we came up with the cafe name!

On the cafe design

The cafe's aesthetic is basically anything that has to do with greens. Even the plates and cups have plant motifs on them.

The cafe was completely designed and built by our team. 80% of the materials used are recycled and were leftover from previous landscaping jobs. We did the renovations in stages because we didn't have a large budget to work with, and we added interesting plants and green walls to add visual interest and a pop of colour to the cafe atmosphere.

We wanted to take advantage of the outdoor greenery, so we installed massive glass panels inside the cafe so that customers could enjoy the beautiful scenery outside.

We chose to display a few different types of green and floral walls in our cafe because we work in the plant and landscape industry and have installed many floral and green walls in other restaurants, cafes, and homes. It's also a great way to showcase our work. Among them is our 'spilled flower pot,' floral wall which happens to be our most favourite spot in the cafe. It makes an excellent photo backdrop, and we plan to change the look every few months to keep our cafe looking fresh.

To go along with the garden theme, we serve cupcakes that are specially designed to look like succulents, which has proven to be a big hit with Instagrammers!

On the challenges encountered while renovating the cafe

The main challenge that we faced during the renovation process was determining how to keep the cafe cool, especially during peak hours. To solve this issue, we devised a water reticulation system in which water is constantly running over the roof. This has significantly improved air circulation within the cafe, allowing cool air to enter the space.

What makes Foliage Coffee unique

Aside from the cafe's cosy atmosphere, what distinguishes us from other garden-themed cafes is that it is located in a nursery, so customers can also shop for plants on their way out. We believe there is no other cafe like this within the KL vicinity.

We also chose not to work with any online food delivery platforms because people come to our cafe primarily for the atmosphere. To ensure the safety of our customers, we will inspect everyone's MySejahtera status to ensure they are fully vaccinated and have passed the 2-week mark from their second vaccination date.

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