Latest news with #SanDai
San Francisco Chronicle
5 hours ago
- Business
- San Francisco Chronicle
Top Bay Area coffee shop and Indonesian restaurant have closed
SanDai, Walnut Creek's unique Singaporean-Indonesian restaurant, has closed. Chef-owner Nora Haron announced the news, as well as the closure of her adjacent Indonesian-inspired cafe, Kopi Bar, in a press release Friday. Despite strong weekend crowds, she said that slow midweek activity was too much to overcome. Monthly rent for the space on North Main Street, a quieter stretch compared to the heart of downtown Walnut Creek, was more than $28,500, according to Haron. The businesses closed March 2. The upscale restaurant and coffee bar opened in early 2023. At SanDai, Haron put a California twist on the cuisine of her family's Nusantara, a geographical and cultural zone which encompasses Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and Brunei, as well as parts of Thailand and the Philippines. Haron's sought-after dishes included her pickled pineapple topped beef rendang, fish fried rice and a raviolo stuffed with tiger prawn in a red broth. 'We really had a good time with the fun-loving atmosphere and sunny, stroll-friendly streets of Walnut Creek,' Haron said in an email to the Chronicle. 'We had a lot of very loyal, hyperlocal fans and we made such heartfelt connections in the community.' Kopi Bar offered Indonesian-inspired beverages like creamy avocado coffees and coconut cappuccinos made with beans roasted by Oakland company Mr. Espresso. Pastries displayed Haron's baking expertise, with croissant muffins stuffed with coconut-egg cream and lapis gulung, a traditional Indonesian cake made with an egg-heavy batter featuring nutmeg and other spices. It ranked among Chronicle restaurant critic Cesar Hernandez's list of the Bay Area's best coffee shops. While the first incarnation of Kopi Bar has closed its doors the brand will live on, Haron said, she hopes to expand the coffee shop to new locations through next year. 'We're growing, evolving, and bringing Kopi Bar to even more people,' she said. 'This is just the beginning.' A spokesperson for the restaurants said these plans are very early in development and no further information was available.
Eater
11 hours ago
- Business
- Eater
A Premiere East Bay Indonesian Restaurant and Cafe Has Closed
Fans of the Bay Area's favorite restaurants and cafes for Indonesian, specifically Nusantaran, cuisine winding down operations in the last few months. It's official: SanDai & KOPI Bar on North Main Street are closed. Owner Nora Haron confirmed the news in a press release on Wednesday, June 18. The Walnut Creek location will close in its entirety, as Sandai was the restaurant arm and Kopi Bar the cafe component. That said, Kopi Bar will move and expand into 'several' new locations in 2025 and 2026. 'We're growing, evolving, and bringing Kopi Bar to even more people,' Haron wrote in a statement. 'This is just the beginning.' Per the release, weekdays in downtown Walnut Creek have dried up. The foot traffic was not enough to cover costs, not to mention the gargantuan $28,500 monthly rent payment. The Sandai team pointed out three other Walnut Creek downtown businesses on Main Street have closed in recent months. Loyal Sandai enthusiasts began noticing signs of closure in the last few months, noting inconsistency on Yelp; in late May, local outlet Beyond the Creek tried to crack the case. The restaurant was a quick favorite for gado gado, mushroom satay, and fresh seafood dishes such as ikan pepes. Haron's work as an ambassador for Oakland's longtime roaster Mr. Espresso provided the cafe its own roast, the backbone to popular items including kopi avocado (literally avocado coffee in Bahasa Indonesian) and the Coconut Capp, an elegant blend of fruit and caffeine. While this closure marks the end of a cooking chapter for Haron, it sounds like Kopi Bar's future is bright. The cafe and pastry business will enter 'high-traffic, easy-access neighborhoods with population density' in the coming year. See More: San Francisco Restaurant Closings
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
第三代 Di San Dai: Father-daughter duo sell affordable fishball noodles and porridge in Chinatown
Hidden in the nook on the second floor of Chinatown Complex is 3-month-old 第三代 Di San Dai, a father-daughter run stall serving homely fishball noodles and porridge. It is aptly named as such because there are hawkers in all 3 generations of the family. The father used to run the stall on his own, back when they were located at Bedok 85 Fengshan Food Centre under the name Zai Fa Fishball Noodle since 2015. His daughter, Val, was previously a vet nurse. It was only after her father got into a car accident and complications arose in her line of work that she joined him in running this stall. She mentioned not wanting her father to bear the weight of providing for their family alone. I went down at about 10 in the morning, and this secluded section of the hawker centre was empty, save for a few uncles drinking their kopi. Their menu is concise with only 5 dishes, so I decided to try 1 noodle and 1 porridge dish: the Dry Fishball Minced Meat Noodle (S$4/S$5) and Chicken Thigh Porridge (S$5) were the day's lucky contenders. Depending on your preference, you can get the Fishball Minced Meat Noodle in either dry or soup form, and in 2 sizes, at S$4 or S$5. I got the smaller bowl for S$4, but the portion was substantial nonetheless. There are 7 types of noodles for you to choose from: Mee Pok, Mee Kia, Mee Sua, Mee Tai Mak, Yellow Noodle, Guo Tiao and Bee Hoon. I got the classic mee pok that came with 3 fishballs, a few slices of fishcake, minced meat, fried pork lard, fried shallots, spring onion and a piece of lettuce. There was also a bowl of soup included on the side. The noodles themselves were springy, and although not al dente, still retained a good bite. Each strand of noodle was evenly tossed in a mix of soy sauce, vinegar and Di San Dai's homemade chilli paste, which added a deliciously aromatic and smoky touch to the dish. Flavourful, but also not too spicy. When I first bit into the fishball, I was shocked by how bouncy and smooth the texture was. They were savoury yet had a subtle sweetness to them. Although Di San Dai doesn't handmake their fishballs, the owners shared with me their lobang—their supplier had a fishball stall so successful they started supplying them to other hawkers. In the inconspicuous corner of the bowl lies the minced meat. Minced meat usually feels like an accompanying ingredient that sits there to make the noodles and fishballs look good. This one, however, was juicy and had soaked up some of the sauce, adding a hearty savouriness to the dish. I would be happy to eat this with rice alone, honestly. The soup was clear and lightly layered with umami, good as a palate cleanser or simply to un-clump your noodles. Noodle Showdown: Chun Fu Fishball Minced Meat Noodle Laksa vs Fa Ji Minced Meat Fishball Noodle The second dish I tried was their Chicken Thigh Porridge, which I added an egg to for an additional S$0.50. It came with your standard porridge toppings like you tiao, fried shallots and spring onion. What was interesting was the dong cai, or 'winter vegetable', a form of preserved cabbage that is popular in Chinese cuisine. It was salty with a slight chew, complementing the mild flavour of the porridge well. However, don't be fooled by the simple-looking dish, because this porridge was thick and had a nice velvety consistency that carried the light flavour of white pepper and sesame oil. Every bite felt like being engulfed in a warm, comforting hug and made for a super satisfying breakfast meal. The runny egg added a creamy consistency on top of the porridge, but taste-wise there wasn't too much of a difference. Nestled within the porridge are slices of the chicken thigh that were tender and subtly seasoned, though it would've been nice if there were just a little more chicken. By the way, you can easily customise your dishes to your liking by asking the kind owners to add/remove condiments, such as the fried shallots and spring onions. Both Di San Dai's noodles and porridge were above average in my opinion, so I was surprised to see that there weren't many people patronising this stall. Perhaps it was also because of their location within the hawker centre, but it is definitely worth the venture into the secluded part of Chinatown Complex. Even when I was just ordering my food, the owners were friendly and offered their recommendations. They were also attentive in asking which condiments I wanted on my porridge etc. Overall, it was a great start to my day savouring these warm, wholesome dishes and conversations. If you're looking for a new stall to check out at Chinatown Complex, this is the one! P.S. They only start selling their porridge at 9am. Expected damage: S$4 – S$6 per pax 15 best porridges in Singapore that deserve the congee-niality award [Jan 2025 update] The post 第三代 Di San Dai: Father-daughter duo sell affordable fishball noodles and porridge in Chinatown appeared first on
