Craving for a burger I head for a favourite burger joint in the city only to discover it closed. Wondering where to go to satiate my hunger pang, I decide to pay ZamZam Bun Café a visit. Now, I have been to this café before. In fact, I am a huge fan of their signature dish, the butter cookie bun. A cookie bun, you ask? Well, it is shaped like a bun but has a crisp cookie like crust on top. Bite into the pillow-like bun and you are greeted with a familiar taste of butter and sugar. Those who have had toasted buttery bread with a generous sprinkle of sugar that caramelises from the heat, will know what I am talking about. And despite the size of the bun, it is often hard to stop at one.
Cafe latte
The healthy and tasty spinach and mushroom sandwich is a favourite too with its generous, mildly spiced filling. The potato wafers, a mix of spiced and salted, lends the dish added flavour. The meat in the beef stuffed bun that is available at the eatery could be a little moist. Try out Bun Café’s varieties of coffee, if not for the love of coffee, at least for the varying latte art. I once got a broad smiley face on my café latte, while a friend got an image of a swan on her vanilla latte. Another had an inverted rosetta tulip on her caramel latte.
With the longing for a juicy burger growing stronger, I swerve my car towards YMR Junction, where the café is located. The joint is rather small, seating roughly 15 people. One often has to wait a while for a table in this often packed eatery. There is a shelf that holds breads and cookies. A cake display counter carries a wide range of colourful and appetising cakes and bakes such as almond honey, crispy elysee, cookie bun and stuffed buns. As usual, I too have to wait for a table. While waiting, I take a look at the familiar menu. If one hopes to dine on parottas or fried rice here, they will be disappointed. ZamZam Bun Café serves only quick eats.
Now, I have tried one of their burgers before; their Mexican chicken burger. The pate is not a traditional chicken pate; it is a fiery chicken kebab. And instead of French fries, it’s potato wafers that they serve as accompaniment.
Today, I decide to try out the BBQ chicken burger. Although I have heard several friends raving about the eatery’s red velvet cake shake (think red velvet cake blended into a thick, creamy shake), I pick a sweet lime lemonade fusion from the beverages section. The café has run out of my favourite cookie buns. Feeling rather peckish, I decide to have a caramel doughnut while waiting for my burger. The doughnut arrives warm, lightly heated in the microwave. The caramel sauce on top of the doughnut is yum.
BBQ burger and sweetlime-lemonade fusion at ZamZam Bun Cafe
My burger arrives piping hot. This burger too has a kebab as a pate. A mildly spiced chicken kebab, it is tossed in a lovely hickory sauce. The bun is toasted in a waffle machine so that it is flat and easier to hold. The sweet lime lemonade fusion, has the juice of sweetlime and lime in the drink. Not overly sweet, it is a refreshing drink for a warm day. The smell of fresh cookie buns fills the air. I pack a few for home, a smile on my face.
