I have to admit that I didn't have any bungeoppang when I was in Seoul which made me even more curious to try it when it arrived in Malaysia. Aboong, a global brand opened in SS15 in December 2015 and the instagram-worthy fish waffle has been constantly appearing on social media ever since.
The menu is super simple - pick a waffle size, pick a filling and pick a ice-cream flavor.
The fish waffle sizes are shown at the counter along with a small promotion of a coffee kiosk located in their shop, Portafilter.
Their Special Flavor is still Mango at the moment and there is a special combo with a chocolate fish waffle named Seoul in Love.
The waffle machines are very similar to those used for Gai Dan Zai (the Hong Kong egg waffle) - batter is filled then the machine flipped to coat the entire mold.
There are about 7 tables in the air-conditioned area and 3 more al-fresco.
The waffle took about 8-10 minutes to prepare and came pipping hot.
Our order was a regular waffle with a nutella filling topped with yogurt ice-cream. This is one messy dessert - ice-cream and chocolate will be dripping everywhere but the combination of hot meets cold makes it worthwhile. The yogurt ice-cream is light and creamy with an icy undertone instead of a milky one so there's no jelat factor. We ate this easily even after a meal at Asia Cafe.
My only complaint? You don't get much ice-cream actually. Most of it is what you see topped on the fish. The waffle itself is empty until you reach the tail-end of the fish where the toppings pool. Also, the waffle is crispy until you reach the second half of the fish where the melted ice-cream drips into. Then you get squishy batter - not too fun to eat. The nutella filling was delicious with the waffle though!
Overall, the fish waffle was a little gimmicky for our taste. We could easily make our own waffles topped with yogurt ice-cream and nutella or get it elsewhere. But do give this a try, you may find it more appealing than I do.
Reviews for Aboong are available at Eat Drink KL and The Double Eaters.
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Portafilter is located in Aboong's air-conditioned seating area, a small kiosk which fits Tan Keng Zhi and his adorably petite wife.
They have been opened for about a month after they jumped on the opportunity that Aboong doesn't serve beverages.
Their small menu is made of coffee, tea and chocolate drinks. Most people are fascinated by the chocolate truffle which you swirl in your coffee to 'create' a mocha. It may be a small menu but they accept custom coffee requests that they are able to cater to.
We were pleased to know that Keng Zhi is a 3rd place winner of the Malaysia AeroPress Championship 2014. So, AeroPress coffee was our immediate order. (Pssst... All the coffee LC makes is through AeroPress as well).
Even though his coffee beans combo was meant for the coffee machine, it was still good black when made with an AeroPress. Low in acidity with a slight fruity flavor, it was worthy of a AeroPress Championship winner, 3rd place or otherwise.
The beans used are packed in individual vials to ensure you get just the right amount of caffeine each time. I was really surprised to see this setting.
Curiosity got the better of me and I got a bottle of their Cold Steeped Tea. The Sencha was full-flavored, its potential definitely maximized with the cold steeping. I have never had tea with such freshness that tasted like you were chewing on a fresh tea leaf.
According to Keng Zhi, his best seller is his Cold Brew Coffee. We'll definitely drop by next time to try it!