This Cosy 'Hidden' Restaurant In A KL Back Alley Makes Fresh Pasta
Must book in advance.
By Tamara Jayne
At first glance, you might overlook this little nook in Ampang. But you'll definitely want to add it to your list of places to try next.
Back Alley Pasta is run by Trodiv Kitchen (M) LLP, a company founded by Chef Jay and his business partner Alfred Yan.
They launched the restaurant on 2 June 2021, the first day of the second Movement Control Order (MCO), and officially opened their doors to diners in September that same year.
With initial plans of being a space that supplies freshly-made pasta to other restaurants and cafes, Chef Jay shared that they ended up turning it into its own 'speakeasy' restaurant
"We didn't know how long and what the situation was going to be like in the future. But we looked at the space again, and thought, wouldn't it be pretty awesome to have a 'speakeasy' restaurant? Moreover, we are in the heart of the city and the location would be wasted if we don't make full use of it," he told SAYS.
"The name Back Alley came pretty literally and naturally actually. As the location of the restaurant and our front door are located in the back alley between two buildings."
Some popular staples on the menu include quinoa arancini stuffed with spinach and truffles, squid ink pasta carbonara with smoked bacon, and potato gnocchi with miso bechamel and yuzu beef brisket
Other dishes like their sourdough garganelli with pork ragu and charred cauliflower with pesto diavola that were later added to the menu are now becoming crowd favourites, "even exceeding previous bestsellers," he added.
Aside from fresh pasta, they also offer grilled items like grilled grass-fed New Zealand rib eye and big plates like barbecue pork ribs that are meant for sharing.
"We also intend to add a lot more grilled items into our menu as the flavours pair very well with our fresh pastas," Jay continued.
Keeping things in line with their core values of 'accessibility' and 'affordability', he explained that the prices of each dish on the menu range between RM20 and RM40
Back Alley has become increasingly popular since its opening and reservations need to be made in advance, as the restaurant is small and can only fit 19 to 20 people, with a maximum of five at each table.
Several customers have even mentioned that they waited for up to a month to get a table, but said that it was worth it.
"We're honestly extremely grateful and thankful to every single diner that we had the privilege of cooking a bowl of pasta for and it's been an extremely huge blessing for everything that has and is happening," the chef shared, adding that they hope to launch other concepts in the near future.
If you want to check them out, here's where Back Alley Pasta is located:
