Malaysians have always loved their coffee – so given the strong coffee culture in the country, it’s not surprising that some of the best coffee chains available now are actually Malaysian.
In a tweet by Richard Ker, he shared his opinion about the local coffee chains that he found while in Suria KLCC. His tweet wrote, “Proud of these Malaysian coffee companies,” along with a photo of three coffee chains in the mall: ZUS Coffee, San Francisco Coffee and Kenny Hills Coffee. Another Twitter user, Mohd Yushairie Yusoff, added to Richard’s tweet, saying that Suria KLCC houses several other Malaysian coffee chains, Eight Ounce Coffee and Bask Bear. He also mentioned Gigi Coffee, located in Avenue K mall, near KLCC.
The tweets quickly gained traction amongst Malaysians, who were pleasantly surprised to discover that the coffee chains were local brands. Many said it was new knowledge to them that San Francisco Coffee was a local brand, given the name. According to its history, the coffee chain started operations in 1997 at Desa Serdang. While the reason for the name “San Francisco” was not specified, it’s believed that the founders drew inspiration from the city itself, which had a big coffee culture.
Some locals were also surprised that ZUS Coffee is another Malaysian brand. According to its website, the coffee chain started operations at the first outlet in Binjai back in 2019. Funnily enough, the brand even poked fun at their “origins” in their recent Merdeka advert. Richard’s tweet also included Kenny Hills Coffee, which stemmed from Kenny Hills Bakers brand, founded in 2014 by Au Tai Hon.
The other homegrown coffee chains in Suria KLCC are Eight Ounce Coffee and Bask Bear. For your information, Eight Ounce Coffee was established back in 2013, while Bask Bear was founded in 2019 and is inspired by the Malayan Sun Bear. In case you didn’t know, Gigi Coffee is another homegrown brand founded in 2019.
The tweet also gained attention in light of the recent boycott towards an international coffee chain because of the Palestine-Israel crisis. Many said the tweet highlights the local coffee brands that Malaysians should consider supporting instead.
Were you also surprised that these coffee chains were Malaysian?
Sources: Twitter, San Francisco Coffee, ZUS Coffee, Kenny Hills Coffee, Eight Ounce Coffee, Bask Bear, Gigi Coffee
