MEAT is one of the most important part of our diet. Some may say that (except for vegetarians,of course) a meal is incomplete without a serving of at least one meat dish. A diner opened in 2015, serves just that, meat, and it’s appropriately named as Toko Daging which translates as The Meat Shop. Initially opened as a takeaway stall, and the owners, husband and wife, Mohamad Awet and Nur Ameera, started the business as a way to earn a side income.
However, they both soon quit their day jobs and focused their attention to managing the diner located at Taman Mawar, Gita, Kuching, fulltime. Arriving at Toko, one would feel just at home with the chill and relaxed ambience of the shop, which is located at the couple’s house. 31-year-old Awet explained that his passion is what drives him and his wife to open up a food business.
Both husband and wife pursued their studies in Culinary Arts in SATT College in Kuching. After graduating, they both worked day jobs to gather enough resources to start their business. In the beginning, their menu consists of just grilled chicken and lambs for takeaways.
When the demands keep on increasing, they started to provide a number of tables to accomodate the dine ins. In 2016, they renovated their front lawn to provide more space for dine ins as the number of patrons kept increasing day by day. “It all depends our passion and hardwork. If you want something to happen, you need to work hard for it,” Awet said.
“During the first year, I did a lot of research and experiment on how to prepare all the meat. I asked the customers on how they would like their meat to be served and did a couple of changes to improve the taste.
Finally, I’ve found the perfect recipe for the marinating ingredients and also the sauce to suit everyone’s taste,” he further explained. Moving on to the menus, Toko Daging now expands their choices from chicken and lambs to include beef and salmons, and their newest addition to the menu lists includes pasta and their generous serving of local favourite, Kolo Mee. Toko Daging uses the grill cooking method, which provides a healthier option for your meat intake.
Every meal is served with fries and french beans which is quite unique for a western-theme diner in Kuching. Awet also explained that he managed to get a fresh supply of green beans and carrots daily to maintain the quality of his servings. The signature grilled chicken, lamb and beef are served with blackpepper sauce while the salmon is served with white sauce. Customers can also opt for their orders to be served with melted cheese, which proves to be a big hit to cheese-crazed diners. There is another add-on for the big eaters, the XL Sausage, which compliments the meals perfectly.
Another big menu on the list is the Mixed Grilled, which consists of grilled chicken, lamb and XL sausage, that is amazingly fulfilling and satisfying to the tastebuds. The ambience of Toko Daging is very relaxing, with soothing cafethemed music and simple decorations that are very easy on the eye. According to Nur Ameera, Toko Daging’s decorations were influenced by the decorations of small Spanish cafes that she had seen on TVs and the internet.
“I was in love with the simple designs and ambience of the little cafes and decided that I would decorate my diner just the same,” she added. “With the small capital that we had initially, we couldn’t afford expensive decorations, so we tried to make it on our own. We made the tables and chairs from wooden pallets and eventually all the small decorations as well.” According to Awet, the initial aim of Toko Daging is to provide affordable western dishes to cater the working class. “Not many people get to enjoy proper western dishes without having to spend a lot.
We try to get rid of the stereotypes as our price ranges RM7 to RM30 for full meals. Our beverages are also regular-priced and yes,we provide plain water for free,” he chuckled. Toko Daging also serves a delicious Banana Cheese Fritters, a type of dessert that is very popular in Sarawak. With its affordable price and scrumptuous big portions, it is no wonder that Toko Daging has been able to attract customers from different places and walks of life.
“Our customers are usually those from around Kuching and Samarahan area, but more often than not, we have tourists from Switzerland, Scotland, Morocco, Germany, Turkey and others coming in to have dinner at our place!” Awet exclaimed proudly. Toko Daging also offers reservations for small parties, birthday celebrations and special occassions and table decorations are available based on customers’ requests.
The service crew of Toko Daging are also very friendly, helpful and always generous with their smiles. So, for those of you meat lovers who wants to enjoy your dinner at Toko Daging, head on to Lorong 2, Taman Mawar, Gita, Kuching and get your meat fix today. Toko Daging is open for business daily from 6.00pm till 12.00 midnight.
For reservations and enquiries, you can contact 016-8000634 or 0128536136 (Nur Ameera) or visit their facebook page by keying in TOKO Daging in the search bar and their Instagram page @tokodaging.
