Teacher Kadai Cafe Gives Curious Taste Buds a New Stop in Ipoh’s Old Town

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By Anne Das

Some of Ipoh Old Town’s most interesting finds are the little shops you never planned to visit. At Teacher Kadai Cafe, two teachers serve family recipes with a twist, including a tea called Briyani Chai. Curious yet?

A few seats outside Teacher Kadai Cafe offer a front-row view of Old Town life.

I spotted this café after a visit to the PWW shop down the road. Teacher Kadai Café’ is located opposite the mosque on Jalan Dato Sagor. The compact space has a contemporary feel with a playful Indian character and an easy warmth.

Everything feels chosen, right down to the cup your tea arrives in. Thankfully, the air conditioning offered a welcome reprieve from the heat.

A little classroom nostalgia, with no homework between sips.

School exercise books hang from the ceiling, with books tucked into the décor. The owners are teachers Anuthra Kerisnasmy, 34, and Mageswari Nageswaran, 35. Each taught for about 13 years before opening Teacher Kadai Cafe.

“Kadai” means shop in Tamil.

With two teachers behind the counter, I felt quite comfortable asking a few extra questions. First up was Briyani Chai.

Briyani Chai combines herbs, spices and fermented ginger honey in a brew that needs no milk.

Anuthra explained that her mother prepared a version during her childhood, especially when she felt unwell. Her own recipe combines herbs and spices with fermented ginger honey. It contains no milk.

Aromatic and gently spicy, it has a little bite and a lovely balance of flavours. If you enjoy a fragrant brew without the richness of milky tea, give this a try.

Tangy, green and far from your usual order. Meet Nattu Pacha Mooru.

Nattu Pacha Mooru, their “Buttermilk with Green Goodness”, offers another introduction to Indian flavours. Traditional mooru is a buttermilk drink, usually white. Green apple, coriander, mint and other green ingredients give Anuthra’s version its distinctive colour.

“There is usually a ‘Wow!’ or ‘Whoa!’ moment,” Anuthra says of customers’ first sips.

It is tangy and refreshing, with herbal flavours and just enough sweetness to balance it all. This would be my choice to take away on a hot afternoon.

Anuthra sold pouches of green goodness in the early days.

The green drink also started the business. During a school break last year, Anuthra sold it in small pouches from a polystyrene box at her mother’s First Garden stall.

Pop-ups in Little India and event bookings followed before the café took shape.

Both women remain hands-on. There is seating for about 15 indoors and another 20 outside. They want a sociable, kopitiam-style spot where people from different backgrounds feel at home.

Mageswari Nageswaran serves tea with a smile and a splash of colour.

For a familiar cuppa, Teacher’s Tea blends black teas with cow’s milk. There is also Masala Tea, Ginger Honey Tea, Hot Lemon Tea and Honey Lemon Tea alongside an iced tea selection.

Coffee drinkers have options too, including Teacher’s Latte and Affogato, both bestsellers

Hot, cold and gloriously indulgent Affogato

There are also fruit and vegetable juices, virgin mojitos and hot or iced chocolate.

For a bite between sips, mantou buns come with homemade dipping sauces. The vegetarian option has golden potato sauce. Anuthra recommends Apple Tuna Toast with chai, while Nasi Lemak Ibu Saya features her mother’s sambal.

Look out for rotating weekend specials too.

Mantou and homemade dipping sauces make a good case for staying for a bite.

Food and drink prices generally start around RM5 to RM6 and go up to about RM20.

With the weather these days, something cooling hardly needs an excuse. Stop for a green buttermilk to go or linger over tea and mantou. I came in for a drink and stayed to find out what was in my cup.

Follow your curiosity. It might have better plans for your afternoon.