If you’re someone who loves a good cheesecake, then you have to make a deliberate trip down to Johor Bahru’s underrated cafe haven, Taman Mount Austin, to check out this new cheesecake shop.

Opened just recently, The Cheese Lab is a brand new addition to the slew of cafes in the area of Taman Mount Austin—a hidden enclave of cafes in Johor Bahru—and here they specialise in cheesecakes and utterly Instagram-worthy beverages. Here’s why it is worth checking out, especially if you’re a fan of pillowy-soft, creamy cheesecakes.

If you’re looking for a full-fledged meal, The Cheese Lab probably wouldn’t be the best option for they serve only one edible item here—the Signature Cheesecake Slice (RM16.90). Having just one item on their menu raised our expectations by a notch but you’d be glad to know that despite high expectations, the cheesecake did not disappoint.

Served with a helping of decadent and fluffy cream cheese, the cheesecake was aptly moist and sweet. The dessert boasts a light texture and we absolutely adore how incredibly rich the cake tasted despite the texture.

But the lack of variety on their edible menu is surely made up for with that of the beverage menu. Boasting a wide array of drinks ranging from hot coffee to gorgeous, “Insta-worthy” ice-cold ombré drinks, you can definitely count of The Cheese Lab to quench your thirst.

We opted for their Milk, Raspberry and Butterfly Pea (RM13), which sees 3 different layers of colourful liquid. At the bottom of the cup is a raspberry jam, followed by fresh milk and finally, a blue-hued butterfly pea mixture.

The Cheese Lab
39 Jalan Austin Heights 8/5
Taman Mount Austin, 81100 Johor Bahru
Johor Bahru, Malaysia
Daily: 1pm – 11pm

Situated just a 25-minute drive away from Woodlands Checkpoint in the area of Taman Mount Austin, Urban Artisan Cafe is a dessert cafe that serves aesthetically-pleasing, colourful soft serves that will be a feast for both your stomach and your eyes.

If you’ve been dying to try AquaS, a popular dessert parlour originating from Sydney, but have never gotten the chance to, this cafe is a pretty darn good (and reasonably cheap) alternative to try. Boasting multiple outlets across Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Johor Bahru itself, Urban Artisan Cafe is best known for its gorgeous soft serve that tastes as good as it looks.

Here’s what you can expect in this gorgeous dessert cafe in Johor Bahru!

The cafe serves over 200 different ice cream flavours that are on rotation every week, and you can expect unique flavours such as Oceanic Sea Salt, Valrhona Chocolate, Summer Peach and Matcha & Roasty Hojicha.

Opt for the soft serve cone (RM12.90), which gives diners a choice of whether they prefer to have just a single flavour or the two mixed. We opted for an Oceanic Sea Salt X Valrhona Chocolate twist cone, which gives us the best of both worlds.

The former flavour is a blue-hued, whimsical dessert that boasts a pleasant salty flavour on top of a mildly sweet note that cuts through the saltiness at the end, while the latter is a rich chocolate treat. A rather unique soft serve flavour, their Oceanic Sea Salt flavour was the one that impressed us and reminded us of AquaS’ famous sea salt flavour.

Should you be feeling peckish, order up a serving of their Charcoal Belgian Waffle which comes with a choice of ice cream flavour (RM18.90).

Topped with an indulgent chocolate sauce and whipped cream, we chose to have our charcoal Belgian waffle with a helping of Oceanic Sea Salt soft serve. Crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside, there really isn’t much to nitpick about this dessert.

Urban Artisan Cafe
47, Jalan Austin Heights 8/5
Taman Mount Austin, 81100 Johor Bahru
Johor, Malaysia
Tue to Sun: 2pm – 10pm
(Closed on Mondays)

Offering diners a spacious, charming respite from the midday heat, humble cafe, Restoran Tastea is one that deserves a stopover when exploring the cafe-laden enclave of Taman Mount Austin. Their menu focuses heavily on Western dishes, leaning more towards Italian comfort food with their wide spectrum of pasta dishes from the humble linguine to risotto.

If you’re on the prowl for a decent cafe-style brunch, we highly recommend coming here. Their food is delicious, portion sizes generous and above all, much more worth paying for than a cafe back in Singapore.

Hankering after a basic yet satisfying egg-forward dish, we settled for the Omelette with Mushrooms (RM16.90) over its slightly more expensive counterpart, smoked salmon.

Enriched with butter (lots of it), the omelette delighted with its savoury, creamy appeal. The flavour was spot on, striking a good balance between salty and creamy, nicely contrasting with the garlicky mushrooms served over top.

Their drinks menu is quite possibly one of the most elaborate we’ve ever come across with a healthy selection of classic coffee styles and some pretty unusual offerings. Feeling an itch for something sugary, we chose the Popcorn Latte (RM14.90).

In this fancy mix, the humble latte is topped with a mound of whipped cream before caramel popcorn is speckled around and over the glass. Taste-wise there was nothing spectacular. It was what it was, latte, whipped cream and caramel popcorn, that besides looking pretty in photos, didn’t possess much gastronomic value.

Restoran Tastea
49, Jln Austin Height 8/5,
81100 Johor Bahru,
Johor, Malaysia
Tel: +60 7-665 1538
(Closed on Thursdays)
Mon to Wed: 12pm – 10pm
Fri to Sun: 12pm – 11pm

Situated in Pelangi, Johor Bahru is Ink N Water, a well-known café that has been around for the past few years. It takes just a 10-minute drive from the immigration checkpoint close to Johor Bahru City Square to get to Ink N Water and it is not uncommon to see Singaporeans amongst the locals over there.

This café whips up a wide range of dishes, ranging from pasta to pizza to meatballs and salads. Coffee lovers will also be pleased to hear that they have a myriad of caffeinated drinks, made with coffee beans sourced from both Ethiopia and Brazil.

This café’s furnishing is rustic themed, giving off a retro vibe that makes the café feel extra homely and familiar.

We opted for their Salted Egg Yolk Waffle (RM17.90) which came with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and generously drizzled with their homemade salted egg yolk sauce and Hawaiian coconut shavings.

The waffle had the right texture—neither overly crispy nor soggy—and it wasn’t overwhelmingly sweet as well. The homemade salted egg yolk sauce went surprisingly well with the waffles.

Made from a blend of apple pieces, hibiscus, cranberries, sultana raisins, rose-hip peel and raspberry pieces, the aromatic Fruit Basket Tea Depot (RM14) is a crowd-pleaser.

Ink N Water is definitely a conducive café fit for those who are café hopping or looking for a place to chill. 

Ink N Water
46, Jalan Pingai, Taman Pelangi, 80400 Johor Bahru
Johor, Malaysia
Mon, Wed – Sat: 1pm – 1am
Tue and Sun: 1pm – 9pm
Tel: +60 7-336 4766

Johor Bahru’s progressive cafe scene is seeing a large number of Singaporeans making plans to visit these concept cafes over the weekends since many are easily accessible by walking or public transport from the immigration checkpoint.

On our latest trip to Johor Bahru, we made our way to what is possibly our favourite cafe there thus far—Mok Mok Brunch & Bistro. Just a 15-minute drive from the checkpoint, the cafe is where you escape from the mayhem of city life for a refreshing change as it is decked out in greens and surrounded by glass walls for natural sunlight to filter in.

At Mok Mok Brunch & Bistro, guests can also look forward to fresh produce that are sourced from local farms and an exciting range of rice bowls and aesthetically pleasing desserts that are sure to impress even the most discerning foodies.

Its nature-inspired interior design seeks to provide a welcoming space for friends to gather over excellent food and coffee and it is not surprising to find many guests taking their OOTDs at the stylish and light-filled cafe.

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Go to the cafe with an empty stomach, for you have to try their Signature Bowls which features your choice of meat placed over a very special homemade rice recipe. We opted for the crowd favourite Gyutan (RM28) and for the uninitiated, that is the Japanese term for grilled beef tongue.

But do not be put off by the sound of it yet! This Japanese delicacy is certainly worth a try and what you get at Mok Mok Brunch & Bistro is slices of savoury beef tongue with spring onion and chopped chilli on a bed of signature rice and a drizzle of chilli sesame oil and shoyu. Every mouthful was extremely flavourful and we honestly cannot wait to visit them again to try some of their other rice bowls.

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When we were ready for dessert, the highly recommended Kumo Ultimo (RM22) caught our immediate attention. Comprising cream cheese shuffle pancakes that are paired with cookie crumbs, flavoured mousse, ice cream and your preferred topping, this sweet treat is nothing but pure indulgence.

Boasting a melt-in-your-mouth interior that was fluffy and bouncy, there was nothing to nitpick about this dessert at all.

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The cafe also serves a range of drinks, with some that has been created to look good for social media such as the Galactic Dream and Masala Chai Latte. Besides that, they also offer the usual coffee, tea and soda options too.

Mok Mok Brunch & Bistro
78, Jalan Pingai, Taman Pelangi
Johor Bahru, Malaysia
Tel: +60 18 270 6068
Daily: 11.30am – 11.30pm

Along the popular street of Jalan Dhoby, lies Flowers in the Window, a gorgeous garden-themed café by the folks behind Roost just a couple of units down on the same street. Jalan Dhoby is known to have some of Johor Bahru’s best cafés and the street is just a stone’s throw away from the border.

After clearing the immigration, you can easily walk over to the street and enjoy a huge range of popular restaurants and cafés. Flowers in the Window is hard to miss. Their gorgeous exterior is decorated with plants and so much greenery that you will feel like you are stepping into a secret garden café.

This stunning café occupies two levels. Level one features their main café area where the baristas do their magic with a few seated tables. Level two is the roof of the two-storey building and it features comfortable sofa seats in a spacious area.

This whimsical café is a sight to behold. Every corner of it is Insta-worthy and beautiful.

We waited around 20 minutes on a Saturday afternoon and was promptly seated on the first floor. During a second visit, we managed to snag a seat on the top floor sofa seats.

The first floor had an open kitchen and you can watch the baristas whip up your drink of choice while you marvel at the greenery within the café.

Flowers in the Window rotate their cake and dessert offerings every day. During our first visit, we went for one that stood out most to us–Earl Grey Cake (RM14). This grey cake was a sight to behold and it actually tasted even better, much to our surprise.

The buttercream on the outside was done just right, slightly sweet without overpowering the taste of the actual cake. The cake had a cake pop-like texture but the taste was just fantastic!

Flowers in the Window is definitely a place that you have to visit the next time you go for a day trip to Johor Bahru.

Flowers in the Window
9, Jalan Dhoby, Bandar Johor Bahru
80000 Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia
Tel: +60 7-222 7489
Wed to Mon: 10pm – 8pm
Closed: Tuesday

For more recommendations, read our Johor Bahru guides to discover the best places to go to.