SHAH ALAM, Nov. 7 -- What appears to be a

plate of pasta reveals an unexpected ingredient upon closer inspection: salted mackerel.

Ikan masin meets Italian pasta, anyone?

Unusual for some menus, maybe, but par for the course at Kopimeo x La Carne in Shah Alam, an all-day dining restaurant marrying the familiar comforts of a neighbourhood cafe and the more adventurous flavours of fusion cooking.

For owners Meor Azlan Bin Che Saffry and Ili Bazlina Razmi (Iena), running a restaurant together as a husband-and-wife team has meant learning to follow their instincts.

Yes, even when that means chimichurri steak and calzones share a table with salted egg yolk chicken and soft-shell crab creamy tom yum.

(Perhaps especially when it means that...