Publika at Solaris Dutamas
It had been raining all afternoon. We initially planned to take the boys out to the park in the afternoon but the thunderstorm changed our mind. We then drive to Plaza Damas to let the boy loose in the indoor gym, but that too was closed. After a quick snack, we drove across the road to Publika as we had been curious about the place for a number of months. And it was a revelation.
The place was much bigger than we initially thought, even with not all the shops were opened. The anchor tenant, Ben's Independent Grocers - or BIG - more than made up for that. The place was a groceries shopper heaven! Upmarket - slightly less than than Jason's at Bangsar Shopping Center, but bigger size-wise. But that was just half of the story.
The place was spacious and parking was plentiful - although bear in mind that KL was quiet today with the city dwellers still making their way back from kampung after Raya. We explored some of the shops, but what struck me was the emphasis on space. The corridors were wide, airy and full of natural sunlight from the clear ceilings. There were also some artwork - mainly designed from garbage littering the walkways, with seating area tucked away at regular intervals. It was easily 200m from one end to the next, and there we also shops in the walkway outside. It would take one whole day to really explore the place.
The whole Solaris Dutamas complex was not just Publika - this was the main shopping mall. There were office buildings parallel to the mall, with roads linking the buildings. There were plenty of restaurants and offices around there, which I was sure had an exclusive ring to it. Where is your office? Solaris Dutamas. Got class maaan!
After a couple of hours, we decided to have a quick drink, then off to groceries shopping at BIG. It practically had everything ...... And that would require a separate entry .....