Former banker Emily Wee is serving up biryani, chai and a slower pace of life at LōuKót Café on Melaka’s Harmony Street. (Sheela Vijayan @ FMT Lifestyle)MELAKA: Pots of greenery spill onto Jalan Tukang Emas, almost hiding the entrance to a little eatery. Look closer and you will spot the sign for LōuKót Café, promising biryani and chai.

The café occupies a former Dutch home on Harmony Street, a stone’s throw from Jonker Street. Inside are wooden tables, a richly patterned cloth on one wall and little chalkboards covered in handwritten messages from customers.

A squawk made this writer look up, catching a flash of yellow and orange. Yaku, the resident sun conure, landed on a wooden perch hanging from the ceiling and peered down, looking as curious about her as she was about him.