Mont Kiara has plenty of bars and rooftops, but most of them lean into the loud expat-rooftop format. If you are looking for a quieter, more drink-focused room, a 14 to 17 minute drive west takes you to Dissolved Solids in Damansara Kim or Soluble Solids in SS2. Both sit firmly in the cocktail-bar category rather than the lounge-club category, and both have made the short trip from Mont Kiara a regular routine for many of our guests. Dissolved Solids is one of Tatler Asia Top 20 Bars 2025/26 (ranked #6 in 2025, #9 in 2026).

Mont Kiara, briefly

Mont Kiara is one of the most international neighbourhoods in the Klang Valley. Forty percent of the residential population is expatriate, with sizeable Japanese, Korean, mainland Chinese, and European communities, alongside a strong Malaysian middle and upper-middle bracket. The neighbourhood is dense with mid-rise and high-rise condominiums (1 Mont Kiara, Solaris, Plaza Mont Kiara, Garden Plaza, Sunway Mont Residences, Verve Suites, Kiara Designer Suites) clustered around a handful of commercial podiums. Walking distances inside the area are short, driving distances out of it can be long because of the LDP and Sprint chokepoints.

The food scene reflects the demographics. Japanese izakaya and ramen dominate Solaris and Plaza Mont Kiara, Korean barbecue and pojangmacha sit alongside, and a strong wave of Chinese dumpling, hotpot, and tea houses has opened in the last few years. Western brunch and bakery culture is heavy. The drinking culture is, by contrast, dominated by hotel rooftops, expat sports bars, and a few wine-focused rooms. Serious cocktail-led venues are still sparse inside the Mont Kiara boundary itself.

The evening rhythm is bimodal. The early evening (18:00 to 21:00) is family-and-dinner; restaurants are full, parking podiums are spinning. The later evening (22:00 onwards) thins out fast on weekdays, with a louder rooftop wave on Friday and Saturday. For guests who want a third-act drinks venue with a quieter room, the drive into PJ is what fills the gap. A typical Mont Kiara evening pattern that lands at our bars: ramen at Solaris around 19:30, drive over by 21:00, two or three cocktails, home by midnight.

Our two bars from Mont Kiara

Both bars sit in Petaling Jaya, west of Mont Kiara across the LDP. The drive is one of the simplest in the Klang Valley because the routing avoids the worst traffic spines.

  • To Dissolved Solids (Damansara Kim): 14 minutes off-peak. From Plaza Mont Kiara, exit Jalan Kiara south, cross into Sri Hartamas via Jalan Sri Hartamas 1, drop onto the LDP at the Damansara Heights interchange, head south one exit to Damansara Utama, then right at the first traffic light, left at the second, and you are on Jalan SS20/11. 17-19 minutes during Friday peak (17:30 to 19:30).
  • To Soluble Solids (SS2): 17 minutes off-peak. Same route as above, but stay on the LDP past Damansara Utama, exit at Jalan Universiti / Section 17, then thread south into the SS2 grid via Jalan SS2/63. 20-22 minutes during Friday peak.

By Grab: RM 18 to 25 to either bar off-peak. Surge to RM 28 to 40 on Friday and Saturday after 22:00 or in rain. The bigger Mont Kiara condos (1 Mont Kiara, Solaris, Verve) have an MPV-friendly drop-off; the bars do not, both are on small one-way commercial streets, so a Grab in is easier than a private car if you plan to drink.

Dissolved Solids opens earlier (15:00 most days, 14:00 on Fri-Sun), so an early-evening drink before dinner is feasible. The signatures for a Mont Kiara first visit are the Pandan Collins (gin, fresh pandan, lime, soda) and the Kopi Sour (whisky, kopi-O, gula melaka, lemon). Soluble Solids opens at 18:00, no printed list, every drink customised, the back bar full of house infusions. For a Mont Kiara guest who wants the bartender to design something around a single profile descriptor (light citrusy, herbal medium, bitter strong), Soluble Solids is the closer fit.

Signature drinks worth the drive

If you are spending the 14 minutes of driving, here are the drinks we would order on a first visit. All available at Dissolved Solids; most can be built bespoke at Soluble Solids.

  • Pandan Collins. Gin, fresh pandan infusion, calamansi, soda, slow build. The clearest gateway to local-ingredient cocktails. Highly refreshing in the post-LDP heat.
  • Gula Melaka Old Fashioned. Bourbon, palm-sugar reduction, orange bitters, big rock. The Old Fashioned reframed through Malaysian palm sugar; less harsh than a sugar-cube original, more aromatic.
  • Calamansi Highball. Whisky, calamansi cordial, soda, served long. The Highball template with a citrus that beats lemon in this climate. Good first round.
  • Kopi Sour. Whisky, kopi-O concentrate, gula melaka, lemon, egg white. Built for coffee drinkers; the closest thing to a dessert cocktail that still feels grown-up.
  • Scented Negroni. Gin, vermouth, Campari, finished with a torched pandan leaf and orange oil. The Negroni format adjusted for the tropical room temperature.
  • Tesseract. A four-stage clarified build, mezcal-anchored, layered acidity. The current signature on the Dissolved Solids printed list; recently featured in the bar-page treatment on the site.
  • Local Tropic. Rum, mangosteen, lime, ginger, soda. A long-format pour for two-hour sittings.
  • Jungle Bird. The 1978 KL Hilton classic (rum, Campari, pineapple, lime), done properly. Historical interest plus a genuinely good drink.

Drive times from Mont Kiara landmarks

To either bar, approximate off-peak minutes by car. Add 20 to 40 percent for Friday and Saturday peak.

  • 1 Mont Kiara mall: 14 min to Dissolved Solids, 17 min to Soluble Solids.
  • Plaza Mont Kiara: 14 min / 17 min.
  • Solaris Mont Kiara: 13 min / 16 min.
  • Verve Shops Mont Kiara: 14 min / 17 min.
  • Garden International School: 15 min / 18 min.
  • Mont Kiara International School: 16 min / 19 min.
  • Sri Hartamas (Plaza Damas, Hartamas Shopping Centre): 12 min / 15 min.
  • Desa Sri Hartamas: 12 min / 15 min.
  • Bukit Tunku (Kenny Hills): 16 min / 19 min.
  • Segambut MRT: 16 min / 19 min.

Parking

Both bars have free street parking after 18:00. Dissolved Solids in Damansara Kim: the Jalan SS20/11 strip has roadside bays right outside the bar, plus a covered municipal lot two blocks away on Jalan SS20/10 with a 3-minute walk. Weekend reality: Friday and Saturday after 20:00, the front-door bays fill, but the covered lot almost always has space. The Damansara Kim grid is residential, so meter parking is genuinely free after 18:00, no enforcement.

Soluble Solids in SS2: street parking on Jalan SS2/24 is free after 18:00 and on Sundays. A small public lot one block away on Jalan SS2/26 usually has space even at 21:00. Friday and Saturday after 20:00 are the tightest windows because of the SS2 dinner crowd; plan for a 5-minute walk from your parked spot. For Mont Kiara guests used to RM 5 to 8 per hour at Mont Kiara podium parking, both PJ outlets cost zero.

What to expect on a typical evening

Both rooms are intentionally small. Dissolved Solids seats 32 across the bar counter, two banquettes, and four 2-tops. Soluble Solids seats 28, with most of the action at the curved bar facing the infusion shelf. Neither is a club. Neither is a sports bar. Neither has a DJ.

The music sits below conversation level at both. Dissolved Solids leans into mid-century jazz, bossa nova, and slower Brazilian, with the occasional 1970s soul. Soluble Solids runs ambient electronic and instrumental hip-hop instrumentals at the lower end of audible. You can talk normally without leaning in. A first-date conversation, a second-meeting work catch-up, a four-friend reunion all work.

The crowd is mixed: PJ regulars, KL guests, expats from Mont Kiara and Bangsar, occasional visitors from Singapore and Hong Kong who heard from the Tatler listing. The dress code is open: smart casual to business casual is the default; nobody is checking shoes. Photography is welcome inside the room but please ask before pointing the lens at other guests. The bar staff are happy to walk you through any drink on the list or any bottle on the back bar, and there is no pressure to order fast. A 20-minute first cocktail while you read the menu is normal.

Hours and reservations

Dissolved Solids. Tuesday to Thursday 15:00 to 00:00. Friday and Saturday 14:00 to 01:00. Sunday 14:00 to 00:00. Closed Mondays. WhatsApp +60 11-4008 7607.

Soluble Solids. Wednesday to Sunday 18:00 to 01:00. Closed Monday and Tuesday. WhatsApp +60 11-1682 8651.

Walk-ins are always welcome. For weekend reservations or groups of six or more, a WhatsApp 24 hours ahead helps us set the room properly. We confirm within the hour during operating times.

Which one to pick

Pick Dissolved Solids (Damansara Kim) if you want a printed cocktail list, are coming early (the bar opens at 14:00 or 15:00), want food on the table, want to try coffee cocktails done well, or are reading about Tatler Asia Top 20 and want to see the room with the recognition.

Pick Soluble Solids (SS2) if you want a drink built specifically for you, are coming later (the bar opens at 18:00), prefer the smaller-and-quieter room, want to spend time talking to the bartender, or want to combine drinks with the SS2 hawker and dessert ecosystem.

For Hartamas residents specifically

If you live in Sri Hartamas, Plaza Damas, Desa Sri Hartamas, or Bukit Tunku, the drive to Dissolved Solids is 12 minutes. Faster than getting to most Mont Kiara rooftops in traffic. The Plaza Damas to Damansara Kim route via Jalan Hartamas and the LDP is the shortest line; on a Wednesday or Thursday it is genuinely a five-minute closer-than-it-feels trip. Many of our Hartamas regulars come twice a week.

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