SS2 is one of the older commercial blocks in Petaling Jaya. Famous for its night-market food, its dim sum shops, its dessert spots, and a tight cluster of small, owner-operated F&B rooms that have quietly turned the area into one of the better drink districts in the Klang Valley. Soluble Solids sits on Jalan SS2/24, on the second floor of a heritage shoplot, around the corner from the SS2 wet market. Sister bar Dissolved Solids in Damansara Kim is one of Tatler Asia Top 20 Bars 2025/26 (ranked #6 in 2025, #9 in 2026), and Soluble Solids carries the same bartending team and same house-infusion programme into the SS2 room.

SS2, the neighbourhood

SS2 is the original PJ kampung-style commercial grid, laid out in the 1970s as a residential township with a tight commercial core. The streets are short, mostly one-way, and almost all the buildings are two-storey shoplots with retail or F&B on the ground floor and offices or residences upstairs. SS2 is the kind of neighbourhood where most lots have been the same business for twenty-plus years, and where the daytime crowd (morning kopitiams, dim sum, wet market) overlaps with a long lunch window, an extended dinner span, and a late-night supper culture.

The food scene is one of the densest in the Klang Valley. Chow Yang chicken rice on Jalan SS2/30 has been the queue-anchor since the 1980s. The SS2 wet market on Jalan SS2/64 is a working market by 06:00, with the surrounding hawker centre running until 14:00. ABC SS2 (the ais-batu-campur dessert spot) draws a constant queue from 18:00 onwards. Murni SS2 runs until 04:00 for the post-bar supper crowd. The night market sets up at the main square on Monday evenings. Add to that the dim sum cluster (Kong Sai, One Noodle, Yi Pin), the bak kut teh on Jalan SS2/64, the Western breakfasts at Plan B and the bakery rotation, and you have an evening eating district that the cocktail room sits inside.

The drinking culture in SS2 is recent. The neighbourhood was overwhelmingly food-only into the early 2010s, with cocktail and craft-beer venues beginning to open from roughly 2015 onwards. By 2026 there is a small cluster of independent cocktail and listening rooms in walking distance of each other, mostly upstairs, mostly owner-operated, mostly under 40-seat. The evening rhythm runs late: SS2 is one of the few PJ neighbourhoods where 22:00 is the start of the second wave, not the end of the first. Conversation-led, unhurried, not loud. The crowd is mixed: PJ regulars, KL visitors, a steady trickle of expats from Mont Kiara and Bangsar, and a noticeable food-tourist contingent on weekends.

Where exactly is Soluble Solids

Soluble Solids · 50-1 Jalan SS2/24, 47300 Petaling Jaya, Selangor. Second floor. The street is one-way; if you are coming from the SS2 main square (where the Monday night market sets up), you will see us on your left as the road bends. Look for the lace curtain in the upstairs window. Open in Google Maps →

Driving to Soluble Solids from around SS2

SS2 sits at the geographic centre of the PJ corridor, so drive times in are short from almost everywhere west of the LDP. From Section 14: 5 minutes via Jalan Universiti. From Section 17: 6 minutes via Jalan SS2/63. From Damansara Kim (our sister bar): 8 minutes via Jalan SS21 and Jalan SS2/55. From TTDI: 10 minutes via the LDP exit at Jalan Universiti. From Bandar Utama / 1Utama: 15 minutes. From Mont Kiara: 17 minutes. From Bangsar: 18 minutes. From KLCC: 25 minutes off-peak. Add 20 to 40 percent for Friday and Saturday peak.

Signature drinks worth ordering

The Soluble Solids list is built bespoke, but the bartender will steer you toward eight house signatures if you ask for a starting point. All are built from the back-bar infusion shelf:

  • Pandan Collins. Gin, fresh pandan infusion, calamansi, soda, slow build. The clearest entry point to local-ingredient cocktails. Highly refreshing.
  • Gula Melaka Old Fashioned. Bourbon, palm-sugar reduction, orange bitters, big rock. The Old Fashioned template reframed through Malaysian palm sugar.
  • Calamansi Highball. Whisky, calamansi cordial, soda, served long. The Highball with the local citrus that beats lemon in this climate.
  • Kopi Sour. Whisky, kopi-O concentrate, gula melaka, lemon, egg white. Built for SS2 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 adjusted for the tropical room temperature.
  • Tesseract. A four-stage clarified build, mezcal-anchored, layered acidity. A recently introduced signature, also available at the Damansara Kim sister room.
  • Local Tropic. Rum, mangosteen, lime, ginger, soda. Long-format, two-hour-sitting pour.
  • Jungle Bird. The 1978 KL Hilton classic (rum, Campari, pineapple, lime), done properly. Historical interest plus a genuinely good drink.

How customising actually works

The bartender will ask three quick questions:

  • Strength: light (spritz-territory), medium (classic), strong (spirit-forward).
  • Base spirit: gin, rum, whisky, vodka, tequila, mezcal, brandy, or "surprise me".
  • Profile: citrusy, sweet, bitter, herbal, smoky, floral, spicy, tropical, creamy, nutty.

From there, the build comes off the infusion shelf, house-infused spirits, syrups, tinctures, bitters. Each drink takes three to five minutes. Most guests order two to three over an evening.

Want to design the drink before you arrive? Use our drink builder on the website, then WhatsApp the result to the bar. We will have it ready as you sit down.

Distance from SS2 landmarks (and beyond)

  • SS2 main square / Monday night market: 2-minute walk.
  • SS2 wet market (Jalan SS2/64): 3-minute walk.
  • Chow Yang chicken rice: 4-minute walk.
  • ABC SS2: 3-minute walk.
  • Murni SS2: 5-minute walk.
  • Section 14 PJ (Jaya 33, MBPJ): 5 minutes by car.
  • Section 17 PJ: 6 minutes.
  • Damansara Kim (sister bar Dissolved Solids): 8 minutes.
  • TTDI (Plaza Damas, TTDI Market): 10 minutes.
  • Bandar Utama / 1Utama: 15 minutes.
  • Bangsar (Telawi, Lucky Garden): 18 minutes.
  • KLCC: 25 minutes off-peak.

Parking

Street parking on Jalan SS2/24 is free after 18:00 and on Sundays. A small public parking lot one block away (Jalan SS2/26) usually has space even at 21:00. The Aeon Big SS2 parking podium is a 6-minute walk and free after 18:00 on weekdays. 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.

If you are dropping in by Grab and planning to drink, fare from common starting points runs RM 6 to 12 from Damansara Kim, RM 8 to 14 from TTDI, RM 16 to 25 from Mont Kiara or Bangsar, RM 22 to 32 from KLCC. Surge to 1.5 to 2x on Friday and Saturday after 22:00.

What to expect on a typical evening

28 seats. Lace curtains in the windows. Vintage glassware in cabinets. The infusion shelf behind the bar is the operational heart: 40 to 60 bottles at any given week, rotating with seasonal ingredients. The bar counter takes 14 guests directly; the rest is on small two-tops and a single banquette. No DJ. No live music. Ambient electronic and instrumental hip-hop instrumentals at the lower end of audible.

The music sits well under conversation level. You can talk normally. A first date, a long catch-up, a four-friend reunion, a solo bartender chat, all work in this room. The crowd is mixed: PJ regulars, KL guests crossing the LDP, expats from Mont Kiara and Bangsar, and the occasional food-tourist contingent who finished dinner in SS2 and asked their server where to drink. The dress code is open: smart casual to business casual is the default; nobody is checking shoes.

Photography inside the room is welcome; please ask before pointing the lens at other guests. The bartenders are happy to talk through any drink, any bottle, any infusion. The customising conversation typically takes one to two minutes; the drink itself takes three to five. Most guests order two to three drinks across a two-hour visit, sometimes a slow fourth. The first drink can be ordered the moment you sit down; we will pour while you decide on the next.

Hours and reservations

Wednesday to Sunday, 18:00 to 01:00. Monday and Tuesday closed. Last cocktail order at 00:30. Walk-ins are welcome. Reservations help us seat you faster, especially after 20:00 on Friday and Saturday. WhatsApp +60 11-1682 8651 or use the form at dissolvedsolids.co/#reserve.

For groups of six or more: please book at least 24 hours ahead. We can also do small private events for full or partial buyout, WhatsApp to discuss dates and minimum spend.

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