Bar/fly: Kuching

Partly because everything in nearby cafes and eating places is so cheap, the bungalow-styled Brooke is obliged to keep its prices down, too. Illustration / Rod Emmerson

Graham Reid settles in at a colonial landmark for a cold one on a hot day in Sarawak.

As befits a fine-looking establishment named for the first "White Rajah" of the region, the James Brooke Bistro and Cafe occupies a prime location in Kuching, the capital city of Sarawak.

Set back from the popular river walk on a well-groomed crop of lawn, with a view to the handsome new parliament building and the old White Rajahs' palace on the opposite shore where generations of British Brookes oversaw the region in the colonial era, the Brooke is a beacon for tourists and locals trying to escape the humidity or a sudden downpour.

On a hot day - and Kuching gets its share of 30C-plus here on the northwest coast of Borneo - three of the walls open wide and old school standing fans add a further, essential, cross breeze.

Located close to the main international hotels and across from the pocket-sized but interesting Chinese Museum, the Brooke is harder to miss than it is to find.

Of course, you do pay for this convenience and stylish comfort, not least by suffering an ambient Western-nonsense soundtrack featuring things like Kenny G's vacuous treatment of My Heart Will Go On ... and rather more Sting and low-range Eric Clapton than you might want to endure.

Sometimes the service at the Brooke - such as it is - can be extremely leisurely, not to say barely there. But, when you are restfully beering yourself while watching people outside melting or getting drenched on the pathway by the poo-brown but slow-mo river, you're probably in no hurry to go anywhere, anyway.

Partly because everything in nearby cafes and eating places is so cheap, the bungalow-styled Brooke is obliged to keep its prices down, too. So a large and cold Carlsberg or Tiger beer is a reasonable $3.00, although I did have "three-kind-duck" with rice and an iced tea at a Chinese place within staggering distance for less than the price of a slice of banana cake at the Brooke.

To be fair ... that downmarket place didn't have a tablecloth and flowers, or even a hygiene certificate, I suspect.

Even if everything is relative in Sarawak, a chicken laksa at the Brooke is a mere $3.50 (a bit ordinary though) and a steak dinner if you require one after days of noodles and such, less than $14.

You can see why some settle in for an hour or so during the day, slowly picking at the menu while occasionally wandering down to the river to watch overloaded sampans ferry locals across the river for less than 20c.

Every now and again a few cats wander through the Brooke - Kuching is known as Cat City and there's even a bizarre Cat Museum just 30 minutes north - and these lazy felines often seem in more of a hurry than the staff.

So, aside from its location near the Sarawak River and the easy ambience, you could say there's not a lot to recommend the illustriously named magnet that is the Brooke ... other than as a place to rest up and consider the view across the top of a welcome beer in the wet heat.

But some days in this part of the planet that's more than enough.

And if you're in attractive and interesting Kuching, the safe money says that at some stage you will end up in the Brooke.

Be warned though, although it boasts elegant decor and well-dressed staff, the James Brooke Bistro and Cafe is cash-only.

It's got that in common with my cheap three-kind-duck'n'tea place just down the road.

Graham Reid travelled to Malaysia with help from Tourism Malaysia and Malaysia Airlines.