vkeong loves good food, travel and photography!
Posts tagged Bukit Bintang
Engka Portobello Restaurant & Bar – Breakfast & Brunch @ Changkat Bukit Bintang, KL
Sep 3rd
It was a fine Sunday morning, nearing lunch time and we haven’t had anything to eat yet. We were sure to do some shopping at Pavilion and I remembered a nice cozy looking restaurant with many Westeners having their meals there.
So we headed to Engka Portobello and was pleasantly surprised that their brunch and breakfast sets were actually quite affordable. The sets are priced from RM11 onwards, some with coffee included.
Illy Coffee is served here. My cup of Cappuccino looked like it just experienced a small eruption lol.
This was the cheapest breakfast set offered in Engka Portobello, a Straight Up Set @ RM11 that consisted of bacon (mmm.. bacon), egg, chipolata’s (a type of French grilled sausage), baked beans, toasted bread and it was accompanied with a coffee.
Hidden from view on the other side of the plate was a butter, just for the sake of showing. I think that RM11 for a set like this with coffee included is quite cheap considering it’s Bukit Bintang area. Click here to continue reading >
Bermuda & Onion Western Cuisine @ Changkat Bukit Bintang, KL
Jul 20th
Clever business owners have taken up the pre-World War II houses along Changkat Bukit Bintang and turned them into a potpouri of international restaurants. Whatever international fare that you have in mind – French, Italian, Japanese, German, Indian, or Brazilian, it is most probably available here. No wonder foodies fall in love with this place instantly.
Not too long ago I got an invitation from Shalyn of Flam’s Inc to dine at one of their outlet at Bermuda & Onion along Changkat Bukit Bintang. Cute name for a restaurant, I kept wondering if the dining concept was related to the Bermuda pants or the Bermuda Triangle lol. Being a fine dining restaurant, B&O offers s wide menu of Western cuisine and featuring a lot of pork.
It soon became clear to me that B&O’s name was given by the former head chef, who got the inspiration from another restaurant of the same name in France. You will find the atmosphere here relaxed, funnily decorated with a couple of onions scattered around loosely – do keep an eye out for them.
Romain is the restaurant manager, a charming and friendly man helped with his team of ever attentive and polite team of waiters. Like usual, we would choose to sample one item from each section of the menu.
For soup, we had the Creamy Mushroom Soup @ RM16 made using a mixed of wild mushrooms and served with a garlic crouton. The thick and creamy consistency was a good thing but I found the wild mushroom’s taste was a little heavy. I really liked dipping the crouton into my soup, it was crunchy and helped to subdue the strong mushroom taste.
Skewer Combo Platter @ RM32 is a combination of Prawn & Parma Ham, Asparagus & Bacon & Scallops & Ham. Click here to continue reading >
Moussandra – Mediterranean & Tapas Restaurant @ KL Plaza, Bukit Bintang
Apr 9th
Moussandra is a Mediterranean restaurant located in the now quiet KL Plaza that serves authentic Greek, Spanish and Italian cuisine. And from what I have read in one of the articles displayed at the entrance, Moussandra is actually the Greek word for a type of wooden chest. Interesting.
So, a few weeks ago I had an invitation from the restaurant’s owner, Alphonse to Moussandra to have a meal there. By looking at their restaurant’s online menu, it was nothing short of excitement knowing that I will be trying many new dishes that I have neither seen nor heard before.
We actually struggled a little while ordering the food, because we really didn’t have any clue what to order. For Tapas (Spanish appetizers) alone, there are more than 30 of them available like Seafood Tapas, Meat Tapas and Vegetarian Tapas.
So, we took the waitress’ recommendation for all the Tapas, and for soup we chose Creamy Pumpkin Soup (SL’s latest favorite!) and Creamy Mushroom Soup. Sola de Calabaza – Creamy Pumpkin Soup @ RM15 had a pretty huge serving enough to be shared between two. Thick and flavorsome, it was impossible not to be liked.
Sola de Setas – Creamy Mushroom Soup @ RM15 was nice as well but we preferred the pumpkin soup a whole lot more.
At first I was thinking of just having some fruit juice but the waitress said that I should give their specialty drinks like Sangria (wine punch) or Virgin Mojito (a mint flavored cocktail) a try. I had the latter, which was lower in alcohol content because I am not a drinker lol.
Virgin Mojito is the drink in the middle, served with lime and mint. To give you a rough picture of how it tasted – Imagine drinking less sweetened 7UP or Sprite with a hint of lime and some mint flavor, minus the gas.
Can you ‘picture’ the taste? Refreshing right? That’s exactly how the drink felt like. But like any other cocktails, it was quite pricey.
The first Meat Tapas served was Albondigas St Climient – Lamb Meatballs in Brandy Sauce @ RM15. Albeit having a rather gamey taste, I thought the ping pong ball-sized meatballs were pretty good with a firm texture.
If you are not a hardcore lamb lover like me and cannot tolerate the lamb smell, my suggestion for you is not to order this.
Next Meat Tapas we had was Ternera Con Vino Tinto – Sauteed Beef Rib-eye in Red Wine Sauce @ RM19. The tender and juicy rib-eye was great to chew on, with its intense flavor released with each and every chew.
We also had a Vegetarian Tapas – Berenjas Picantes or translated to Pan-fried Eggplant with Chili & Tomato @ RM9. Although chili was one of the named ingredients, the spiciness was mild and shouldn’t be a problem for Malaysian taste buds.
From the Mezze (Mediterranean appetizer) menu, this is Hevos Cocidos Con Anchoas or Boiled Eggs with Pimiento & Anchovies @ RM9. We didn’t order for this but it was served to us directly from the kitchen by the chef personally.
To me, that signified a good level of confidence he had in the dish. And I am glad to say, the taste was great although very simple ingredients like boiled eggs, flavored mayonnaise, cherry pepper and anchovies were used. Very recommended.
Yaki-Yaki Japanese Barbeque Buffet Restaurant @ Jalan Bukit Bintang
Mar 29th
Update: (22nd Dec 2009) I have received comments saying that Yaki Yaki has been renovated and turned into another buffet restaurant called House Of Buffet. I got a gut feeling it’s the same owner.
Attention: Lots of complaints received about Yaki Yaki Japanese Buffet. Please remember to read the comments. According to many, the quality has went down hill and food are being replenished slowly. I think I was lucky to have a pleasant experience eating there when the promotion just started.
After witnessing the huge success Tenji Japanese Buffet has managed to achieve by offering 50% discount on all dining period, many other Japanese buffet restaurants are doing the same too. Xenri, Daidomon and now the newly opened Yaki-Yaki Japanese Barbeque Buffet Restaurant too.
These promotions or competition you might say, are definitely good news for Japanese buffet lovers. Anyway, yesterday was the day Earth Hour was celebrated and we happened to be at Bukit Bintang area wondering where to have dinner. We looked at Starhill’s Jogoya and it cost RM88++ per pax, pricey.. Then we suddenly remembered Yaki-Yaki next to Low Yat Plaza.
We decided to give it a try because it was quite cheap for a buffet @ RM48.75 nett per pax (including service charge and tax) We didn’t make any reservations and dined as walk-in guests.
After we got our table and paid the full amount, we were guided to a round table just next to the beverage area. Each table has its own captain in charge, and any orders for barbecue are to be made through him. To ensure the food is maintained at its freshest, Yaki-Yaki only serves the food (for barbecue only) when an order is received.
After making an initial order for some scallops, unagi, beef and Chicken with Wine Soup. We took a quick tour around the restaurant to see the available choices. Yaki-Yaki has Japanese (sushi, sashimi, tempura), Chinese (cooked seafood), Western, seafood, skewers (mushroom, satay, sausage) and dessert sections.
The first thing I had was of course some sashimi, raw oysters and an Unagi sushi – just to test the freshness. The sashimi was definitely fresh and very enjoyable, that alone was enough to make me a happy person lol.
Mussel with mayonnaise, sushi and steamed prawns with herbs. The prawns (freshwater type) at Yaki-Yaki are very fresh, another good news for me. Among all prawns in the buffet, I found this cooking style the nicest because the herbal taste wasn’t too strong and you can still taste the prawns’ sweet flesh.
Perfect half boiled egg the Japanese way, called Spring Water Egg.
I think Jogoya started it, and thanks to them the newer Japanese buffets serve these mini fresh coconuts. Very sweet and refreshing! Oh you don’t have to worry that they will run out, Yaki-Yaki replenished them very quickly and generously. No need to compete with the other diners for it lol (you know what I mean hehe)
