Verona Trattoria @ Seksyen 17, PJ

Verona Trattoria is a cosy Italian restaurant located in the depths of Seksyen 17. We nearly could not find the restaurant as it was located in a secluded area and facing away from the road. It is best to make a reservation as the restaurant was quite full even on a week night.
     

       

              

Remembering the awesome French Onion Soup I had at Logenhaus in Taipan, I decided to order French Onion Soup here to try. Unfortunately it was quite a letdown due to the different cooking method. The soup had a thin consistency, almost like bouillon and the lone crouton floating on the soup was hard yet soggy.
               

Jamie Oliver rocks!

               

This is THE most awesome black pepper ever and it's thanks to Jamie Oliver that we got to try it. Seriously I'm just going to stock my kitchen with lots of tellicherry black pepper. I can't even begin to explain how good they are but Jamie's website describes them as having a rich and fruity flavour. The chef probably regretted putting it on our table when we requested for black pepper as we sprinkled liberal amounts onto all the dishes =P Be warned though that a little of this pepper really goes a long way...

               

Pizza Quattro Stagioni (RM 38.90)

                   
This thin crust pizza was topped with grilled capsicum, mushrooms, ham and pepperoni. The ingredients were definitely fresh and you can taste its superb quality. The picture does not do it justice as the place was quite dim.

                   

Lasagna (RM 29.90)

           
The Lasagna was very delicious with a rich and meaty sauce. The lasagna sheets tasted freshly made and were absolutely tender.
               

Calzone (RM 29.90)

             
Doesn't the Calzone look like a giraffe? =P I like how it looks like a giant curry puff and am always sad to see it deflate with the first cut =( There was a generous amount of chicken ham and black pepper pepperoni in the calzone. The sliced capsicum and button mushrooms all tasted extremely fresh even though they have been baked in the oven. The calzone itself was cheesy and the crimped parts as usual always tasted much better.
           

Goodies in the puff

           

Warm chocolate cake with vanilla ice-cream (RM 17.90)

       
Actually I'm not too sure if this is a warm chocolate cake or the molten lava cake as we were billed the molten lava cake but this warm chocolate cake did not yield any flowy bits. Irregardless, this cake was AWESOME!!! =D It was warm, and chocolatey and moist and definitely one of the best we've eaten!
              

Porky people rejoice! for Verona Trattoria is a non-halal joint =P We have been meaning to return to try the other items in the menu because looking at other bloggers' pictures of the food just makes me want to head there immediately, but the location really is quite out of the way. Do make a trip here and I promise you won't be disappointed (just don't order the French Onion soup =P).
   
         
PawPoints: 4 Paws
Pawket: Olive
                   
           
Verona Trattoria

8 Jalan 17/54
Petaling Jaya
Tel: 03 7960 2890
Wed - Mon: 12pm - 2.30pm, 6pm - 10pm

Kingyo Japanese Restaurant @ Life Centre, KL

Kingyo is the new Japanese restaurant in Menara Life Centre, taking over from Munakata. It is a relatively quiet restaurant, even more so on a week night. Here's our review of their Teppanyaki Course Menu.

       

          

Menu

           
The choices were quite good and we had a tough time deciding which to go for. In the end, we had Course B and Course E.

                  

Nice ceramics but not the best I've seen

                

Salad

           
The salad came in a chilled bowl which meant that the vegetables were extra crunchy and refreshing. The salad sauce was very creamy too.

              

Zensai

               
The appetizer consisted of a maki which was coated in very crunchy salmon roe but its taste was average, marinated jellyfish and blanched prawns that were sweet and crunchy. Seems like a lot of items at Kingyo are crunchy huh? On a side note, wonder if they reuse the decorative chrysanthemum flower? =P

               

Teppanyaki condiments

             

Butterfish and Oyster Teppanyaki

             
The butterfish was naturally sweet and its flesh firm whereas the oysters were just cooked and retained a hint of rawness. 

                   

Salmon sashimi

           
The sashimi were fresh and juicy and each slice was thick and chilled.

               

Clockwise from top: Salmon, Vegetables, Oyster and Squid Teppanyaki

           
The grilled salmon flesh was moist but the skin was very crispy. The oysters here were juicy and fortunately, the squid was not tough. I love the vegetables which had a crisp texture.
                 

Beef and Vegetables Teppanyaki

               
The grilled beef was very good - nicely done and not tough at all.

              

Tempura

             
Tempura here is good with a light and crispy batter.

               

Miso soup, rice and pickles

             
Love this combination - I should try just eating these 3 items for breakfast like normal Japanese =P There were 3 types of pickles which I enjoyed thoroughly. Unfortunately, the same can't be said of the miso soup which was salty by my standards (which means it may be very salty for some) and had no seaweed!! Only a few blobs of scallion and tofu were floating about in the soup.

                 

Fruits

              

Overall, I quite enjoyed the food at Kingyo. I liked that their teppanyaki items were all generously sauteed in butter and had the delicious fragrant melted butter aroma. The waitresses however don't seem to be very experienced.
           
         
PawPoints: 4 Paws
Pawket: Cheese
                    
Kingyo Japanese Restaurant

G-05 Ground Floor
Life Centre
Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03 2163 7888
Daily: 12pm - 2.30pm. 6pm - 10pm

Tedboy Bakery @ Bangsar, KL

A short review on my birthday cake from Tedboy, one of the many bakeries in Bangsar. Aside from cakes, they also have a variety of mini pastries and the usual breads.

Tiramisu

The Tiramisu had many light and airy cheesy layers, topped with liberal dusting of cocoa powder and blobs of gooey dark chocolate.  I'm definitely not an expert on Tiramisu as I usually find them average tasting considering I'm not one of those who have an extra stomach for desserts but I really liked this version from Tedboy a lot!

You can even order their cakes online. Check out their menu at their website below.

http://www.tedboy.com/home

PawPoints: 5 Paws

Tedboy Bakery

10 Jalan Telawi 4

Bangsar Baru

Tel: 03 2202 1312

Burgertory Gourmet Burger @ SS15, Subang Jaya

We love all things pork so you can imagine our delight on hearing about a pork burger joint! Burgertory is located in Subang Jaya and is only open for dinner. They serve both beef and pork burgers but who would order beef when there is pork? =P The place is crowded with students and working adults alike so be there early to grab a table! 

Awesome indeed!

Details of the restaurant renovation

Menu

The menu changes periodically so what may be available in this picture may not necessarily be the case when you visit. The beef and pork burger choices are a main stay but I noticed the variation in set meals offered.

Who's that at the counter?

Mascarpone Curry and Cheese Set

No comment on this as we did not try it but the curry sure does look good! This burger comes with a juicy pork patty, sunny side up egg, deep fried onion rings and mascarpone curry sauce.

Onion Rings, Chicken Nuggets and Fries Combo

I love the onion rings, nuggets and fries! One of the better ones out there plus the mustardy mayo is awesome too!

Burgertory Treasure

Thick juicy pork patty smothered in melted cheese with a sprinkling of crispy, deep fried pork lard? Right up my alley! This burger definitely does not disappoint and is rightly one of their mainstays and best sellers.

Awesome possum stuff

See how dense and moist the porky patty is?

The Pioneer

The Pioneer comes with tobikko, crab meat in pimento sauce and the signature pork patty. Nice combination of flavours that is unique to Burgertory.

Burgertory Treasure with Roast Potatoes

I spy with my eye a fallen blob of pork lard! =D The roast potatoes smell lovely and are infused with the flavour of lots of olive oil, garlic and herbs. They are not the super crispy type but are addictive nonetheless. 

It is actually quite a hassle to go to Burgertory as they are located at the ever busy SS15 and only open at night but we always love going back for their juicy pork patties and new inventions / additions to the menu. I also like the fact that their burger sets are relatively affordable yet maintain a consistent quality. Definitely highly recommended! 

PawPoints: 5 Paws
Pawket: Onion


Burgertory Gourmet Burger

8A Jalan SS15/4D
Subang Jaya
Tel: 03 5561 9991
Tue - Sun: 6pm - 11pm

Crazy Potato @ The Gardens, KL

Crazy Potato is a snack outlet at Midvalley selling...you guessed it...potatoes. They've got lots of varieties of chips to choose from to satisfy your carb cravings as well as signature London bites such as fish and chips, wedges and cheese and hash browns. 

      

Sour Cremio Crazy Potato Fries (RM 6.90)

         
The fries are served straight from the fryer and are smoking hot. The sour cream topping comes with a sprinkling of parsley flakes. It was good but nothing too special about it. I'm looking forward to trying other flavours such as pickle mayo, crazy meaty or crazy spicy.

             

Tempura Chicken Nuggets (RM 7.90)

         
I'm a huge fan of chicken nuggets and these do not disappoint. No doubt it'll probably taste like frozen nuggets but I like them all the same =D

                

Crazy Curl (RM 5.90)

         
Yet another favourite of mine - curly fries! These were good but not as curly as McD's or A&W's.
         
Crazy Potato is probably nothing special and rather gimmicky but if you're in the mood for grease and carbs, head here immediately. Writing this post makes me want to eat it again =P
         
           
PawPoints: 3 Paws
Pawket: Dough
             
              
Crazy Potato

LG-211 Lower Ground Floor
The Gardens
Tel: 03 2282 2241
Daily: 11am - 10pm

Maruhi Sakaba @ Taman Desa, KL

Maruhi Sakaba is a popular yakitori joint at Taman Desa. If you follow Google map, most likely you will not be able to find the restaurant as it is located a block away from the indicated location. The signboard is so small I wonder why they even bother putting it up, with Chinese characters only O.O Somehow by chance, I spotted the restaurant and managed to skip several rounds of circling the square. The tip is to look for Public Bank and Maruhi Sakaba is located a few doors down the street.

See the extremely small signboard? 

Yakitori bar with non-existent decor

Menu

The menu is relatively limited compared to Sumi-Ka at SS15 but there are more choices written on a board at the far end of the yakitori station. The board includes daily specials as well as recommendations of their main staples.

L-R: Spicy chilli sauce, salty bean paste sauce

The green chilli sauce on the left was extremely spicy, sort of like pan mee sauce but also very addictive. The one on the right was slightly too salty for me and tasted like Chinese bean paste.

Maruhi Sour (RM 45)

Yep, you read right. It costs RM 45 for this big kettle of Maruhi Sour which apparently is some sort of alcoholic drink. It is very mild though and as its name suggests, a little sour =P

A shot of Maruhi Sour =P

Pickled Cucumber (RM 5)

Crunchy and slightly sourish, the pickled cucumber slices help to cool down the body after digesting meat that came straight off the grill.

Edamame (RM 3)

Not a bad portion for RM 3.

Pork Liver (RM 4)

When the pork liver was first delivered to our table, it was still kind of raw so we sent it back with instructions for it to be fully cooked. When it returned, it was extremely well done which meant it was quite hard and chewy. Despite that, it still tasted nice if you are a regular pork liver eater.

Pork Tongue (RM 4)

Many of our friends did not want to try the pork tongue but those who tried it agreed that it actually tasted really good! Chewy but with meaty flavour, I thought it was one of the best skewers we had that night. Will definitely order this when I return.

Pork Belly (RM 4)

The pork belly was awesome! Definitely the star of the show, it was crispy and flavourful with the salt marinade. RM 4 for a stick really is not too bad at all.

Chicken Thigh (RM 4)

The chicken thigh was moist but its flavour not too outstanding.

Chicken Skin (RM 4)

Chicken skin was quite crispy and well flavoured with salt.

Maruhi Don (RM 15)

A home style version of oyakodon, this minced meat rice bowl with egg is extremely comforting. The bowl is large enough to be shared by two if you're ordering yakitori as well and they are generous with the amount of minced pork given.

Tamagodon (RM 5)

Can't remember the name of this dish but it's just a simple bowl of rice topped with an awesome fried egg. So simple and so good. My friend had this with pork belly skewers d^_^b

Yakibuta Don (RM 15)

The Yakibuta Don came with 2 strips of grilled pork belly, grilled okra and grilled eggplant, topped with yakitori sauce, scallions and toasted sesame seeds. Every ingredient was really good, even the vegetables. It is a good choice to order if you are unsure of what to eat ^_^

All rice bowls come with a relatively large bowl of light miso soup. There is not much miso taste, hence not very salty, but it is very good in alleviating the oiliness and heatiness of yakitori. The soup contains lots of seaweed and scallions which I really like.

We also had grilled intestines which were super chewy and sort of like soft bone. Grilled with salt, there was not much taste of intestine. Another item was enoki mushrooms wrapped with bacon which were good too.

Overall, every item we had at Maruhi Sakaba was awesome and I can't wait to return. Do note that you will not be able to escape being blasted with the smell and fumes of grilled meat =)


PawPoints: 4 Paws
Pawket: Tomato


Maruhi Sakaba

6A, Faber Plaza
Jalan Desa Jaya
Taman Desa
Tue - Sun: 6pm - 10.30pm