Estilo Spanish Tapas Bar and Charcoal Grill @ Publika, KL

Happy Chinese New Year!!! What better way to start off the lunar new year than with a post of one of my favourite restaurants! =D I'm a big fan of Spanish food and when I saw Estilo at Publika, I told myself I had to try it! It's located outside Publika, near Fat Boy's Burger Bar and I love its quirky decor especially its numerous hand painted ceramic plates.

Love their artwork

Assortment of cute plates

My favourite of the lot =)

Complimentary bread

They serve thick toasted bread slices for dipping into their signature creamy, garlicky, buttery aioli. Can't get enough of their bread =P

Spanish Tortilla (RM 9)

The thick omelette layered with potatoes and onions was all right but slightly too starchy even for a potato lover like me.

Patatas Bravas (RM 12)

Deep fried potatoes are absolutely the best! These have fluffy insides and went well with the Turkey Bacon Aioli which came with a dab of spicy sauce.

Chorizo (RM 18)

The paprika chorizos were really flavourful and confit potatoes were absolutely addictive as it's bite sized and slightly crispy on the outside yet mushy on the inside.

Calamares Fritos (RM 16)

These deep fried calamari were extremely crispy and done just right. Seems like they love aioli here, don't they?

Champinones (RM 14)

The sauteed mushrooms were awesome! The creamy sauce with a splash of wine was extremely good and went really well with bread.

Pinchos Morunos (RM 20)

These chargrilled chicken skewers were extremely juicy and tender. The orangey sauce - probably another variation of aioli - was really good too.

Paella Estilo - Large (RM 102)

Estillo's signature paella looks awesome and you can literally taste the rich stock coating the rice grains. They were very generous with the amount of chicken, chorizos and green beans which tasted nothing less than wonderful. The garlic and chilli infused olive oil also added another layer of taste on the paella, somewhat like what bird's eye chillies in soy sauce is to noodles.

Paella Mariscos (RM 58)

The Paella Mariscos has plenty of fresh mussels, fish, squid, clams and prawns. Similar to Paella Estilos, the rice is extremely flavourful. The single slice of lemon however did not seem sufficient for the entire pan.

Chorizo and Pineapple Paella Pan Pizza (RM 18)

I ordered this out of curiosity as I thought it was a Paella PanPizza. Turns out it's a PaellaPan (Normal) Pizza. Its base was the hard yet crispy type and really good. Although pineapples were not evident, its juices definitely seeped into the tomato base and lent it a nice sweet flavour.

I absolutely love the food at Estilo and can't wait to return for more as I only had nibbles of everything =( Surprisingly, it does not serve pork but everything tasted awesome! =D



PawPoints: 5 Paws
Pawket: Tomato


Estilo Spanish Tapas Bar and Charcoal Grill

No. 34, Level G2
Block C5, Publika Solaris Dutamas
Tel: 03 6203 9883
Daily: 11.30am - 11.30pm

The Red Beanbag @ Publika, Solaris Dutamas

What a cute name! Seriously, all the cafes popping up like mushrooms all over the city have some catchy name that is totally unexpected. The Red Beanbag is located at the hipster Publika. It was quite difficult to locate the cafe and even when we asked the security guards and concierge, none of them knew where it was. Of course, it would have been easier if we had the address with us but since it's at a relatively small mall, we thought how hard would it be to search for it right? Anyway, The Red Beanbag is located on the 1st floor and is quite easy to spot once you're near it.

       

Quirky

   
For some reason, I keep thinking of it as Bag of Red Beans...

        

Menu Part 1

   
The menu is relatively simple with fun names for the offered fare. There isn't much choice which can be a good thing if you're the indecisive sort, or a bad thing if you don't like anything on the menu.

      

Menu Part 2

        

Trouty Mouth (RM 18)

     
Two sourdough bread slices piled with scrambled eggs and smoked salmon with capers may not look like much but coupled with the thick cut fries and side salad, the portion is just right. No comment on the taste as I did not try it but I must say the smoked salmon looked...really thin and not substantial at all. The fries must have been really good though as one friend couldn't stop eating it =)

        

My Crustacean Cousin (RM 28.90)

     
I was captivated by the words "tiger prawns", "scallops" and "pasta" all in one sentence but when it came, I was utterly disappointed. It is hard to tell from the picture but in reality, the pasta was just one tiny dollop sitting on a huge plate =( I finished the freshly made tagliolini in less than 10 mouthfuls =( The taste itself was quite yummy with juices from the seared scallops and mini-clams adding much flavour to the angel hair-like pasta. The seafood was very fresh and plump.

      

Fowl Luck (RM 25.90)

     
The roasted chicken thigh was really good with moist, tender flesh and a crisp, well-flavoured skin. Paired with mushroom gravy over herbed potatoes, mushrooms slices and olives as well as a sweet strawberry sauce, this is one yummy dish.

     

Beef Me Up Scotty (RM 19.90)

     
Beef Me Up Scotty is made up of grilled beef fillet, caramelised onions, rocket and olive oil on toasted ciabatta. No comment on this as I did not try it.

      

Homemade Tiramisu (RM 13)

   
The Tiramisu was average with slightly dry layers of cake.

     

Chocolate Banana (RM 13)

   
The Chocolate Banana Cake was really good with creamy chocolate cake and super sweet melty bananas.

     

Molten Chocolate Lava Cake (RM 15)

     
The Molten Chocolate Lava Cake was extremely yummy with a warm and chocolatey, melty centre and cold vanilla ice-cream.

Overall, the Red Beanbag is truly a nice place to hang out with friends with awesome desserts and the trendy menu. Prices are average for some items and steep for others. Portions here are relatively smaller though.
   

   
PawPoints: 3 Paws
Pawket: Tomato

The Red Beanbag
A4-1-08 Solaris Dutamas
Tel: 03 6211 5116
Tue - Fri: 10am - 10pm
Sat - Sun: 9.30am - 10pm

Comida @ Solaris Dutamas, KL

Having not read any reviews prior to dining at Comida, I thought it was a posh burger place like The Daily Grind. Needless to say, I was quite disappointed when I reached the restaurant.

Comida Burger (RM 24.90)

The Comida Burger consists of a 200 g beef patty on a bed of lettuce, topped with sauteed mushrooms and cheese. It's a big whopping burger and we had trouble finishing everything.

Bacon Burger (RM 23.50)

The Bacon Burger sits on a bed of pickles and is slathered in tomato sauce. Two bacon rashers are given.

Burgers here is fuss-free and portion is a little bigger than at other places. The thick-cut fries were average - nice but not exceptional. As you can probably tell, my lack of adjectives and gushing says it all =.= I doubt I'd return as I can think of many other places I'd rather eat at at this price.

PawPoints: 2 Paws
Pawket: Tomato

Comida
D2-G3-1, Solaris Dutamas
1 Jalan Dutamas 1
Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03 6211 2662
Mon - Sat: 11am - 12am

Rakuzen @ Desa ParkCity, Kepong

This restaurant has been reviewed so many times that I don't feel like reviewing it but I just have to highlight my favourite set from Rakuzen :D
    

Sakura Chirashi Don Set (RM 38)

Assorted sashimi scattered over a bed of vinegared rice - my absolute favourite! ^_^ Love the pickles!

 

Close-up of the Sakura Chirashi Don

  Look at the thick juicy cuts of sashimi! The bento box is truly overloaded with delicious goodies ^_^

Silky smooth Chawan Mushi

    

Nabe Udon + Salmon Don Set (RM 38)

JS's value-for-money set - Nabe Udon and Salmon Don. The Nabe Udon was a big portion with lots of ingredients. The salmon slices in the Salmon Don were quite thin unlike the thick juicy cuts provided in the Sakura Chirashi Don.
    

Nabe Udon

    

Salmon Don

I guess I don't have to go through the taste of each dish as most of us are already familiar with Rakuzen. I still vote for it as being the best Japanese restaurant together with Sushi Zanmai and Pasta Zanmai under the Super Dining and Super Sushi Group as all three provide good quality and delicious Japanese meals at affordable prices.
   

PawPoints: 5 Paws
Pawket: Olive

http://www.superdining.com.my/

Rakuzen
Desa ParkCity
Subang Jaya
Empire Shopping Gallery
Sunway Pyramid
Plaza Damas
GTower

Dubrovnik Restaurant KL @ Solaris Mont Kiara

After hearing so much about Dubrovnik, we decided to head there for a bout of Croatian cuisine. It's very easy to find this place as the restaurant is facing the main inner road but the address will have you looking high and low for Block J =.=
  

Grand signage

 

Giant Croatian flag

  
A giant Croatian flag hanging on the 1st floor balcony welcomes you as soon as you step over the restaurant threshold.
  

Interior

Table decor

Complimentary starter

  
We were served some complimentary homemade bread and Ajvar which is some sort of sourish Croatian salsa. The warm bread which was cut into strips was a bit doughy and chewy. The salsa is not the typical sort found in Mexican restaurants as it was a little sour and in a paste form rather than the usual cubed tomatoes. JS enjoyed it but I didn't -_-"
  

Cevapi & Djuvedj (RM 36)

 
We had an order of Cevapi (minced lamb and beef sausages) and Djuvedj (special vegetable Croatian rice) with a side of salad and Ajvar. The seared sausages were very compact and even though there were only 6 of them, it filled us up very quickly. They were very fragrant, possibly had some spices and were still moist and juicy.
 

The fluffy Djuvedj tasted like it was boiled in some kind of vegetable stock and went very well with the cubed onions and carrots mixed into the rice. The Ajvar is meant to contrast the taste of the sausages.
 

Spaghetti Alla Buzara (RM 34)

  
After reading much reviews about this exceptionally good pasta, we decided to order it as we wanted to try more stuff (Lamb Peka is supposedly extremely good and was available the day we were there but it was a platter for 2).
  

The olive oil and white wine sauce pasta was nice but fell short of our expectations as it was similar to the typical Italian fare and didn't taste "Croatian" enough =P I love that lots of parsley was mixed into the pasta though =) The prawns were fresh and yummy but the downside was that they were not shelled >.<
  

Overall, Restaurant Dubrovnik is a fine place to go to for special occasions as the waiters and waitresses are well trained and very attentive and the ambience is quite romantic. As JS said, we had waiter of the month at our table =P

PawPoints: 4 Paws

http://www.dubrovnikrestaurantkl.com/

Dubrovnik Restaurant KL

J-0G-14, Solaris Mont Kiara

No. 2, Jln Solaris

Mont Kiara

Tel: 03 6203 6780

Tue - Sun: 11.30am - 11pm