Favola @ Le Meredian, KL

To celebrate Barry's birthday, 

I've arranged for a dinner at Favola, Le Meredian. 

It is an Italian Restaurant with creative renaissance era setting,

the environment there is just purrrfect! 

With my advance booking and request, they placed us in a

cozy rounded sofa seating at the back for a more peaceful dinner..

... and to take more photos without embarrassment! *now call me genius!*

They welcome us with breads that looked really hard,

but oh boy, it was soft and warm inside!

Served with three dips, we were pretty stuffed even before

we started with our appetizer!

Barry particularly like the bread stick!

Zuppa di Funghi Calabrese

Assorted mushrooms cooked in milk with garlic rustic bread and Swiss cheese

The mushroom soup is thick and with small chunks of mushrooms.
It was really good. The rustic bread is quite unusual as mushroom soup is
usually paired with garlic bread. But it was a not-bad combination
and we truly enjoyed our appetizer.

Being a mushroom soup lover, I feel that Favola's version
is compatible with ones served at Dome or even Levain. Yuhmmmm....

Seared Jumbo Sea Scallop with Mushroom and Truffle

These scallop... yuhmmmm... big and juicy!

Seared to perfection with my favourite mushroom, 

with bits of truffles on top, it's a dish that make us begging for more.

The mushroom may be a little salty by itself,

but to eat it with the scallop, the taste really compliments each other.

These jumbo scallops reminds me of the huge scallops

Kayvin ordered all the way from Japan!

Check this out!

Beef lasagna

Traditional beef Bolognese with chunky wagyu beef cheeklayered 

with fresh pasta, cheese crust and truffle oil.

Unlike the normal lasagna with thick layer of pasta

in between small tiny chunks of minced beef, the lasagna served

in Favola is mind blowing! (wow.. obvious exaggeration) 

But this dish is truly amazing - I love how the beef balognese taste,

so rich in taste of tomato and herbs. Baked with thin layer of pasta 

in between and topped with cheese crust. 

How could one resist this dish in Favola?!!

2 scoops of Italian gelato

Gelato! (reminds me of the minions)

Illy inspiredTiramisu

Layers of soft sponge soaked in freshly brewed Illy coffee, 

panna cotta, mascarpone foam and topped with cookie croutons 

and the Cassata made with rich Häagen Dazs Vanilla, 

Strawberry and Pistachio ice-cream.

Barry's birthday cake comes in a form of Favola's signature dessert, the tiramisu. 

After a hearty meal, and I'm glad the birthday boy enjoyed it,
we both stroll along the pool for more photos!

Happy Birthday again old man!

We've known each other for almost 9 years now, I guess?

It has been very comforting knowing that you'll always be around

when I rise, when I fall, and mostly... when I'm hungry.

Every year I would wish you the same, THE BEST in everything you do,

but this year I'd like to emphasize that you have THE BEST OF HEALTH.

Coz that's the most valuable treasure one could possess.

May you have a blessed year ahead!

Address: Le Meridien Kuala Lumpur, 2 Jalan Stesen Sentral, Kuala Lumpur Sentral, 

50470 Kuala Lumpur, Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Phone:+60 3-2263 7888

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Brew & Bread @ Kota Kemuning

Ventured into a new place that is popular among the coffee enthusiasts - like Chriz!

She advertised not only the coffee there, but claimed that

Brew & Bread serves one of the best Egg Benedict ever!

We went to witness ourselves how good that place is,

right after climbing up 272 stairs at Batu Caves.

(photos up soon from Chriz DSLR and my Canon compact)



Brew & Bread photo taken online



It took us two hours from Batu Caves to Kota Kemuning due to bad jam caused by overturned bus.

Kan cheong thinking "are we gonna make it for the breakfast menu???!!!"

Arrived at noon.

So relieved when the waitress said "Yes we still serve breakfast...."

FYI, it's a "All Day Brunch",

so yes, you can sleep in,

and still have breakfast / brunch here anytime of the day...

We were greeted by the smell of fresh coffee and breads when we walked in,
I'm loving the place already just by the smell of it.

Not to mention the comfy, cozy, cooling ambience.

------------------------------

Since we are at Brew & Bread, we need to get something that are brewed, isn't it?

Chriz as usual with her Caramel Latte,

Delvise had Mocha and

Vince had Ice Blended Rocky Road.

They all said that they enjoyed their drinks.

When I was thinking about coffee or non-coffee,

something caught my eye - ANGRY BIRD!

So I asked the waitress - what's this Angry Bird thingy?!

It's a Hot Choco apparently.

But with my child-like excitement seeing Angry Bird on a cup of coffee,

she said I could order anything - and she'll make me an Angry Bird on it!

Voilaaaa!!!

Wanted to get a Chilled-Mint Mocha but it's a
cold beverage - not Angry Bird friendly.

I need something piping hot to make that bird angry!

SWT.

Hot choco then.

From the look to the taste, I enjoyed every sip of it.

The hot choco is thick and filling - and not too sweet.

This Angry Bird ain't that angry afterall. Tee-hee!

Brew & Bread hot choco with Angry Bird coffee art!

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As per Chriz recommendation, we ordered the Eggs Benedict 

which comprises of the must-have-poached eggs, ham,

topped with hollandaise sauce which is the emulsion of egg yolk and liquid butter,

all on top of a soft but crispy ciabatta,

and garnished with sides of fruits, roma tomatoes and potato wedges cubes.

I like to see runny yolks when I break poached eggs... slurp slurpppyy!

The toasted ciabatta goes so well with the eggs and ham - simple, very traditional, I love it!

Brew & Bread eggs benedict

I love eggs... and mushrooomsss.. especially wild mushrooms!

So when I see the Mush Eggs in the menu,

(omelet wrapped with wild mushrooms in cream sauce),

I just gotta have it!

Prolly I have higher expectation in this dish that I felt fairly disappointed,

there wasn't many mushroom to be found in that piece big of omelet.

But there are small bits of mushroom found the sauce, which made the sauce thick and flavorful.

Not bad - but I wish there's more mushroom since it's called the Mush Eggs! :)

Brew & Bread mush egg (wild mushroom omelette)

Vince ordered French Toast with Blueberry Jam

which is pretty normal. I would expect the bread to taste more eggy,

and maybe with some brown sugar to sweeten it a lil bit.

Brew & Bread french toast with blueberry jam

The Chicken Roulade on the other hand was surprisingly tasty!

It is chicken thigh rolled with stuffing, coated with black and white sesame,

brown sauce, pumpkin mash, olive oil infused basil and parsley dip.

The description up there was taken from the menu,

but it doesn't really match what we got that day,

nevertheless, I love that the chicken is tasty by itself,

and when topped with the brown sauce and lots of cooked onions,

it tasted whole lot better! Sedap niee!!!

Brew & Bread chicken roulade

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We were pretty full when Vince insisted that we should have desserts.

Dessert at Brew & Bread varies from cakes, muffins, freshly baked pastries, and more.

Most of the selection comes in RM 7 per piece

(which is pricey looking at the size of the dessert),

... and with promo now which is two pieces for RM12, and 3 pieces for RM16,

Vince went for trio-dessert which to my dismay is only visually appealing,

and not up to par.

The tiramisu is spongy and dry - like sponge cake.

Luckily the taste is not as bad as the texture.

With the texture and taste combined of a total point,

I'll only give it a score of 2.5 / 5.0.

Brew & Bread tiramisu

Yoghurt Cheese tasted oo-kay ONLY IF you take

the light cream cheese and yoghurt alone,

but the cookies crunch bed base is soggy, and tasted like crap.

Brew & Bread, you can do better!!!

Brew & Bread yoghurt cheese

The All-Chocolate Muffin is better, but NOT aweee-some.

With chunks of chocolate on top, we thought "YUHMMM, this is gonna be sooo chocolatey!"

I love muffins that are moist, but at the same time, with crunchy top.

Break the muffin into half, saw that the chocolate inside is completely molten.

Good sign.

Taste it, love the texture, crunchy outside, moist inside.

But the taste...  it's not chocolatey enough as claimed.

Tasted like an average muffin.

Despite the desserts, I still love their food, and would love to go there again!

I'm keen to try out their pastries, which is gonna be prepared upon order.
Alex Choo (cousin) said that Brew & Bread sandwiches are good too!
Well I might as well....

Those interested, details as below:-

10, Jln Anggerik Vanilla M31/M, Kota Kemuning SA 40460

Open: 8am-7pm; Closed on Thursday.

+603-51315201

www.brewnbread.com



yummylicious!



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Allegro Cafe @ SS15, Subang Jaya

17th November 2012

Yay! Food blogging again!

This is actually my 3rd visit to Allegro Cafe, a cozy little Italian restaurant.

This shop is kinda hidden in the row of shop opposite Little Bally Cafe.

Look out for a yellow signboard at the first floor with a little balcony facing front.

Once you stepped in, it gives a very warm and cosy feeling.

It's just a small little restaurant to cater less than 40 pax.

But it's a nice place to chill, and sit back after meal.

The ambient of the Italian restaurant

The mirror image

The traditional looking menu

As the menu offers whole lot of selection of pasta, pizza, main courses, desserts etc,

we seek for one of the chinese supervisor's recommendation.

Barry ordered carbonara but he said one of their signature pasta is almost

the same as carbonara but it's with wild mushroom, and without egg, so the sauce is thicker.

I was like "SAY WHAT?!! WILD MUSHROOMS?!! OH YESSS!!!"

So we ordered the recommended Tagliatelle with Wild Mushroom.
The sauce is thick, flavorful, cheesy, and makes me wanting more!
Definitely one of the best carbonara-type pasta I've tasted!

 

homemade flat noodles cooked with mushroom, cheese and herbs (RM 28)

I ordered my usual Lamb Shank. Wouldn't miss it in every visit!

Option of pasta or salad as side for the braised lamb.

The lamb shank is tender, and the gravy is yummylicious!



lamb shank braised to tenderness (RM 32)

Vince was summoned to order pizza, and so this salmon lover got us Smoked Salmon pizza.

However, among all the dishes we ordered, this pizza is a disappointment.

It is almost tasteless and the salmon is such a waste to be used this way.

Next time try the Quattro Stagioni pizza.

I've tried it, it was good - but bear in mind that it has beef bacon and pepperoni on it.



slices of smoked salmon, onion and rosemary (RM 30)

For desserts, we were recommended Zabaione which

has egg white foam and a little bit of wine on it.

The taste of wine is not as strong as expected, but there is a wine aroma in it.

Scoop in deeper and you'll find yourself vanilla ice cream

to blend in with the foam and choco powder.



Zabaione - egg meringue flavored with Marsala wine or coffee served with vanilla ice cream (RM 12)

We also ordered the old-fashioned dessert - the tiramisu!

It took them around 20 minutes to serve the tiramisu after clearing our tables.

They might have forgotten about our order.

Not a big fan of tiramisu, to me it taste nice, but doesn't get my taste bud tingling.



homemade layers of sponge fingers and Mascarpone cheese (RM 13)

Bernard, Vince, Joyce & Barry @ Allegro Cafe

Verdict :-

Food : 4 / 5

(smoked salmon pizza not up to par)

Ambiance : 4.5 / 5

Service : 3.5 / 5

(having trouble communicating with one of the waiter 

and our tiramisu has been completely forgotten from the order chit)

Price : 4 / 5

(Total bill of RM150++ including coffee and mushroom soup,

the portion is quite small for the price paid)

Address :-

Allegro Cafe

11A, 1st floor,

Jalan SS15 / 4,

47500 Subang Jaya, Selangor

Tel : 03-5631 5682

Had a yummylicious dinner on my birthday eve

with these good men!!!

* xoxo *

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