Betel Leaf

Nestled along Jalan Lebuh Ampang is Betel Leaf. The restaurant, situated above the streets, is a cleaner and more up-market establishment in comparison to the other restaurants around. Betel Leaf serves both North and South Indian cuisine.

My mother had a Ghee Dosai for herself, worth RM6. Not the cheapest dosai out there, and this one was certainly not worth RM6. The dosai and chutneys were indifferent to those available at your corner stall. I had white rice.

We ordered Gobi Manchurian worth RM9. The dish had a deep hint of pepper, more than any other spice - the monotonous flavour of the dish made it boring. There was also no crisp to the deep-fried cauliflower. Thumbs down.

The Butter Chicken Masala worth RM12 was much better than our vegetable dish. Though it looked unusually red for butter chicken, the pieces of poultry were tender and there was a good texture to the curry, which contained a myriad of spices.

The Raita that we ordered was simple, but too simple for my liking. It was simply yoghurt, with sliced carrots, onions and green chillies inside - nothing more unfortunately. No additional taste to it whatsoever.

For dessert, I ordered the Kulfi. When the kulfi arrived, it was rock hard - I kid you not. We waited for 20 minutes until we could finally break through.

My mum ordered a Coffee worth RM2.50. The coffee was full of flavour and sweetened just right, though I would have loved more foam on the top.

Betel Leaf does not serve the most expensive Indian food in town (as a matter of fact, it is quite reasonable to think of it), though the food there is not that great for the price we pay - as it's not AS cheap as your Sri Paandi. In comparison with other restaurants in the area, this certainly is one of the cleanest.

Presentation: 6/10

Ambiance: 6/10

Service: 5/10

Overall Taste: 4/10

General Impression: 5/10

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Cheers,

BrianandRepublic

Village Roast Dick @ Bangsar Village

Over the weekend, my mother and I treated ourselves to dinner at Village Roast Duck. The establishment is located on the 2nd Floor of Bangsar Village, right opposite Bijou. The restaurant specialises in…as you guessed it…duck!

The Roast Duck on Rice worth RM12, was a simple dish that provided satisfaction for the palate. The pieces of duck were abundant and contained a lot of the much-loved skin. The combination of duck and rice worked quite well.

Even better than a combination of duck and rice, was the Roast Duck on Noodles - also worth RM12. The noodles and light soy sauce contained more flavour than the rice and the combination of noodles and rice livened up the mouth much more.

As a side dish, we ordered Ma Po Bean-curd with Minced Pork, worth RM16. The silky bean-curd was flavoured well by an abundance of minced pork, and together with the sauce, the dish was enjoyed by both of us.

Both our duck dishes came with a bowl of light, yet flavourful Clear Broth. The broth had a herbal note to it, and worked well with the rest of the dishes. It also seemed really healthy too - perfect for my health conscious mum :)

On the whole, Village Roast Duck offered us a good meal and service. The only downside to the place is that the food was somewhat bland, though their chilli paste did liven things up for our mouths.

Presentation: 5/10

Ambiance: 6/10

Service: 6/10

Overall Taste: 6/10

General Impression: 6/10

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Cheers,

BrianandRepublic

Revisiting Clear @ Plaza M.Kiara

I decided to treat myself to a set lunch at Clear having finished school early. The lunch, priced at RM16, runs from 12:00pm to 2:30pm. Clear, as mentioned in my previous post about the place, is located at Plaza Mont Kiara, along Jalan Kiara.

The day's lunch consisted of a Curry Puff with Sweet Chilli Sauce for starters. The curry puff was crisp, and complemented the chilli sauce well. The only downside was that the sauce was way too much.

As a main course, I had Spaghetti Aglio e Olio with Bacon and Squid. An unusual combination, but the dish was fantastic - not too salty or dry. The bacon added great flavour to the dish and squid was cooked to perfection.

My dessert was, as usual, Chocolate Ice-Cream with Chocolate Sauce. The ice cream was your usual ice-cream from the tub, not of the best quality but I had no complaints, though I felt this course was an overdose of chocolate for me.

On the whole, for RM16, Clear's set lunch is quite a steal - considering the fact that most things on their a la carte menu are somewhat overpriced. The set also comes with a glass of iced lemon tea.

Presentation: 6/10

Ambiance: 6/10

Service: 6/10

Overall Taste: 6/10

General Impression: 7/10

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Cheers,

BrianandRepublic

Seri Angkasa Revolving Restaurant @ the KL Tower

I love nothing more than dining with a good view, and one day my mother surprised me - taking me to the Seri Angkasa Revolving Restaurant atop the KL Tower. The KL Tower is hard to miss, located at the heart of KL, on Jalan Puncak, right off Jalan P Ramlee.

My mum and dad have given me negative views of the restaurant, after having visited it a few times themselves - so my expectations were not really high. At the end of the day, I came for the view more than anything else.

The restaurant mainly serves a buffet, which you have to pay for downstairs before entering. There is no set cuisine as the buffet line, priced RM135 per person for dinner, consists of Japanese, Malaysian and Western dishes.

The Carrot Soup was surprisingly good. The creamy, tangy soup was accompanied with pesto and some croutons which heightened the soup's flavour and provided some crunch. So far so good…so I thought.

Some dishes from the Cold Cuts Section included (clockwise from the top) Fresh Oysters which were large and meaty, Potato Salad that tasted mediocre, Salmon Sashimi which looked old due to the brownish tinge, and some Marinated Grilled Chicken which was tough and dry.

The Japanese Section consisted of (clockwise from the top) Jellyfish Wrapped with Rice, Inari, Tamago, and what seemed like Jelly shards Wrapped with Rice. Each sushi piece had too much of rice. Guessing that they were trying to cut costs.

A selection from the Western Section comprised of (clockwise from the top) Pan-Fried Fish which tasted soft and soggy, Beef Stew which was tough and unappetising, Roast Chicken with Brown Sauce, hard and dry, and lastly Potato Croquettes; the only good thing on my plate.

The Malaysian Section consisted of (clockwise from the top) Beef Satay with Peanut Sauce, Rojak, and some Asian Beef Salad. The satay was tough and far from authentic. The rojak was stale though the sauce tasted satisfying. The the salad was way too sour.

More from the Malaysian corner: (clockwise from the top) Sweet and Sour Fish which had more batter than fish, Beef Rendang which was surprisingly good, Stir-Fried Cuttlefish which was soft though too bland for me, Plain Biryani and Lemang Rice, both of which were not bad, though I've tasted better.

The Dessert Spread looked rather satisfying, though looks can be deceiving. Most of the desserts, with the exception of theBread and Butter Pudding, tasted bad and of low quality.

On the whole, the Seri Angkasa Restaurant didn't manage to live up, even to the low expectations that I had. The food was good, don't get me wrong, but for RM135? Seriously? You must be bloody joking!

If you're in for a view, don't even consider Seri Angkasa. Tanzini at the G Hotel and Twenty+one at BSC are great alternatives. The RM135 meal also includes your choice of orange or mango juice, and coffee or tea after your meal.

Presentation: 5/10

Ambiance: 6/10

Service: 4/10

Overall Taste: 4/10

General Impression: 2/10

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Cheers,

BrianandRepublic