La Vie En Rose, Jalan Raja Chulan, Kuala Lumpur

A dilapidated residential bungalow with an inconvenient entrance requiring an acute U-turn and a climb up a steep slope, abandoned for 15 years, transformed into a charming restaurant, with a gorgeous view of the Petronas Twin Towers.

La Vie En Rose, owned by a Toulouse native, Jean Michel Fraisse, is a fine dining restaurant which is a great place for a date.

For you single Sex-in-the-City-type girls, who just want a night out with AMAZING food, this restaurant has another plus point... the easy-on-the-eyes manager… ;-)

Sorry straight boys!!! 

Now on to the ‘la nourriture’

We were served with a complimentary basket of bread and Chicken Pâté.

Shiv: Amazing! My first time trying CHICKEN pâté and it was so good. It was seasoned very well and the pungent liver taste was not present. The bread was ordinary – nothing to shout about.

Kav: My first time as well, and it was just sublime. One of the best pate’s I have tried surprisingly, as you would expect chicken pate to be less rich in flavour. However, this was buttery and creamy and had immense flavour.

Mien: Hate chicken liver, and hated this! However, there was not much of the chicken liver taste as it was spiced well. There was a very distinct clove or aniseed taste. The bread basket was my saviour!!

We ordered the Crème brûlée au foie gras, brioche toastee [Foie gras crème brûlée with toasted brioche] (RM29).

Shiv: Not for the faint of heart. The crème brûlée idea was stretched a tad too far – caramel and foie gras DO NOT pair well. However, the foie gras itself was sublime and I loved the texture of the brioche.

Kav: How do I put this delicately??? Well, dessert arrived a tad too early for me. The caramel was just disgusting with the fatty foie gras. The brioche, however, was soft and the brown crust gave it a smoky flavour, which was lovely. The French and their pastries...hmmm.

Mien: Not a fan one bit. I am not a fan of livers and hence my disdain. However, the brioche... oh my days... so good... felt like I was in France.

Next item we ordered was the special of the day – Tuna cooked two-ways with White Sauce. (RM70). It was served with truffle mashed potato and Ratatouille.

Shiv: The tuna was too tantalising! The accompanying sauce was flavoured to perfection and the truffle mashed potato was divine. The ratatouille provided a nice earthy balance to the other strong flavours. #HighlyRecommended

Kav: OMG… the tuna was cooked to perfection. It was seared perfectly on the outside, while remaining pink on the inside. It was just melt in your mouth goodness and to be honest, it did not require any flavouring as the fish was so fresh and full of flavour. The accompanying sauce was creamy and the sourness from the tomatoes made for a perfect sauce. Ratatouille was good!

Mien: The tuna was oh my days... AMBROSIAL. It was not overdone... still moist and not too dry! The marriage of the sauce and the tuna was delightful! The truffle mashed potato.... JUST HEAVENLY! The ratatouille didn’t fail to impress as well… :-)

Next up, Cuisse de canard confite, purée aux truffes et sauce acidulée [Duck leg confit with truffled mashed potato, sweet and sour sauce] (RM49).

Shiv: Too good! The duck confit was superbly savoury and again, the truffle mash was an excellent starch source to soak up the deliciously briny duck juice. Loved this one to bits!

Kav: Duck, again, cooked to perfection as it was moist and fell off the bone. Loved the sauce as it was salty and had a buttery flavour to it. The balsamic reduction drizzle was a good contrast. The truffle mash was officially the best mash I have ever tasted, so creamy and the earthiness of the truffle coming together nicely.

Mien: Too gamey. Dislike!

Moving on to Poulet fermier cuit a basse température, sauce aux morilles [Slow-cooked free range chicken, morel sauce] (RM58).

Shiv: Usually, I would never order a chicken main in a restaurant such as this, but boy am I glad we did. The chicken pieces were really tender and juicy, with an herb-y edge. Loved the pungency of the morel sauce too.

Kav: The chicken was moist, cooked perfectly, and the accompanying sauce was savoury, salty and flavoured well. The sauce carried that underlying earthy flavour provided by the morel mushrooms. The perfect marriage.

Mien: The chicken was done well, not dry. The morel... sooooo delicious! Loved this dish!

Dessert time!!!

First up: Profiteroles, sauce au chocolat et caramel [Profiteroles with chocolate and caramel sauce] (RM22).

The profiteroles were stuffed with Bourbon vanilla ice cream!

Shiv: Another French delight – La Vie En Rose hit the spot with their version. The profiterole dough was done well, and paired oh-so-beautifully with the chocolate caramel sauce. They could do no wrong with this dessert – a MUST HAVE here!

Kav: Decadence at its heights! This dessert should be illegal, that’s how good it was. The chocolate sauce was not overly sweet and the bourbon ice cream… oh, how I yearn to have some more!!! The nuts were crunchy and went perfectly with the entire dish.

Mien: DELICIOUS! The ice cream, chocolate, caramel, profiterole... a perfect combination!

Next: Tarte Tatin [Traditional upside-down French apple tart, Bourbon vanilla ice cream] (RM22).

Shiv: What a downer. I have never tasted such bad apple pie in my life! McDonalds makes better apple pies than this place!

Kav: Remind me never to order the French version of apple pie again!!! So so so bad… I mean, I don’t even know where to begin…Grrr…Wish I had eaten this before the profiteroles!!! How about we just leave apple pies to the American’s?

Mien: I prefer the American apple pie! This tasted like mashed cooked apples for babies... NO NO!

Due to our dissatisfaction, we ordered ANOTHER dessert.

Finally: Mousse de café et biscuit moelleux au chocolat, crème au chocolat blanc et expresso [Coffee mousse cake with soft chocolate biscuit, white chocolate and expresso custard] (RM22).

Shiv: Nice, strong coffee flavour which paired well with the creamy texture of the mousse cake and custard. Quite pleasant indeed.

Kav: The mousse cake was just alright, although it paired well with the creamy custard. Nothing to shout about.

Mien: Not a fan! Preferred the version served at Nathalie’s Gourmet Studio.

What is a French experience without some French wine.

We had the:

1)  Brouilly, Domaine La Citadelle, 2011 (RM30 per glass)

Shiv: A nice wine to start with. Easy to drink and paired well with the appetisers.

Mien: Medium bodied. It was light. Loved it.

2)  Les Vignes D’Oc, Pays d’Oc, 2011 (RM30 per glass)

Shiv: Heavier and not as good as the first one but pleasant on the palate nevertheless.

Mien: Hmm... I preferred the first wine. This one had a funky taste to it!

Kav was a teetotaller for the night, so she had a hot chocolate. This was on the house as the manager forgot her order and brought it late. Sorry guys, we forgot to check the price on this.

Kav: Loved the chocolate as it was not sweet and it was rich and chocolate-y, just the way I like it.

Verdict: WOK ON!

PRICE: Expensive (RM454.70 for 7 dishes and 4 glasses of wine – 3pax).

AMBIENCE: Appears slightly unfinished, but unassumingly romantic and an amazing view from certain angles, or if you sit closer to the outside portion of the restaurant.

SERVICE: Very good. The French manager that attended to us was as attentive as he was attractive. *wink wink*

FOOD: One of the best French restaurants in KL, serving authentic French cuisine.

LA VIE EN ROSE

39, JALAN RAJA CHULAN,

50200 KUALA LUMPUR

Tel: +603 2078 3883

Email: info@cuisine-studio.net

Website: http://www.cuisine-studio.net

Opening Hours:

Tue – Fri: 12.00pm – 2.30pm; 6.30pm – 10.30pm 

Sat – Sun: 9.30am – 2.30pm; 6.30pm – 10.30pm

Three Little Pigs and the Big Bad Wolf, Bangsar Village I, Kuala Lumpur

Being pork lovers, we didn’t have to huff and puff our way to Three Little Pigs and the Big Bad Wolf at Bangsar Village 1, tucked neatly outside Village Grocer.

As its name suggests, the menu boasts primarily of pork, so if pork is your thing, read ON!

There’s a pretty cozy waiting area, adorned with a sofa and posters. Patrons can opt to dine in the outdoors too, there are wooden furnitures and it can be quite fun if the weather is not too hot.

Let the indulgence begin…

For starters, we had Garlic Roast Pork, sautéed with oriental sauces till caramelised (RM15).

Shiv: Good flavour, and the meat was tender and moist. Plus points for not being overly sweet too!

Kav: Really good. Love the fact that it was not too sweet, like most other places. The garlic flavour was just perfection with the pork!!!

Gaj: This was definitely the best dish of the night! The pork melted in my mouth and the accompanying sauce was sooo good. I was all up for seconds!

For salads, we ordered Grilled Pork Salad, with avocado and garden greens tossed in balsamic vinaigrette dressing (RM22).

*We were initially served the Roast Pork Salad with garden greens and walnuts, drizzled with honey mustard dressing.  We had a few bites of this before we realized that it was the wrong salad. We sent it back and they subsequently served us the supposed Grilled Pork Salad, but without the avocado. Once again, it was sent back and finally returned with the avocado.

Shiv: An obvious sign of teething problems, as the kitchen staff couldn’t put together a decent bowl of salad. The dressing was not what was stated on the menu, and the entire dish ended up tasting a tad sweet yet bland. The only saving grace here was the pork.

Kav: What a waste of some good ingredients… Salad was below average and even the pork could not save this dish from failing. To top it off, it returned with the same honey mustard dressing (hate this dressing!!!) which was not stated in the menu. Shame!!!

Gaj: I did not taste the difference in flavour between the Grilled Pork Salad and the Roast Pork Salad. I could not taste the balsamic dressing, instead it tasted quite strongly of the honey mustard dressing. On hindsight, it tasted a lot like the house salad served with the burger (continue reading below). Regardless, it was very bland and very bad!

We couldn’t visit a porky establishment and not have a pork burger. We decided to try the Mighty Pork Burger, juicy pork patty, cheese, tomato, greens, fried egg, herbed mayo sauce, served with chips and house salad (RM24).

Shiv: The patty had a strong porky flavour (in a good way) and the topping of egg was genius, I thought. Enjoyed it, however, it is certainly not (and far from being) the best pork burger in town.

Kav: The patty was savoury and juicy. Sadly, the other elements failed to enhance the burger to the next level. The egg, I thought, masked the delicious patty and overall, the burger was mediocre.

Gaj: The patty was good, very good. I did not enjoy the egg in the burger, as it overpowered the patty and added an egg-y taste to the burger. Was an alright burger for me – was NOT jumping for joy! :-(

The name of the next dish was too enticing for us to give it a miss. Presenting the Alien Invasion, long-legged spaghettis cooked creamy style complete with button mushrooms and sausage (RM26).

Shiv: Not too heavy handed on the usage of cream, and the flavour of the button mushrooms along with the pork sausages infused the sauce well. As a non-enthusiast of creamy pastas, this one was not too shoddy.

Kav: Have never enjoyed cream based pasta and this one was no different from any other. The pork sausages were yummy though.

Gaj: The pasta was just alright, I am not a big fan of creamy pastas and this did nothing to change my mind. The cheese made the dish a tad salty.

Next up, we decided to try another pasta, Grilled Pork Pesto, spaghetti cooked in our homemade pesto, topped with chunks of grilled pork (RM23).

Shiv: Did not hit all the right notes that pesto pastas usually do. The flavour of the pork wasn’t enough to carry this dish, and a bland, almost insipid dish resulted. On a side note, both pastas were done al dente.

Kav: I am a tough critic when it comes to pesto pasta as I love the earthy basil flavour and therefore it’s one of my favourite kinds of pastas. Nowadays, almost every other restaurant serves pesto and sadly most of them never get it right. This one was no different as the flavour of the pesto was dull and just not up to mark. The pork was a little chunky and did not do the dish any favours.

Gaj: I was waiting in anticipation for this dish as it combined my two favorite things, pesto and pork. I was sorely disappointed as the pesto was too flat and the pork could not carry the dish on its own. I felt like they should have added pine nuts for a zing!

Verdict: WOK OFF!

PRICE: Reasonable.

AMBIENCE: Cozy and comfortable, with the option of outdoor dining.

SERVICE: Bad. The waiters got our order wrong more than once. However, the establishment was relatively new when we visited and we are not sure if these were merely teething problems.

FOOD: Below par. Most of the dishes were disappointing and it felt like there was a general lack of quality in the ingredients. A lot more thought should be given in making the end product taste better.

THREE LITTLE PIGS AND THE BIG BAD WOLF
LOT G1A, GROUND FLOOR, BANGSAR VILLAGE 1
JALAN TELAWI SATU, BANGSAR BARU
59100 KUALA LUMPUR

Tel: 603-2283-2270
Website: www.facebook.com/PigsAndWolf

Opening Hours:

Daily, 10am to 10pm

Botanical, Bangsar Village II, Kuala Lumpur (Round 2)

As stated earlier, we would give Botanical another chance, and here it is:
(P.S Click here for our first review: Botanical (Round 1))

1)  Vietnamese Salad – green apples, cucumber, cellophane noodles, jicama, shallots, bean sprouts, Thai basil and peanut dressing. This dish is gluten-free and contains nuts. (RM19.90)

Mien: Very refreshing. Loved the peanut-y-ness of this dish with the Thai basil. Would definitely order again!

Shiv: Reminiscent of a good Thai kerabu – it was fresh and crunchy. The ingredients were aplenty and nutritious. An intestine-healthy option, especially for the gluten-sensitive.

Kav: Very fresh and the nuts gave it that crunch that I love!!!

2)  Portobello Mushroom Burger – served with French fries and side salad. (RM21.90)

Mien: Tasted like a meat burger! Really really good and meaty! Botanical knows how to turn carnivores into herbivores!

Shiv: Wow! An amazing vegetarian alternative to the old favourite, the Portobello patty was super juicy and flavourful, and the whole burger just oozed a succulent savoury kick. Will certainly give the conventional burger a run for its money.

Kav: You would never expect this of a vegetarian burger. It felt like I was eating a meat burger. The earthiness of the mushroom flavoured the burger perfectly. Favourite dish here!!!

3)  Spinach & Ricotta Crepes Gratin – spinach, ricotta, herbs, buckwheat crepes, tomato & buffalo mozzarella gratin. (RM25.90)

Mien: Tasty... however, it was toooooo filling! Overwhelmingly cheese-y! One would taste very little of the other ingredients but a WHOLE load of cheese!

Shiv: Good, but in a sinfully-cheesy-artery-clogging way. Think lasagne meets parmigiana. The spinach-ricotta combo was genius, but the flavouring of the entire dish was overwhelmed by the cloying mozzarella-ricotta pairing. May have been wiser to share between more people.

Kav: First mouth, verdict - excellent but a little sweet.

Second mouth, verdict - okay but very sweet.

Third mouth, verdict - OMG CHEESE CHEESE CHEESE… so freaking cloying!!!

Fourth mouth, verdict - choking on cheese… somebody call 911!!!

Verdict: WOK ON!

PRICE: Reasonably priced for healthy, tasty food! Total = RM78.55 for 3 dishes.

AMBIENCE: Modern, fresh, clean and tastefully decorated with al fresco dining option available, albeit still in the middle of a mall.

SERVICE: Good. Food arrived promptly, and our waiter was pleasant and efficient.

FOOD: We gave them a second chance and we were impressed! We’ll be back to try out some of the other dishes from their extensive menu.

*Note: Botanical also serves High Tea, 3pm – 6pm daily.

BOTANICAL

IF-28 & IF-K2, 1^ST FLOOR, BANGSAR VILLAGE II,

NO. 1, JALAN TELAWI 1,

BANGSAR BARU,

59100 KUALA LUMPUR

Tel: +603 2201 3028

Website: http://www.thebiggroup.co/botanical/

Opening Hours:

11am – 10pm, daily

Last order: 9.30pm