Cava, Jalan Bangkung

After a loooong day’s work, we found ourselves craving for GOOD food! We had heard a lot about the food at Cava, a Spanish restaurant at Jalan Bangkung, Bangsar.

As bonafide tipplers, we have had drinks, but hadn’t got an opportunity to dine there.

So, we FINALLY decided to give the food a try!

Tucked away in the quieter area of Bangsar, away from the hustle and bustle of the Telawi area, you will find Cava, located on the same row as Leonardo’s, Opus, Madisons and Midi to name a few.

Cava serves modern and traditional Spanish cuisine. It is not your typical Spanish bar; it has a bit more of a ‘fine-dining’ feel to it.

We were served with complimentary bruschetta.

Shiv: Bad! Sugar was the only flavour carrying the dish. It’s a good thing that we didn’t have to pay for it.

Kav: Not one of my favourite things. Sweet!!!

Mien: Loved the bread they used. Found the toppings a bit sweet due to the presence of the sweet corn! Would have been better without it.

Gaj: I didn’t really enjoy it – generally dislike sweet elements in my food.

For appetisers, we ordered the following tapas:

1)  Cod and Kalamata Fritters (RM15)

Shiv: Was too tomato-ey and I could hardly taste the flavours from the cod. This dish was just too overwhelmingly tangy. No likey!

Kav: Alrighty, I guess. The sweetness from the tomatoes were overwhelming, hence I couldn’t really taste much of anything else. Overall, not great.

Mien: Hmmm… it was not tooooo bad… had a unique ‘Indian-y’ taste to it. Might actually order it again.

Gaj: This dish was just OK for me – not sure if I would have it again.

2)  Baked Portobello Mushrooms with Roasted Garlic and Walnuts (RM15)

Shiv: Fantastic! The meatiness of the Portobello married with the nuttiness of the walnuts provided for a merry marriage of flavours. Saved the day, where appetisers were concerned.

Kav: Yummy! Something about the way garlic and mushrooms taste together, makes me want to sing!!! Plus the roasted walnuts added crunchiness and a nutty flavour that elevated this dish to the next level.

Mien: Love this! The flavours infused well together, with a slight chilli flavour! Really good!

Gaj: I LOVED this dish – it was really good! Oooo..the garlic and walnuts just gave it an extra oomph –yumms!

Moving on the mains, we ordered:

1)  Galician Styled Cod, baked cod with olive tapenade cream sauce (RM58)

Shiv: Best main of the night! Super moist and flaky, and they were smart about keeping the flavours to a minimal, to allow the amazing fishy flavours from the cod to carry the dish. Could have come all on its own, as the sides were easily ignored with the fish being so fantastic!

Kav: This dish gave me a screaming……lol! The cod was fresh and cooked to perfection, with all its oily fattiness still intact. The tapenade cream sauce complemented the cod and was not too creamy.

Mien: OH MY DAYSSSS!!! TOO TOO GOOD! The cod – EXTREMELY FRESH, just melts in your mouth! The sauce did not overwhelm the cod… it was a good marriage! The mashed potatoes had been infused with truffle – so delish! Went back the next day again for it! Guilty as charged! :S

Gaj: AMAZE-BALLS! The cod was melt in your mouth goodness and the mashed potato – gosh, I could have it all day! Soooo YUMMY!

2)   Cava’s Braised Spanish Lamb Shank with Pearl Onion (RM56) (P.S : Can’t take the Indian away from their lamb! :P)

Shiv: Good rendition on this classic main. The lamb was done very well, with a nice concentration of sweet and savoury nuances. I typically don’t enjoy sweet elements in my mains, but this was excusable, as the juice from the lamb created a nice strong meaty flavour.

Kav: The lamb was cooked well. The gravy that accompanied the lamb had Moroccan-Indian flavours, full of sweet and smoky flavours from the spices, which went well with the meaty lamb.

Mien: Hmmmmm….. found this tooooo gamey… sooooo DISLIKE!

Gaj: The braised lamb shank was done very well – it was tender and juicy. There was a tinge of sweetness probably from the onion, but it was not overwhelming and complemented the dish well.

Finally, moving on to the dessert (we girls need to fulfill our sweet craving!) Surprisingly, we only ordered ONE dessert………Hallelujah!

We ordered Cava’s most famous dessert, the Chocolate Dream (RM16)

Shiv: Very ordinary and you can probably find this at any one of those commercialised eateries sprouting all over KL. The cake lack moisture and they relied too heavily on the subpar custard cream, which in-turn was insipid! Skip this altogether, please!

Kav: Blah blah blah…..very ordinary tasting dessert.

Mien: I am sick and bored of this Chocolate Lava type of desserts, hence it would be unfair for me to judge… but nevertheless….not a fan!

Gaj: This dessert was OK, a pretty standard rendition of chocolate lava cake.

Verdict: WOK ON!

PRICE: Slightly on the pricey side – RM185.60 for 2 appetisers, 2 mains and 1 dessert (4pax).

AMBIENCE:  Cosy and comfortable – perfect for a date and/ (or) a night out with friends. There is the option to dine alfresco, but be there early, or be sure to make reservations, as these seats get grabbed fast.

SERVICE: Good - waiters were pleasant, efficient and attentive.

FOOD: Tasty – this restaurant focuses on quality not quantity, which is a refreshing change.

CAVA

71, JALAN BANGKUNG

BUKIT BANDARAYA

BANGSAR

59100 KUALA LUMPUR

Tel: +603 2093 6637 / +6017 356 0133

Email: mailus@cava.my

Website: http://www.cava.my

Opening Hours:

Mon-Sat: 12.00pm – 3.00pm; 5.00pm-1.00am

Sun: 6.00pm – 12.00am

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