Beneath the Mont Kiara Banyan Condominium, one can easily overlook PORTO ROMANO being tucked away in a secluded corner, especially when their neighbour WENDY fast food often took over the spot light.

But it is this quiet area which is not over commercialized that first appealed to me, and i knew that i MUST give it a try. First impressions counts, and this mediterranean-italian-albanian restaurant certainly has scored high in this aspect. Its relax atmosphere with sexy jazz tunes, dim lights, and pretty x'mas decorations makes it seem almost romantic. I was ready to swoon and oohh ahhh at the fireplace situated at second floor of the restaurant. (i know right, fireplace in Malaysia? rare sight) Naturally i had to sit on the second floor. There is also an outdoor terrace that is the perfect place for lunch overlooking the elite neighbourhood of Mont Kiara.

Parking is really rare and I was lucky enough to find a parking spot directly outside the restaurant, but Abby ended up parking down the street near SOLARIS which was quite a walk away.




The walls along the stairways is decorated with images of old films


The menu is not extensive, if you are expecting fancy italian food, this will not be the place for you. Instead Porto Romano serve authentic unpretentious italian food, with wide variety of spaghetti and pizzas, and a small selection of desserts.

Please excuse the photo quality of the food, i must confess that i was terribly hungry so it was "snap snap kthxbye" without adjusting on camera settings.



We ordered appetizers for sharing. Albanian Village Salad (RM17). Balkan infused flavour consisting of tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, onions, feta cheese drizzle in olive oil. A refreshing starter which taste fresh and crisp that is served in large portion.




Abby's Spaghetti Alle Cozze- i.e. Spaghetti with fresh scallop (RM34) was flavourful with mix of tomatoes, brocolli, and scallop in a garlicky sauce. Abby commented that there is hints of mediterranean feel to this dish. She gave her thumbs up on this one.




Spaghetti Al Funghi (RM27) was thick with creamy sauce and fresh button mushrooms.
This is a perfect comfort food for me after a whole week overdosed with seafood from Hokkaido, im ready to go for something simple.


Cheese to camera (:

Despite us being extremely full and satisfied with our dishes so far, we decided that dessert is definitely a must.



The tiramisu was served a bit sloppy but then again this is an unpretentious restaurant right? Dont expect good food presentation but definitely hearty portion with reasonable price.



Their cappucino has overbeaten milk froth with diluted coffee.



Although the desserts and hot drinks did not wow us in the end, we were two girlies satisfied with the overall experience and will definitely be back for more.

Our bill came up to RM149 between two.

Ratings:
Food: 6.5/10
(simple comfort food. will try the pizza next time)

Service: 5/10
(Friendly waiters, but not that efficient. I had to waved like hyena just to get some attention)

Ambience: 8/10
(hmm sexy & romantic. what's not to like about this place?)

Presentation of food: 5/10

Overall: 6/10

~*~*~*~*~*~

Porto Romano
K-1,Mont' Kiara Banyan, 28, Jalan Kiara, Mont' Kiara, Kuala Lumpur

Tel: 603- 6207 817

Augustdiners are finally back from Hokkaido!! (with an extra few kgs – but who can blame us?) After one week of snowy minus degrees weather, we came back with a big smile on each faces as we can finally declare that- yes we had a “white x’mas” this year.




The weather of course have not failed us, we were given unconditional amount of white powdery snow to play with, be it snow fights, building snow man, or skiing in the snow!

As promised, here is some sneak peak on the delicious food in Hokkaido. We were pampered with an over dosage of unlimited fresh sashimi, fish roes, and super HUGEEEE crabs- and I mean huge!

I absolutely love their tidbits and snacks there, the packaging are really cute and irresistible, at most times it looked almost too cute to be eaten. NEEDLESS to say, we spent no thoughts in spending away as we buy heaps and heaps of snacks and labelled them mentally as souvenirs only to be eaten even before it got back to KL- oops!


We went to Hokkaido with 9 luggages and came back with 13, need i say more? =P


Nothing beats a good Unagi Don after a long flight and yucky airplane food.
This is the first meal of the trip and i'm already loving Japan!! Though my judgment could be biased due to the already rumbling tummy

We were fascinated by the fine and exquisite details that Japanese pay to the designs and decorations of their desserts and packaging of each gifts.

Delicate flowers decor-ed chocolate.
Do i see a sakura print on it??


Macaroons Xmas Tree!! Kawaiii!! Mad cute..

Waffles with different flavours and ice cream sandwiched in between..


Tokyo Banana (which we were told to be famous in Japan) is basically a normal sponge cake with creamy banana filling.. Though it is ordinary tasting, the softness of it is not your average sponge cake you would normally find in a packed food.
It is amazing how they could ensure their quality of the food even if it is just package food.. (Something Malaysia has to learn from??)


Why would anyone have the heart to put these cake arts into their mouth??
The above cutesies can be found in Kansai airport. Then again, throughout the entire Japan, you might come across many food art like these.. =)

Salmon roll readily packed.. Can easily transform them into effort-looking sushi!!
What happened to good ol' traditional way of sushi making??

Red Brick Warehouses @ Hakodate (Kanemori Warehouse) (金森倉庫 ''kanemori-sōko'')
These Warehouses built at the end of the Meiji era now house a variety of commercial facilities, as well as restaurants serving seafood.. Amongst all, there's a little stall shyly hiding among the little huts selling souveniors, food and assorted cute thingy majigas selling grilled scallops, snails and squids..
which was orgamically good!!

Grilled to the perfection- not too soft nor too hard to chew. And the chef intelligently retained the freshness of the seafood within.

Also found in one of the shops in Kanemori Warehouse- Snaffles (i believe)
This is by far the best cheesecake i have ever had, so fluffy & creamy- Oiiishiiiii! We gobbled all up in no time
Just because it's packed, doesnt make it less delectable than freshly baked cheesecake. In fact, this beats ANY cheesecake in the world HANDS DOWN!! Period.


Crazieapple decided to push the boundaries of "freshness" by catching her own squid for sashimis



I was obviously grossed out as i have a weak stomach, but they loved it!
By the way, Do you know that the squid is actually crystal clear in color when its fresh and will only turn white after a period of time??
Although the squid is very much dead, the legs were still moving about as Crazieapple puts it into her mouth. EW!!
Note from Crazieapple: "the tentacles were sucking on my tongue as i chew them.. as if struggling for mercy. " *evil laugh*

Obviously no one would dare to eat these raw..


Assorted tempura- A must try during Japanese meals.


Nothing like Udon + Shabu Shabu to keep our tummy warm.. mmm =)


The huge KING CRABS that we have for buffet dinners 4 nights in a row. And that's only 1 of the many legs of the crab. Can you imagine how huge is the crab???

Coffee place at Otaru street.
Isn't this place simple romantic? im in love


Doraemon snacks..


Sick or no sick, lavender and melon flavoured soft cream is a must when you're in Hokkaido

Crazieapple (who was sick) sure grasp hold of any chance of ice cream even when it was snowing.


Grilled abalone was a different experience that you can get apart from the usual Ah Yat "bao yu" style of cooking. It was succulent and tasted fresh

Cake arts!!

How brilliant.

I'm in awe!!
Our last dinner at Sapporo.
Gyoza and Ramen. Nuff' said.
A typical Jap meal (for us Malaysian, at least)


There's no way i'll leave Hokkaido without trying some of their local beer, but theres no particular beer that had caught my fancy.

Gosh, i know i promise you a "sneak peak" but looks like i got carried away :)
There you go, hope you're not feeling too hungry by now.
This may be a wee bit late, wishing augustdiners readers a Happy Merry X'mas!!!





By yours truly... xoxo

I believe that no matter what neighborhood we grew up in, there's always this one homely restaurant right around the corner - whereby folks from around can come and seek refuge from today's powerfully priced and turbocharged Saturday night styled dining that we so often de gust.  

Well Decanter Damansara Heights provides just the exact thrillingly decadent refuge for folks from far and around.

Nestled around the corner of an exquisite neighborhood such as Damansara Heights, one would be forgiven to think that this is one of those Vicenzo-meets-Dome establishments. However, upon entering Decanter during one of it's lazy Sunday afternoon lunch hour, you'll find lively diners in cosy communal tables  in all it's rustic charm - greeted by eager but friendly waiters.



 

Once you've blended among Damansara's elites - you'll be spoiled for choice as the menu offers you a variety ranging from local delights to cuisines from the west. Some of Decanter's few notable mentions includes the curry chicken (RM10) - to be savored with rice or bread.



The Hainanese Chicken Chop (RM14) is another one of the old favorite around here. The braided chicken with fries and Hainanese dressing ensures that Decanter is no one trick pony.



Just when you think that dining is about to get a little predictable - in comes Damansara's best kept secret - Decanter's Croissant with butter and jam.



One mention of Croissant to the waiters and you would have almost certainly provoked a reflex type response informing you that the wait for a basket of this heavenly Croissant will be approximately 15-20 minutes. But by golly - it is worth every minute of the wait. Each basket is freshly baked in the oven and served to you warm, fluffy, crisp on the outside, butter flavored on the inside and when dipped in jam and butter = a blissful Sunday afternoon.




For a limited time, Decanter is also offering seasonal lobster dining - as pictured above with pasta and garnished with finely chopped parsley, capsicum and tomatoes. Not a bad attempt I would say - although I find the lobster shell a little too salt encrusted. But at RM88 for a 2-3 person sharing dish is not bad at all in terms of value.

With good food to match good value and service, Decanter is truly the definition of casual dining with rustic charms.

Food: 7/10
Presentation: 5/10
Service: 7/10
Ambience: 7/10

Overall: 6.5/10



Decanter Damansara Heights
7, Jalan Setiakasih 5,
Bukit Damansara 50490
Kuala Lumpur
Te: 03-20952507

Related Posts with Thumbnails