Favola @ Le Meridien, KL

The latest addition to the KL Sentral string of delightful 5 star restaurants is an Italian restaurant replacing the opulent Middle Eastern restaurant, Al Nafourah at Le Meridien Kuala Lumpur.

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Falova means “fable” in Italian. I like the setting of the place that reminds me of rustic Italy of the renaissance era.

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Masquerade! Paper faces on parade . . . Masquerade!
Hide your face, so the world will never find you!
Masquerade!

DSC07778Look around –
there’s another
mask behind you!
Flash of mauve,
Splash of puce,
Fool and king,
Ghoul and goose,
Green and black,
Queen and priest,
Trace of rouge,
Face of beast,
Faces..

Falova2-1Guests can enjoy their pick of antipasti from the Crudo Bar. Antoine Rodriguez is the Executive Chef, Le Méridien KL and he not only is a great chef, he has a great personality and a fantastic sense of humor as well. You should have seen the way he made A lil fatmonkey drink from the vials.. and everybody knows that Monkey, does not drink! (Just kidding, the test tubes we tried were not alcohol but aged Balsamico vinegar).  The round cheese you see is the Parmigiano Reggiano (Parmesan).

Anyway, read more about this cool chef, here and here.

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say CHEESE.

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The aged cheese is really interesting. Not just the size of it but also the age. Look at this slab.. it dates 2007!

DSC07660A lil fatmonkey almost got drunk on this. But then again, A lil fatmonkey can get high on just a glass of H2O.. so .. go figure:P

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You can also enjoy Limoncello, espresso or have other savory nibbles such as cheese and hors d’œuvres at the bar. I like the informal feel to the place. The Chef lets you stand around and poke your nose in his cooking and still smiles and chats with you and answers all your burning (annoying) questions like a true champion.

DSC07638For starters we had the Chef’s antipasti of Octopus, Sardines, Seafood salad and Bruschetta. We also had the Caprese that is buffalo mozzarella, tomato, basil, anchovies and herbs.

DSC07640I particularly liked the Bresaola which is really just shaved dried beef, rocket salad, fresh figs, lemon and extra virgin olive oil to taste. This dish is light and refreshing. I would highly recommend this as a starter.

DSC07663This is the Panzerotti. Deep fried folded bread dough filled with marinated mushrooms, mozarella, and grilled peppers. Vegetarians will be glad to know that Falova does excellent vegetarian dishes too.

DSC07666 I was also particularly impressed with the sardines. When someone serves me sardines for starters, my immediate reaction is to balk. However, this dish was really nicely done with not a trace of fishiness in it, at all. It tasted like deep fried chewy fish with a delicious sauce of onions, raisins, pine nuts and bell peppers to complete the taste. Very, very nice!

DSC07672This is the Risotto con Aragosta. What I liked best about this dish was the lobster flavor and chunks of lobster (of course!) in it. What I did not like so much was the really gooey and thick consistence of the Risotto – but then again, I am no big fan of the Risotto, so I am not really entitled to give a fair comment, I suppose:P

DSC07674My favourite of the night was the Conchiglioni Marinara al Cartoccio – baked parcels of seafood pasta with extra virgin olive oil, fresh herbs and tomato sauce. This was superb as the parcels helped retain that seafood “zing” that perfused the entire dish. Pasta shells are my favourite (also Cumi’s) because they are a natural ‘spoon’ that catch the succulent sauce in their center. I love the explosion of flavours once you sink your teeth into it. Mini bombs of pleasure!

DSC07680The lasagna with Wagyu beef and truffle sauce. Yes, you heard right! Wow, using such gourmet elements in a lasagna boggles the mind. But once you taste this .. there is no turning back. Throw out your instant bake lasagnas, or even your normal beef lasagnas because there is a new guy in town. Subtle, aromatic and moist till the last bite. Wagyu makes all the difference, to be sure and so does that musky truffle oil. This is the Lasagna al Forno.

DSC07696Another one of the dishes I liked that night was the Veal Escalope “due mondi”. As you can guess from the name, veal prepared in two ways. One pan-seared and the other coated with bread crumbs parsley and Parmesan. The lemon butter sauce that accompanied it brought out the taste in the veal. Two thumbs up.

DSC07708This dish was the most unusual (to me). I nearly had the impression that I was eating turkey. Not because of the texture of the mussel but rather because it came with a gorgeous, herb infused stuffing. I have never eaten mussel with stuffing before. Anyway, it worked well as the minced chicken, garlic and herbs stuffing pushed this dish up a notch- this would be the heartiest, meatiest mussel I have ever had the pleasure of eating.

DSC07710Check out the stuffing!

DSC07716Roasted Scallops with cauliflower and truffles. Crazy good.

DSC07730For dessert, we had the Illy Coffee Tiramisu, the Frutti Bosco and the Panna Cotta. Of the three, the Panna cotta really knocked my socks off. Not as wobbly as I would have liked but spot on in creamy flavour.

DSC07737Frutti di Bosco – fresh ricotta cream and mixed berries on sweet dough.

DSC07749If we weren’t swaying at the beginning of the night, we were now. Grappa Limonico (sweet), Grappa Alexandra Red rose(Smooth but slightly bitter), Grappa Platinum (Palate on Fire!) were served. You can take your pick, depending on how hard-core a drinker you are. I had the Platinum:P

DSC07773Sony T100 moment! Thank you Cheryl Lum, of Le Meridien for organizing the dinner. We had a fantastic evening.

Falova-1Here are the usual suspects .. Did you guess the venue correct?

The End.

Read another review .. here and here.

Add:
Favola,
Le Meridien KL,
2 Jalan Stesen Sentral,
50470 K.L.
Tel – 603 2263 7888
Fax – 603 2263 7222

6 Comments

  • Charles says:

    I had dinner at Favola. The food was OK, but when I go to a 5 star hotel I expect something extraordinary. I could have the food at every Italian Restaurant in this town. Service was a disaster. No attention to details. Sorry, I can’t recommend this restaurant unless you wanna experience a evening where do you ask “Am I in a 5 star Hotel or I’m somewhere eating on the street” This service team has to wake up or everybody will go only once there.

  • eiling says:

    Babe, you looked great as always! This place looks nice. Guess i must make a visit here soon!

  • cumi&ciki says:

    charles:
    Thank you for your comment. I am sure your feedback is being taken into consideration by the Favola group. As I was invited and there for a review, the service and the food was up to par. cheers

    eiling:
    thanks sexay.. when r we going makan makan:P

  • With all that camwhoring, no wonder you were late. Heehee.

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