Natalina Italian Kitchen

 Once every now and then, A, J and I would treat ourselves to a nice meal. One of these treats was at Natalina Italian Kitchen, situated on the third Level of Avenue K Shopping Mall in downtown KL. 

Natalina was the name of Frank Sinatra's mother and this Italian kitchen is headed by Chef Stefano La Penna. 

We started with some bubblies. So long since I had some, so this was refreshing.

Then we had the complimentary freshly baked bread, well matched with pesto, olive and tomato dips.

There were so many dishes that we would have liked to try but with only three stomaches to fill, we decided to not be greedy. We settled for three dishes.

First dish was the Eggplant Parmigiana because it is a non-pasta version of a lasagna. Anything with eggplant or the word lasagna never fail to get my attention. An oven-baked eggplant timbale served with mozzarella cheese in a rich tomato reduction, we could smell it even before it arrived at the table.

We licked the plate clean.

As we saw someone kneading pizza dough at the entrance, we thought that it would be good to give theirs a try. Their Napoli-style Diavola pizza hit just the right spot with savoury, tangy, spicy flavours thanks to the spicy Italian salami, fresh tomato sauce, buffalo mozzarella and red chilli.

We were all craving risotto and coincidentally, the risotto of the day was seafood risotto. We were so full after that, as risotto is rather filling.

I do not mind visiting again to try the other dishes on their menu. Oh, and that next time I have to make sure to find someone else to drive, so that I could try something from their cocktail menu.

Natalina Italian Kitchen
Lot 06 Level 3, Avenue K, 156 Jalan Ampang, 50450 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

M: +6012 673 3860; E: info@natalinakl.com

Daily 12 noon to 10:30pm

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Encore Pastry Cafe

 Taman Bukit Desa is where I spent a large portion of my childhood, as Dad's office was here until I was 10. Every day after school, we would have lunch at the Uncle Sunny's kopitiam downstairs from Dad's office.

Now, many years later, that lone row of shops is home to several popular cafes, one of them being Encore Pastry Cafe that occupies the first lot. This year marks their 10th year of operations and although I am not a frequent visitor, they are always in my mind when craving good dessert.

During my latest visit, I tried a cold drink for the first time - Chocolate Flotteur. Think root beer float but in dark chocolate instead of root beer. This was satisfyingly rich without being overly sweet.

Also my first time trying their Apple Almond Tart. Almond slices on the surface gives it an added layer of texture when chewing.

What I always come here for is their famous Lemon Tart. Still the best I have had in KL.

They have both indoor air-conditioned seating (which is freezing, in my opinion) and outdoor al fresco seating (which could be annoying if you do not like the smell of cigarette smoke). Parking can get tricky, especially during working hours.

They also serve main meals, so do give them a try. I believe they would be not too bad, too.

Encore Pastry Cafe

1 Jalan Bukit Desa 5, Taman Bukit Desa, 58100 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

T: +60 3 7972 7988; M: +6012-988 9550; E: enquiry@encoregroup.com.my

Wednesday to Sunday 11:00 to 9:00pm

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