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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櫻之田野養生小館

樱之田野养生小馆 is situated on the outskirts of Hualien town. From the outside, it looked like a quaint little Japanese-styled restaurant.

And thinking that it had Japanese influence is not far from incorrect, as many people here have Japanese heritage due to the Japanese setting up camp here during their rule of Taiwan.

The reason Allie took us here was because he thought that we should try their vegetarian menu. Almost every vegetable served was planted by the lady who started this restaurant, so more or less what we had were organic vegetables. 

We all had a bowl of soup base, as it was hotpot-style.

And because Mum and I ordered the same lotus flower set, we both had a lotus bud that came with all the other side dishes.

Wow, I was so impressed! And for the record, this was the first time I am actually eating a lotus flower whole.

Along with the soup base came the other ingredients to be cooked in the hotpot. Because Mum and I ordered a set from their vegetarian menu, our plate came with all sorts of greens, roots and funghi.

And because Dad opted for one on the normal menu, his had some meat.

Oh, do not belittle my plate of "just" vegetables - I could not finish it! It was super filling!

Beliu Giant Tree

At the halfway point between Hehuan Mountain and Taroko was an interesting stop. This stop was to look at a tree called the Beliu Giant Tree, a huge Lunta Fir that stood at about 50 metres in height and aged more than 3,200-years-old.

There was also a cafe nearby whose owner I thought were really smart to have set up shop there. They were really friendly, too. We decided to have our lunch there and as they served us, they promoted their specialty products that contained peach.

As we were vegetarian on that day, Mum and I ordered a vegetarian set while Dad decided to try their mutton set.

It tasted as good as it looked!

Not only did we filled up our tummies, we also filled up the car boot with 10 bottles of peach honey and countless packets of dried peach. I really did not expect Mum to buy that many but her response was, "Buy 9 free 1 so I bought 9 la!" Right, of course.

Flying Teapot Cafe

Recently, a friend has been frequenting a cafe, apparently new in our hood. The photos she shared showed a place in a lot of pink and with a unique name, Flying Teapot. One night, we chose this cafe as our catch up venue.

Just like in the photos, the main theme colour of this cafe was pink. Different shades of pink were presented in the paint, decor and furniture.

However, the main theme was, as you could assume from the name of the cafe, teapots. As such, the place was decorated with many teapot fixtures, such as teapot lampshades, teapot lighting, teapot telephone, teapot clock and teapot holders to name a few.

In addition to their main product of tea (they serve a variety of different black, green, flower and fruit tea), they are also a vegetarian cafe.

If we arrived earlier, we would have tried their selection of cakes, too.

We were reminded that each person would have to order at least one drink. Payment here is still cash only.

Seems like the open kitchen concept is catching on back here, too. Like many places in Sydney, the trend is to allow diners a chance to watch the kitchen in action. 

They also had this in one corner:

Perfect place to goof around and take photos for people like my crazy friends...

They even had a portion of the shop set up as a clothes boutique. This part of the shop carried a sailor theme. In case you are wondering, it was Korean fashion with pricing comparable to some more well-known brands sold in our shopping malls.

I found their menu creatively designed. It was in a newspaper format and did not have too many things to look at. Sometimes, less is more, as the more choices we consumers are given, the more confused we become.

Diners have the option of having tea for one (ranging from RM8.90-RM12.90/AUD3.05-AUD4.40) or tea for two (ranging from RM15.00-RM19.00/AUD5.10-AUD6.50).

Our orders of tea came accompanied by a teapot-shaped bickie served on a teapot-shaped saucer.

Just look at the adorable teapot!

As I was the only person who had not had dinner, I ordered a plate of Toona Spaghetti (RM16.90/AUD5.80), which I enjoyed. Although light, fragrant with herbs and sufficient in portion.

Perhaps as early childhood educators, we pay attention to artsy and adorable details - we noticed that our plates had different fruit motives.

Friendly service, inviting ambience, clean environment and ample parking available. The best part was that they made eating vegetarian food less boring. Would definitely visit again!

Flying Teapot Cafe
9-1 Ground Floor, Jalan SP 2/7, Taman Serdang Perdana, Sek 2, 43300 Seri Kembangan, Selangor, Malaysia.
Tel: +60 3 8940 9168
E-mail: flyingteapotcafe@gmail.com
Monday to Saturday 12:00pm to 10:00pm
*Cash transactions only

MY Vegetarian @ Taman Equine

Every time Mum and I are alone at home, we would dine at MY Vegetarian. They are a franchise chain of vegetarian fast food with a Taiwanese feel.

Their Xiang Chun Fried Rice (RM6.00) is fragrant with pepper and egg, served in a heart shape.

I like their Gulo Deep Fried Meat Rice (RM9.00). Yes, imitation meat, not real meat, excuse me. I like how the meat actually tasted like meat and how the sauce has just the right balance of sour and spicy.

Mum loves their pumpkin drink (below). I, only the other hand, enjoy their organic aloe vera longan drink.

The place is comfortable (air-conditioned) and clean. They are also prompt with service. So if you get sick of fatty and oily hawker centre food, consider having some vegetarian.

MY Vegetarian @ Taman Equine
13 Jalan Equine 9E, Taman Equine, Bandar Putra Permai, 43300 Seri Kembangan, Selangor, Malaysia.
Tel: +60 3 8958 2777; E-mail: myvege@myvegetarian.my
*Free wifi available
**Catering services offered 

Tian Ci Vegetarian Restaurant

From the exterior of the shop, it looked like any other Asian restaurant with its glowing bright red and green neon lights practically shouting the name of the restaurant into your face.

We were the first ones there that night and were quickly ushered to a table that sat three of us comfortably. They had a pink and apple green interior with some Chinese decorations.

A quick glance over to their handwritten lunch special menu hung on the wall and the Mandarin accent of the lady who ushered us in suggested that the owners or at least the management were Malaysian.

After deciding on chrysanthemum tea for the table, we scrutinised their menu and put in our orders. For entree, we ordered Vegetarian Pumpkin Rolls ($5.00).

We really liked this! In addition to the lovely pumpkin filling, it also had some sweet corn in it, which gave it some texture and added to its sweetness. The skin was crispy, as it was served piping hot.

I am a sucker for real eel and have never come across imitation eel (yes, I realise that they are all made of bean curd but hey, was still intrigued). So, when I saw Veggie Eel with Black Bean Sauce ($16.00) on the list of chef's suggestions, I asked if we could give it a try.

It tasted a little odd. We still finished the whole plate but I did not think it tasted anything like eel. Hm... not quite sure how to describe the taste, really.

The Spicy Eggplant and Minced Pork Hot Pot ($16.00) was a bit of a disappointment. The eggplant strips were too soft and the sauce was not as spicy as we would have liked it.

The dish of the day and one that we recommend is the Bean Curd with Salted Mustard Vegetable ($16.00). The salted mustard vegetable was cooked to perfection and was a good contrast to the soft texture of the white bean curd. The plate left the table empty.

After clearing the table, they served complementary dessert. We did not ask what cookies those were but they were yummy.

Serving daily yum cha, they claim that all their meat dishes are substituted by imitation meat made of 100% natural ingredients such as soy bean. The food arrived quickly, the service was friendly, the place clean and was bustling with activity as nearly all their tables were taken up as dinner progressed (when we left, only 3 of their 12 or 13 tables were empty). They also provide takeaway and catering services.

I think I will be back. :)



Tian Ci Vegetarian Restaurant
1006 Victoria Road, West Ryde, NSW 2114, Australia
Te: +61 2 9874 9197
Sunday to Thursday 11:00am to 3:00pm, 5:00pm to 9:00pm
Friday & Saturday 11:00am to 3:00pm, 5:00pm to 10:00pm
Closed on Tuesday