Pizza Hut Delivery (PHD) @ Bandar Manjalara, Kuala Lumpur

Pizza Hut is a common restaurant that is preferred by all Malaysians. Though I have been going around trying different cuisines at various restaurants, it has indeed been sometime that I ordered a Pizza. Today for a change, I decided to try out Pizza Hut. I think the last I had this was more than a year ago.

Pizza Delivered To My Place

I never realised that they had changed their number and I was calling Pizza Hut's old number and that was when I was advised that Pizza Hut no longer delivers to my zone and I had to place my orders at PHD which is a sister company. Their menu and offerings differ slightly. I then called 1300 88 2525 and placed my orders. Since I was alone, I wanted to have the Personal Pan only but then was advised that for delivery, there has to be a minimum amount of RM 20 worth of orders for them to deliver. I then added some sides and the bill came to RM 22.45. With that, I was told that the pizza would be sent within 30 minutes. I was amused with their confidence on the waiting time but in my mind, I had thought that it would be slightly longer as it was raining heavily and the traffic was quite bad.

Hawaian Chicken @ RM 9.80

Juicy Chunks of Pineapple 

To  my surprise, the pizza was delivered in 28 minutes as promised. This is definitely great customer service. The pizza was delivered hot just the way it is served at their restaurants. Pizza Huts pizza's are of good standards but they should not be compared to those specialty Pizza restaurants with Italian chefs. For a fast food chain, I would say that their Pizza's are quite decent. The ingredients and good, fresh and sufficiently good for mid tier pizza's. The Hawaian Chicken pizza came with good amounts of chicken chunks, pineapple and cheese toppings. I would rate the above pizza at 7/10 .

Spicy Chicken Fingers (8 pcs) @ RM 7.90

Spicy Chicken Fingers

This was definitely a fantastic dish. I don't think that Pizza Hut could have come up with this dish if not for their backing from Ayamas which is now owned by the same group.It has been a long time since I had a Chicken Fingers which is this good. Definitely highly recommended and I would rate this at 9/10 .

Garlic Bread Delivered in Aluminium Foil

Garlic Bread @ RM 3.50

Closer Look

The Garlic Bread from Pizza Hut is always good and is one of my favourite Garlic Breads. It has a good amount of garlic spread and is deliciously hot and soft. For the price of RM 3.50, this is definitely very good quality. I would rate this at 9/10 .

The Bill

On the whole, I am very satisfied with the meal today. I think that they are a good mid tier Pizza restaurant selling affordable pizza's to the masses. Definitely worth using their services every once in a while.

Address: No.1, First Floor, Jalan 3/62A, Bandar Manjalara, 52200 Kuala Lumpur

Telephone: +603 6272 0239

Website: http://phdelivery.com.my/

O' Coffee Club @ Mont Kiara, Kuala Lumpur

Located in 1 Mont Kiara Mall is another restaurant called O'Coffee Club. This outlet is located on the Ground Floor of the mall and can be easily spotted once you are inside. This is actually a gourmet franchise outlet from Singapore and has two branches in Malaysia. The first one is in 1 Mont Kiara Mall and the other is in Fahrenheit 88. 

Indoor Seating Space

This restaurant has a huge dining space within the air conditioned mall and as I was here doing some work, I wanted to be seated inside rather than outside as it is more quiet on the inside. The outside seating is rather small with just two tables. Mostly their staffs would be seen having their meals here. This restaurant has a wide variety of different cuisines and the pricing is usually on the high side and the portions are rather huge. I would not say that I am a great fan of this restaurant but as I was looking for a quiet space to work with WiFi, this seemed like a good option.  

Latte @ RM 8.50

Comes with a Cookie

As I was busy working, I just wanted to have a drink and so ordered the above Latte. It comes with a small cookie and is priced at RM 8.50 . The drink was quite decent although I would not say that it was anywhere near great. I would rate it at 8/10 .

Set Lunch

Food Promotions

I did not realise the time passing and it had already become 1 pm. Since I was here, I decided to try one of their Lunch Sets. Browsing through the above promotions, I decided upon the Mutton Briyani. Their sets comes with a main course and a drink which is either Coffee or Iced Tea. 

Black Coffee

Milk

I choose the Coffee and it was served black with milk on the sides. Once again, their coffee was just above average. I would rate this at 6.5/10 .

Mutton Briyani Set @ RM 21.00

The above is the Mutton Briyani Set. It comes with Mutton Briyani, Acar Rampai and Nasi Hujan. The aroma of the mutton was definitely very aromatic and appetising. 

Nasi Hujan

I am not sure why they call this Nasi Hujan, perhaps due to the colours. The rice was under cooked and some parts still tasted very grainy. Nothing great, in fact I found this to be sub standard. I would only rate this rice at 4/10 . 

Acar Rampai

The Acar Rampai was very well prepared. I must say that the vegetables were fresh and they tasted good. It was also well prepared  and tasted just the way it should be. I would rate their Acar at 9/10 .

Mutton Briyani

The Mutton Briyani was excellent. The gravy was just about the right taste and the mutton chunks were very well cooked and they were tender. The only setback here would be the lack of potato's in the gravy. If they had added some potato's, then it would have been an excellent dish. I would rate their Mutton Briyani at 9.3/10 .

With the rice being bad, I ended up having this dish with very limited rice but finished the mutton and acar. I have dined in this restaurant before and had been faced with the similar kind of dissatisfaction. For a while, that had been the reason as to why I had not returned here. After a few months, I am trying their food again and found it to be slightly improved but still needs loads of improvement. They should definitely work on improving their dishes.

Address: Lot G-3A, G-5 & G-6, Ground Floor, 1 Mont Kiara, 

               No. 1 Jalan Kiara, Mont Kiara, 50480 Kuala Lumpur.

Opening Hours: 1000 - 2200 Daily

Telephone: +603 6411 0201

Toastina Cafe & Bar @ Sheraton Imperial Hotel, Kuala Lumpur

Toastina Cafe & Bar is located on the Ground Floor of Sheraton Imperial Hotel, Kuala Lumpur. This is one of those casual restaurants in this hotel that is well suited for business discussions over a cup of coffee or even for those intending to have some light snacks. 

The Outside Seating Area

The Outside Seating Area

The Indoor Cafe Section

Indoor Cafe Section

This restaurant is somewhat divided into three sections. The indoor cafe seating area, indoor bar area and an outdoor bar seating area. The bar area seems to be decorated in a more posh manner whereas the cafe area is simpler in design but suits the theme well.

Highlights of the Month

The Coffee Bar

Snacks available for the day

Value for money Breakfast Sets

Ordering here is fairly simple, just head over to the counter, choose your items and having paid for them, you would be notified once they are ready as you would need to self collect them. The interesting thing is that when I first walked in, I did not notice that they had these breakfast sets and ended up ordering Ala Carte and paid Ala Carte prices when the same items are available as a set for a much cheaper price without compromising the portion size and I was not notified by the staffs. Anyway, I shall accept this as my fault. Coming back to the offering, there wasn't a menu available and the food is pretty much those items that were displayed in the glass shelf which covered some pastries, pies, Nasi Lemak, Mee Hoon and some sandwiches.  

Flat White @ RM 14.00

The Flat White was not bad actually though it was nothing great. It was typically decent coffee but you pay five star prices for it. I would rate their coffee at 6.5/10 .

Nasi Lemak @ RM 3.50

Quite A Lot Of Sambal

A different angle

The Nasi Lemak was priced at RM 3.50 and it was quite bad. If this was a road side stall, it would have long gone out of business. The rice was not fragrant at all, the Sambal was too spicy and it was just flat. If not for the peculiar spiciness, this dish would have been tasteless. The only thing good about this Nasi Lemak was the Fried Anchovies and Peanuts. Otherwise, a dull dish. I would rate this at 4/10 .

Brewed Coffee (Breakfast Set 2 @ RM 10.00)

Having known about their Breakfast Sets from the previous day's experience (well, this was my breakfast the following day), I ordered the Breakfast Set 2 which comes with a glass of Fresh Brewed Coffee, Pancakes with Butter and Honey and some Fruit Yogurt and all this for RM 10.00 nett. Just like the previous day, the coffee came in the same sized mug and I ended up paying RM 14.00 just for the coffee the previous day. Their Fresh Brewed Coffee was better than the Flat White and I would rate this at 7/10 .

Pancakes with Butter & Honey

Closer Look at the Pancakes

Their Pancakes was nice and the portion size was very satisfying. It had three thick pancakes, a good amount of lightly salted butter and some honey. This was way better than their Nasi Lemak that I had the previous day. I would rate this dish at 8.5/10 .

Fat Free Fruit Yogurt

To finish the breakfast on a healthy note, the above Fat Free Fruit Yogurt was also provided. If you were to dine here and that too for breakfast, I would strongly suggest to go for their Breakfast Sets instead of the individual items and please do stay away from their Nasi Lemak. Located within the Nasi Lemak Zone of KL which is Kampung Baru, Toastina's Nasi Lemak is a sheer embarrassment. 

Address: Ground Floor, Sheraton Imperial Kuala Lumpur, 

                Jalan Sultan Ismail, 50250 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Telephone: +603 2717 9352

Opening Hours: 

                          Cafe: Monday - Friday 0700 - 1900 

                                    Closed on Saturday & Sunday

                          Bar: Monday - Saturday 1100 - 0100

                                   Closed on Sundays

Email: restaurants.imperial@sheraton.com

Website: http://www.sheratonimperialkualalumpur.com/toastinacafeandbar

O'Coffee Club @ Mont Kiara, Kuala Lumpur

Located in 1 Mont Kiara Mall is another restaurant called O'Coffee Club. This outlet is located on the Ground Floor of the mall and can be easily spotted once you are inside. This is actually a gourmet franchise outlet from Singapore and has two branches in Malaysia. The first one is in 1 Mont Kiara Mall and the other is in Fahrenheit 88. 

Coffee Club @ 1 Mont Kiara

Outside Seating on the other End

This restaurant has a huge dining space within the air conditioned mall but as I do smoke, I preferred to be seated outside. The outside seating is rather small with just two tables. Mostly their staffs would be seen having their meals here. This restaurant has a wide variety of different cuisines and the pricing is usually on the high side and the portions are rather huge too. I would not say that I am a great fan of this restaurant but as I was walking past today, I spotted their Set Lunches which seemed like value for money and that drew me to this restaurant today. 

Their Lunch Sets

Cutlery

Their lunch sets is only available for weekdays and that too between 1200 to 1500. They have two options to choose from, Western and Asian. The Western Set comes with a choice of either BBQ Chicken or Classic Chicken and is served with a choice of Mushroom, BBQ or Black Pepper Sauce. Above that, it also comes with a choice of Buttered Rice or Mashed Potato's. The Asian Set comes with a choice of Nyonya Chicken Curry or Lemongrass Chicken Curry and is served with Buttered Rice and Acar Rampai. Both sets comes with a glass of Ice Tea.  The Western Set is priced at RM 16.90 and the Asian Set is priced at RM 12.90 .

Ice Tea

Their Ice Tea was just quite basic and unsweetened. Of course sugar is provided and you could sweeten it to your preference. I found this to be just okay and would rate this at 7/10 .

BBQ Chicken with Mashed Potato's

BBQ Chicken

I went for the Western Set and chose the above BBQ Chicken with Mashed Potato's and the sauce of preference was the BBQ Sauce. The portion size was decent for the price paid but the taste let me down. I am not saying that it was bad, but it just was not good. The Chicken was rather hard too and the sauce was overly sweet and there seemed to be an overall flaw with the taste. It just did not hit the right notes on my palate. I would rate this dish at 5/10 . 

I have dined in this restaurant before and had been faced with the similar kind of dissatisfaction. For a while, that had been the reason as to why I had not returned here. After about a year, I am trying their food again and found it to be no different than what it was which is rather disappointing. They should definitely work on improving their dishes.

Address: Lot G-3A, G-5 & G-6, Ground Floor, 1 Mont Kiara, 

                No. 1 Jalan Kiara, Mont Kiara, 50480 Kuala Lumpur.

Opening Hours: 1000 - 2200 Daily

Telephone: +603 6411 0201

icook Italian gastronomia @ Petaling Jaya, Selangor

Here I am stuck in Dataran 3Two Square on a weekday at 5.30 pm right after a meeting. I was waiting for almost 40 minutes for a taxi to take me back to Mont Kiara and no one seemed to be interested to head in that direction except for one taxi that agreed to take me for a fare of RM 50.00 which I declined as I found it to be really ridiculous. I was certain that with the present after office traffic condition, I am going to go nowhere even if I waited for another 30 minutes and decided to have an early dinner. Behind me, there was this Italian restaurant by the name of icook Italian gastronomia. I walked across to check out the place and found it to be offering some great stuff. While standing outside the restaurant, did some Google search on my phone and found a lot of great stories about this restaurant and the owner Chef Nicola. It seems that they have another outlet that was started recently in Hartamas but that restaurant serves Pork in its menu and this outlet does not although I would have wished that it did. 

icook Italian gastronomia @ Dataran 3 Two Square, Petaling Jaya

The Burger Station

Ice Cream Anyone?

Simple & Nice Decoration

Warm Customer Service

It seems that they operate from two shop lots though the other one was closed and only the one portion is used as the Burger Station. I later learned that Chef Nicola does run cooking classes and it is held in the other portion that is closed to customers. Their staffs were predominantly foreigners and yet, they spoke pretty decent English and were very courteous in their reception. I took my seat and was immediately attended to by one of the waiters.  

The Menu

The Menu

The Menu

The Menu

The Menu

The above is just some of the pages from their menu. They mainly specialise in Italian dishes and this is spread across a number of varieties. They also serve a great variety of burgers. I was surprised to find vegetarian dishes listed in their menu and that's really great as we do have a number of Vegans who would love to explore other cuisines and not stick to the usual Indian and Chinese vegetarian dishes which is the commonly available ones. My usual time for dinner is around 9 pm. At 6pm, I know it was somewhat ambitious of me trying to have dinner but I was adamant and as such, I was only able to have a light dinner. I know myself and my capacity. Assuming this was 9pm, I would have been able to have at least two separate dishes but then, at this hour, I decided to settle for a burger. Being a great fan of lamb, their Lamb Palermo Burger was really attractive and I decided to go for it. I am really hoping to have a great burger. Just waiting for it to arrive now. 

Strawberry Soda @ RM 8.90

In usual circumstances, I would have gone for a coffee but being here, I wanted to try something truly Italian. That was when the term Italian Sodas caught my eyes. There were a number of sodas listed under this category and I went for the Strawberry Soda. I was say that it was really nice. Served lightly chilled, it was a concoction of soda and a strawberry drink. The touch of the soda was greater but that did not spoil the taste. It was nice but once again depending on your preference, there are a number of other variety of sodas that you may choose from. I would rate this drink at 8/10 .

Lamb Palermo Burger @ RM 17.90

Close Up of the Lamb Patty

Finally, my burger arrives in a basket filled with Potato Wedges. At a single glance, the burger seems very ordinary but when I held it in my hands, typical old school way of having burgers and dipped my teeth in it for the very first time, it was heaven in my palate. With all the juices flowing along my fingers, I have never tasted any Lamb Burger that was better than this. The patty was typically minced Lamb meat yet it was extremely juicy and oh yeah it was really good. The very first thought that ran through my mind as I took the first bite was that I should definitely bring my father here as he too, just like me, is a lamb lover. I knew that there were a number of other ingredients in the burger and I didn't care. I just loved the meat and put together, everything about this was plain perfection. When the burger was served, the waiter did ask me if I would prefer Chili or Tomato Sauce and I said Chili. We all know that we cannot have Mc Donalds burgers without these sauces but in this case, these were not needed and I never did use the Chili Sauce except for the wedges. I must congratulate Chef Nicola for really perfecting this dish and it is sad....really sad that I am not able to try other dishes here tonight. I would definitely rate this dish at 10/10 and trust me, I would return soon to try some of their other dishes. Great stuff and keep it up guys!!! A highly recommended restaurant!!!

Address: No. B-06-01, Ground Floor, Dataran 3 Two Square, 

                Jalan 19/1, 46300 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia.

Opening Hours: 1200 - 2300 Daily

Telephone: +603 7960 1691

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/icookitalian