Favola Le Meridien

My recent purchase over Groupon has brought me back to this lovely Italian restaurant for my second visit, where the first visit was 3 years ago. Please visit here for my first post on Favola.

Favola literally means fable in Italian, it is located at Level 8 of 5-Star Le Meridien Kuala Lumpur Hotel.

The whimsical dining environment is decorated with with Renaissance architectural features such as masks, high ceilings and several chandeliers hanging across the hall. 

The 3-course gourmet Italian meal is priced at RM69 per person instead of RM125.30. Please click here for the details of the deal I purchased over Groupon.

Antipasti (appetizer), literally means "before meal", can be anything from bread to cheese and butter. In this case, 3 types of breads are freshly served hot from the oven with 3 types of sauce for dipping at your own liking. Although the size of the bread had shrunken to half as compared to my previous visit, but still adequate for 2-persons sharing.

Four choices are available for selection, in which two of them are salads. Rucola e salsiccia anatra (RM45) was chosen, which consists of Arugula, sliced pear, gorgonzola cheese, duck sausage and toasted walnut. For a non-salad palater, this would be the best salad I've indulged. The salad dressing and cheese make the Arugula tasted so rich and aromatic.

 The other two choices left on the appetizer menu are soups. Instead of the traditional Minestrone, Zuppa di fungi calabrese (RM35), which consists of assorted mushrooms cooked in milk with rustic garlic bread and Swiss cheese. As expected, the fresh mushroom soup tasted far superior which makes the usual canned soup paled into insignificance in comparison.

Similar to appetizer, 4 choices of Secondi (literally means second course) also are up for selection, in which pizzas and pastas equally make up the numbers. What would Italian cuisine become without these two?!

The signature Favola Pizza (RM40) is an easy choice obviously. The Italian pizza is topped with fresh slices of tomato, fresh mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, basil pesto and sizzled with olive oil. Although the ingredients are relatively simple, the pizza's taste and aroma is world's apart from the ordinary franchises' pizzas. The combination of cheeses which melt in your mouth deserves the extra credits too! 

 As for the pasta, Gamberetti ai Pinoli (RM45) was chosen instead of the Bolognese Beef, literally it means shrimps and pine nuts.

The pasta is stir-fried with decent numbers of prawns, chilli, garlic, parsley, pine nuts and mushrooms in extra virgin olive oil.

 As for Dolci (dessert), we were given choices of  two. The first dessert is Double espresso tart with fresh Chantilly cream (RM20). The bitterness from the tart is expected as it is made from double espresso, but the overall flavour is balanced by the sweetness of crème Chantilly, which is a kind of sweetened whip cream.

The other dessert would be 2 scoops of Italian gelato (RM16), chocolate and vanilla flavours, which are both smooth and creamy, typical of any gelato. As a conclusion, my second visit to Favola is worth the price I pay over Groupon for such a fine dining experience over the Italian restaurant. Longing for a third visit, third time's a charm, perhaps?!  

Favola

Address: Level 8, Le Meridien Kuala Lumpur Hotel, 

               No. 2, Jalan Stesen Sentral, 50470 Kuala Lumpur. 

Phone: 03-2263 7434 (Call 9am – 6pm daily)

Operating hours: 12pm – 2.30pm / 6.30pm – 10.30pm daily

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Favola Italian Restaurant at Le Méridien

Italian cuisine has always associated with sophistication and classiness, which always been one of my favourite dishes. I was given the privilege to try out one of the fine Italian dining in Kuala Lumpur, in conjunction with my favourite festive season of the year, Christmas.

1). Favola literally means fable in Italian, it is located at Level 8 of one of the most prestige hotel in the heart of our capitol city.

2). The Crudo bar is decorated with painting from Renaissance's period, where the chefs prepared their cold appetizers.  

3). The dining area able to seat in 75 persons. The private dining room is divisible into 2 with different themes and can accommodate up to 20 persons.

4). Wine is not to be left out during such occasion, so I ordered a house-pour glass of Tuscany Banfi Col di Sasso Cabernet Sangiovese vintage 2007. Honestly it is one of the best I've tasted, if not the best..

5). Antipasti is the Italian word for appetizer, literally means "before meal", can be anything from bread to cheese and butter. Three types of bread are served hot from the oven with three types of sauce for dipping at your own liking.

6). Antipasti can served in hot (caldi) or cold (freddo) dishes. Roasted scallops (RM55) is one of hot appetizer and signatured dish offered in the menu, where fresh scallops are roasted on top of meshed cauliflower and truffle. Biggest scallops I have eaten so far..

7). Favola also offers a wide range of dishes for Vegetarians as well. One of the signatured caldi antipasti is the Garlic and Thyme Roasted Portobello (RM35), where braised spinach topped with Lombardy Taleggio cheese and with Portobello mushrooms underneath it. Well, not everyone is herbivore though, I had my fair share of veggies throughout my vegetable boy life.

8). Primi, which means first course ranges from pasta dish, soup or a rich rice and butter dish called a risotto, can be served on its own before the main course. Risotto is a class of Italian dishes of rice cooked in broth to a creamy consistency. It is also the most common way of cooking rice in Italy. In this case, we decided to give our "virginity" to Risotto con Aragosta (RM50), where Italian rice is cooked with lobster, green asparagus, lemon zest, green pea foam, parmesan cheese, butter, and onion. Well, not my bowl of rice though, as it tasted like half-rice and half-porridge, unless you prefer "soft rice".

9). Second primi to come is the Venetian pizza, where thin crusted pizza is topped with lobster, scallops, prawns, calamari and clams, literally it meets seafood pizza. The pizza is freshly baked in pizza stove, where you can observe the chef in action by tossing the dough and tucking into the oven. The crust is so thin and crispy, topped with lots of Parmesan cheese. An a big fan of pizza, it is simply the best pizza I have tasted since Pizza Bagus in Bali, Indonesia 2 years ago!

10). Secondi means the second course in Italian. The main course usually features a protein dish such as meat, poultry, lamb or even fish, just like any other cuisines. Mutton has always been one of my favourite meat,as I give the Pot Roasted Lamb Shank (RM75) a try, topped with cilantro gremolata. Well, it turns out even better than the franchised cake shop's award-winning version.

11). Beef is must-order dish for me, being the only beef on menu, Charcoal Grilled Black Angus Ribeye Fiorentina (RM130) is the chosen one. A 340g of ribeye is grilled medium rare with lemon halves, natural salt and served with polenta cake and truffle mashed potato. However, it turn out to be a poor choice after all, as it was over-charred frankly speaking, with burnt aroma with every bite. Yikes, should have try their pasta or some other seafood instead.

12). Dolci is the word for dessert in Italian, where famous desserts are made, namely Gelato and Tiramisu We are told of a recipe which was given to the chef by a friend, and made him swear on a stack of ice cream that he would never reveal the recipe, which refers to Cassata (RM30), a traditional sweet from Sicily, Italy. It consists of sponge cake moistened with fruit juices and layered with rich Häagen Dazs Vanilla, Strawberry and Pistachio ice-cream, candied peel, pink and green pastel, and served with candied fruit depicting cherries and slices of citrus fruit characteristic of Sicily. It literally melts in your mouth, not on your spoon. A wonderful piece of ice-cream cake nonetheless! With Häagen Dazs around, what more I need to say?!

13). As I have stressed over and over again, a meal is never complte without its dessert. There should always be room for dessert and you should not miss the chance to taste the Illy inspired Tiramisu (RM40), a modern take on the traditional favourite with layers of soft sponge soaked in freshly brewed Illy coffee, panna cotta, mascarpone foam and topped with cookie croutons. This is really the surprise of the night, where the chocolate shavings explodes in our mouths and we really loved and enjoy it!

14). We were presented with a small cup of Mini Pandolce Tiramisu, which is the miniature version of Illy inspired Tiramisu. It looks similar and it tasted almost the same, with the Tiramisu filling.

15). Last but not least, the finale to a satisfying meal comes with a decent mouth washer, where you are given the choice with Illy Coffee Selection of Ronnefeldt Tea and Coffee and served with Home made Pistachio Biscott. What an enjoyable and relaxing dinner I had, thrilled with anticipation and stomach-fulled with food. Not only does the food speak for itself, the spirit of dining is characterised by playful indulgence, togetherness and comfort to create the warmth and spirit of an Italian cuisine. Definitely my choice of Italian restaurant! Being a Starwood Prefered Guest, exclusive dining benefits can be enjoyed here when you present the membership card to the staff there. For more information, please visit their website at http://www.lemeridiendining.com.my/index.php?mid=28. Buona appetito!

Favola Italian Restaurant 

Location : Level 8, Le Méridien Hotel Kuala Lumpur

Address : No.2, Jalan Stesen Sentral, Kuala Lumpur Sentral,  

                50470 Kuala Lumpur.

Operation hours : Daily Lunch (except Saturday) : 12.00 pm to 2.30 pm

                           Daily Dinner : 6.30 pm to 11 pm
Tel : 03-22637434
e-mail : dining.lmkl@lemeridien.com