It was also my first time trying Khmer cuisine as they weren't as popular as Thai nor Viet food in Malaysia/Singapore.

After some consideration, we decided to go to Ben's at Pavilion to celebrate one of my friend's birthday. To be frank, I've never been to Ben's although I've wanted to go there since forever. We didn't expect the place to be quite full at 2-3pm but it seemed that we've forgotten about afternoon tea.





So anyway, the ambiance there is quite good but it is a little stuffy towards the back of the restaurant because it's on the top floor of the building and also, the heat spell here lasted for almost a month (which is about month without rain. trust me, it's devastating).



Although they mostly serve Western food, you can find a few local dishes as well. For me, I'd rather take the Western food. Being a student, I had a budget. Therefore, I chose to share with some friends of mine.





Ben's: To eat is to love.





We ordered a Grilled Pesto Chicken, which is awesome. It was recommended by one of my friends as she likes it very much. Now, I'm officially a fan of grilled chicken. The chicken wasn't too soft nor too hard and the avocado feta enhanced the taste of the sandwich. Thumbs up!
The sandwich comes with a salad and some chips. We requested some tartar sauce to go with the chips to give it more flavour. It is also good without the tartar sauce.



Our Mushroom Lasagne. I'm not a huge fan of lasagne to start with but one of my friend wanted to try it so it's on the table. I had a few mouthfuls and I don't know, maybe I'm just not the lasagne kind of person... it wasn't too bad after all.



Also, a Spaghettini Pomodoro, which is basically a tomato-based pasta with sun-dried tomatoes and herbs. Even though it seems common enough, the spaghettini is quite good.



This. This is a must-try. I've only had a spoonful (or forkful?) of this. Their Golden Soft-shell Crab Spaghettini is heavenly! Even though it is written "curry leaves and cili padi", it is not too spicy. The sauce is not too creamy and you won't feel bloated or nauseous even after finishing a whole plate by yourself (some creamier ones do tend to make one feel nauseous after a little while).



For dessert, Chocolate Truffle Torte. Each of the three words in the name of the cake is on my top favourite list of food. They use dark chocolate so that it's not too sweet (darn. did I mention that I LOVE dark chocolate?). What's not to love about truffle anyway? By the way, the cold glass of milk is not meant to be poured onto the cake (which was what happened shortly after the cake was set on the table.. such an unfortunate incident indeed. but the cake still tastes good despite the incident).

All in all, it is a very good place to eat and to hang out with friends but we kinda rushed because we threw my friend a surprise party after that so perhaps I'll just swing by again in the near future. ;)

Visit the Facebook page of the Ben's outlet in Pavilion.
You could download the menu from their website or check for available outlets there too.

Went to Ativo Square at Sri Damansara during my visit to my godparents who live there. They recommended Kakatoo for lunch as it serves both Western and Nyonya food. They've tried it a few times and of course, their reviews were good.



And so, we took our time ordering our food and drinks. The waiter was pretty friendly and patient as we couldn't quite make up our mind on what to eat (oops).













I like their displays and how they designed the interior part of the place. It has a vintage-y look like most cafes but it has its share of parrots too (since the name of the place is Kakatoo).


Kakatoo Cafe Facebook Page
Lot B-2-6, Block B, Ativo Plaza, 
Mon - Sun: 11:30 am - 10:00 pm

Mom bought another Groupon voucher for Twenty.One the same time she bought the vouchers for the buffet at Sheraton Imperial. (What? It's good to minimise the cost!)

Located at Bangsar Shopping Complex, Twenty.One - Tables + Terrace is the sister restaurant of Twenty.One - Kitchen + Bar. Unfortunately, I did not get to taste the alcoholic drinks there because I'm pretty much underage and my mom was opposite me throwing daggers, daring me to order a drink for myself. (yes, I'm exaggerating) Anyway, the first thing that I noticed about the place was the ambiance.



Wow. There are even fountains. LOVE IT.







And you even get serviced while using the restroom. I was pretty surprised when I couldn't find the sink after using the toilet but there was someone there to supply you with soap and a hand towel. Now THAT'S a first.





It was my grandparents' last day in KL so we brought them there for dinner. They told me afterwards that the food was quite good. I had the same thought.





First up on the table was bread and olive oil, plus some spice. Dip the chunks of bread into the olive oil then into the spice. Cinnamon? It's not in the menu and we didn't order for it so it's complimentary I guess. (and the charges are included in the receipt)



Then the wild mushroom soup. I have to say that out of the few dishes that day, this is the most unsatisfactory. The soup wasn't salty enough. It lacked taste and to avoid wastage we decided to finish it whatsoever.





Then some fried calamari and popcorn chicken. The fried calamari is average but the popcorn chicken, it's a little bit on the soft side but there's still a little crispiness to it and I find it quite nice with the sweet chili dip.



Pan fried seabass with apple salsa, boy choy and turkey ham was quite good too. The seabass is crispy enough and the sauce is compatible too.



"Penne pasta drowned in a three cheese creamy sauce, diced chicken and sundried tomatoes" is next on the table. It sounds fattening, with all the "three cheese creamy sauce" but it tastes good. It doesn't make you feel bloated but makes you want to have more.



And mushroom risotto with tempura oyster mushrooms and parmesan wafer too. (now I realised I've misread the menu the first time. I thought that the risotto came together with oysters, silly me.) Havn't had risotto for months and it doesn't make you feel bloated either.





Last but not least, dessert! I shared it a little with my bro and sis. Creme brulee has always been my favourite. :3 So I loved the passionfruit creme brulee with dark chocolate mousse & caramel. Three out of the four kinds of food in the dessert are my all-time favs. How could I not love it?! Plus, I heard some say that dark chocolate can in fact make you slimmer... (all the more reason to eat more dark chocolates)



I can't say that it's cheap because our bill totaled up to RM230+ so it's a good thing to have Groupon vouchers..

Check out their Facebook page or drop by their website to find out more or to make reservations.

Am off for another vacation so I'll blog after that. I promise. I was a little busy with the tons of schoolwork and tests last week and outings this week. So till the next time! p.s. love the new phone! all photos taken with the little birthday present I got from mom (and I had to pay half of it.. oh well, no complains)