MONTE’S RESTAURANT AND WINE BAR,
F112 and F113, First Floor,
Bangsar Shopping Centre,
S135, Jalan Maarof,
Bukit Bandaraya, Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: 03-2094 1112
Business Hours: 11.30am to 11.00pm (Monday-Sunday)
SOME of the things that bring returning customers to a restaurant, apart from the good food, is the sense of familiarity.
Tucked away in the corner on the first floor of Bangsar Shopping Centre is Monte’s Restaurant and Wine Bar, known to many who frequent the mall.
Monte’s interior.
The restaurant has been around for 10 years; serving loyal customers from nearby housing areas and offices who keep coming back for their favourites.
In November last year, it was bought over by The Oriental Group.
The company has retained the wait staff and chefs as well as the menu but upgraded the restaurant to give it a better look.
It also has three rooms for private functions.
It was my first time at the restaurant and from its name, I could not figure out the type of food that would be served for lunch.
Dynamite Genius Sdn Bhd executive director Lyn Siew, who oversees the restaurant’s management, revealed that Monte’s offered fusion meals.
Siew said the restaurant was one of the oldest in the mall and had maintained its affordable price range on its menu.
I was eager to taste some of its popular favourites.
The Escargot is a dish I was told to try and it certainly did not disappoint.
A must try is the Monte’s Escargot which comes in rich baked creamy Chablis and garlic sauce.
The mere mention of snails would make most gag but the aroma of the dish enticed me to give it a go.
Baked in a creamy garlic and Chablis sauce, the half dozen escargot (RM25) can be savoured with warm milk buns or eaten on its own.
Next, we had the Cheesy Nachos which was a little different from the ones I have tried.
This serving resembled pizza pieces with melted cheddar cheese on crispy corn tortilla chips and minced chicken.
The Cheesy Nachos.
Cheese lovers will enjoy this dish as it had a tinge of spice in its filling and tasted like curry puff.
There is also a vegetarian option (RM23) and beef filling (RM25).
This family restaurant also serves meals the whole family can enjoy.
One such dish is the Seafood Potpouri (RM60) (top pic), a plate of grilled platter of barramundi and salmon fillets, river prawns and calamari in turmeric and cream sauce.
It takes a leaf from Malay recipes that use coconut milk often known as masak lemak. In this version, the cooks have preferred turmeric and cream instead of cili padi andcoconut milk.
I found the Oxtail Soup (RM23) a little spicy because of the inclusion of black pepper in the beef broth.
The meat was tender with less fat and the soup, nice and thick.
Another popular choice with loyal customers is the Ribeye Steak (RM70) served with broccoli, onions, capsicum and tomatoes.
The Ribeye Steak is served with broccoli, onions, capsicum and tomatoes.
The seasoning tasted different and I could not put my finger on the ingredients used.
Despite having a toothache, my photographer Sia managed to eat it, proving the meat’s tenderness.
Diners can have a choice of mushroom, garlic or black pepper sauce to go with their steak.
A new dish on the menu and my favourite is the Chicken Mornay.
Yet another creamy favourite, it was tasty but its sauce was not as rich as the escargot treat.
The chicken, topped with creamy spinach sauce and cheese, was served with broccoli, carrots and tomatoes.
Monte’s Chocolate Brownies is comes in layers of whipped cream, ice-cream and warm chocolate nutty brownies with chocolate syrup drizzled around the plate for added taste.
Every meal deserves a good ending and we had Chocolate Brownies with Ice Cream, topped with whipped cream and cherry.
Monte’s version is not too sweet and chocolate lovers will be able to delight in the chocolate syrup drizzled around the plate.
It was definitely a nice way to end the meal.
This is the writer’s personal observation and not an endorsement by StarMetro.
