Favola is a fairly new Italian restaurant in Le Meridien (taking over where Al Nafourah used to be). As it is part of the Starwood hotels, we decided to make full use of my friend Verena's membership card*:
(*One person's meal is discounted in the meal - most "worth it" when it's 2 people dining)
The decor in Favola has a touch of whimsy and fantasy, with classic stark black and white tiles contrasted with wall to wall murals and playful carnival masks:
(I guess it all plays into the name, Favola, which means fable in Italian)
Can you believe that one of my highlights for the night was the bread? (free!):
As expected of any reputable high end restaurant, Favola offers a range of different breads to start your meal. While the bread(s) were fairly normal actually, one of the 3 dips they served with it ROCKED.
*drool*
I think it was fluffed up butter with truffle oil added?... Anyway, it was DIVINE.
(DIVINE, I tells ya!)
To start, we tried the Bresaola (RM 35++) - Air dried beef slices with fresh fig:
The thin slices of beef were salty, paired with tender, sweet fig and spicy rocket leaves. Not everyone may enjoy it but it was definitely an interesting dish.
Next up, the Stuffed Mussels (RM 35++):
Slightly fishy taste, but otherwise it was ok - I liked the fragrant tomato broth it came with.
One of our mains - the Conchiglioni Marinara al Cartoccio (RM 45++) - Baked shell pasta in seafood sauce:
One of the stand out dishes that night, simple but delicious - pasta with seafood and tomato based sauce, wrapped in paper and baked. I really liked the tomato sauce, tart and fragrant.
Also, we had the Risotto Parmagianno (RM 40++) - Cheesey mushroom risotto:
Overall this tasted pretty good - a hearty dish of moist but al dente risotto bursting with woody mushroom and slight truffle flavour.
(May be a bit jelak after a while as most, if not all, risottos are)
We also tried the Lasagna Al-Forno (RM 45++) - Wagyu Lasagna:
Um. This was supposed to be gloriously tender chunks of wagyu baked into a hearty, cheese-y lasagna... but it fell short of expectations.... :(
(Was kinda oily.... and not really very meaty...)
(So sorry for recommending this to you Rizal!)
Last of the mains - the Osso bucco (RM 80++):
Overall ok. Bursting with flavour but strangely, a bit chewy at the same time.
(The accompanying mashed potatoes with truffle oil and a dash of caviar was really nice though)
As for dessert, we tried the Budina di Chocolat (RM 25++) and the Canoli (RM 25++):
Overall both were ok:
- the budina di chocolate: moist molten chocolate cake served with ice cream.
- the canoli: smooth hazelnut chocolate mousse encased in a dense, slightly crisp pastry.
(LOL. We are terrible. We were all giggling about how the Canoli looked kinda "suggestive"...)
So, it's: Friendly staff, good array of classic Italian dishes, nice ambience BUT there are some hits and misses on the menu and can be a bit expensive without the Starwood card.....
Restaurant Review
Summary Sheet:
Favola @ Le Meridien Hotel, KL
7th Floor, Le Meridien KL, 2 Jalan Stesen Sentral, 50470 K.L.
Taste: 6
Ambience : 7
Service : 7
Price** : RM 105++ per person
Parking: OK but can be expensive ***
** Approximation - 3 course meal, excluding drinks (but if you have the Starwood card, it can be a lot cheaper)
*** Don't forget to get your ticket validated by the front desk, to get a flat rate charge of RM8 (tell them you ate at the restaurant)...
Telephone No.: 03-2263 7888
Opening Hours: 12.30pm - 2.30pm (except Saturday), 6.30pm - 10.30pm (everyday)
NO PORK SERVED
OTHER REVIEWS:
- Cumi dan Ciki
- The Butterfly-mess
- Eat Drink KL
- Fat Boy Bakes
- A Lil Fat Monkey
- Masak-Masak
- Quirky Malaysia
TAGS: Food, Blog, Weblog, Malaysia, Restaurant Review, Le Meridien Hotel KL, Italian, Starwood Privilege Card, Favola, Fine Dining, KL, Kuala Lumpur
Posts
u ordered so much, thats y!
ReplyDeleteif i think i can (i should be) order an appetiser, 2 mains and a dessert, should be less than your quoted price rite?
unless some kind soul will lend me their starwood card hehe.
to "Joe" who is constantly craving:
ReplyDeleteWoi. Not because I ordered too much lah. :P
There were quite a few of us that night and generally, I calculate the price per person by adding:
- 1 appetiser (RM35++),
- 1 dessert (RM 25++), and
- an average between the most expensive main (RM 80++) and the cheapest main (RM 40++) but slightly weighted to the amount of cheaper dishes available (so in this case I put it down as RM 50++).
*tadah!*
:)
Erm... is it too complicated?
argh this is bad! i've not have bread for a while since i'm trying to cutting it down from eating it everyday :p now this is making me hungry for some!
ReplyDeleteoooo...what a feast`
ReplyDeleteluckily i just ate my lunch.. :)
to babe_kl:
ReplyDeleteSorry to tempt you! :)
Hmmmm...
But isn't it ok to have some bread once in a while? Especially if it's yummy delicious bread? :) :)
to taufulou:
Yeah, the fun thing about going out in bigger groups is that we all get to try out each other's food. :D
(Sharing is caring, right? Haha...)
Yeah.. Jenn & I utilised the Starwood discount while dining in Favola :) 50% discount with another RM50 voucher.. lol!! Feels like having a cheap Italian meal upon seeing the final price
ReplyDeleteI liked the bread!! Hehehe..me bread whore mah!
ReplyDeleteI have yet to try their pizzas and pasta cos i went for the Antipasti buffet
http://www.rebeccasaw.com/?p=423
Think tis more worth it! ;p
(avail on sat!)
to thule aka leo:
ReplyDeleteIt's so worth it right?? :)
I wish I had one but I don't think I will use it enough to justify the membership cost... :(
to tng:
Don't worry babe, you are not alone. Haha...
J <--- Carb addict
The canoli look so cute. Have to agree with the "most value" way of using the starwood card. LOL
ReplyDeleteyumzz
ReplyDeleteto qwazymonkey:
ReplyDeleteYeah - Buy one free one = super worth it! :) :)
to ciki:
Haha... Am I tempting you with carbs?
Went there this week, ordered anti-pasti and dessert buffet. Very disappointing. Buffet my foot. There is no buffet line boys and girls, and they bring it to you on a big plate with a variety of 6 anti-pasti suitable for a mouse. And when we asked for re-fills it took them ages as if they do not want to serve you more. The dessert? OMG. If they call that dessert buffet, they must be mad. Only a variety of syrup fruits, crappy tiramisu taste has crappy texture, and no gelato. What a con job IMHO. Not worth a sen. And the mains aren't that great at all. A Very big disappointment.
ReplyDeleteto Andrew:
ReplyDeleteSad to hear that you had such a bad experience there. :(