Isthmus, Kuala Lumpur

A few months back, I made my first attempt to dine at Isthmus, Kuala Lumpur. But as luck would have it, we couldn't make it. Since then, lots of things happened and the idea of having a meal at Isthmus was shelved until today.

Anyway, to cut the long story short, I made reservation for dinner today and was I glad I finally did! The ambience was great, tasteful decor and excellent service.

We were given a table by the glass window. With soft music in the background to help us escape from the day's stress, we watched the heavy traffic of Mid Valley city below us. We were glad to take refuge in the peaceful atmosphere of the restaurant which itself was a balm.

Oh, I didn't say about the food? They were of quality ingedients and very well put together.

Let's see what we had....

Wow Platter - combination of their appetiser offerings - I will explain a little bit more at the close-up pictures with the help of explanation from their website - the little glass bowl on the left of the Perrier bottle is the garlic oil glaze for the blue-coloured dumplings on the plate.

Lotus Blue Dumplings - lotus shaped dumplings (dyed with natural extract of bunga telang/clitoria (yea, it really is the name!)/butterfly pea flower) filled with caramelised minced chicken. Scoop glaze over when ready to eat. It is best eaten when warm as recommended by the well-trained service staff. So, we dug into these pretty blue jewels first (AFTER the photo which they graciously allowed us to take, of course). Mmmmm, delicious esp. with the garlic!

It is just amazing how delicately these were made esp. the skin! A masterpiece by itself.

Salmon Gravlax - I am not a big fan of cured fish/meats but these are just so wonderfully made - tasted light and it has no fishy smell. And the dressing went very well with it. Just look at the lovely pink of the salmon flesh contrasting against the cool greens.
Simply Avocado - The webite description read "Tempura-fried avocado rolls wrapped in thin slices of eggplant with a rice almond batter. This is served with a tangy jade green sesame coriander puree. "

I would just call them Rolls to Die For! Well, I am an avocado lover - you are reading someone who orders avocado tempura maki at Zen Restaurant, Sunway Pyramid at EVERY visit and can finish off a whole bowl of guacamole.

The superthin eggplant was a superb idea - it holds the avocado yet thin enough not to overpower the creaminess of avocado. And the light, crispy batter lent the balance to the softness of the avocado and eggplant.

And the sauce? The tangi-ness of it worked and-in-hand with the batter to balance the sweetness and creaminess of the avocado.

These rolls elevated my love for avocados many, many notches higher. Puy Lentil Cutlets (can't recall actual name) - Puy lentil is also known as poor man's caviar or caviar of lentils. This dish did live up to its name. I like!! esp. with the mildly spicy sauce. Again, the light touch was evident in the texture of lentil and the batter. It's texture was fine and not grainy as one would expect from lentils.

Oyster shoots with Stolichnaya vodka - we are not true blue vodka lovers but the beauty of these for us is they cleanse the palate since we had them last among the other appetiser on the platter. A nice round-up, I would say.
Foie Gras from their tapas menu - how can I resist my favourite food of all time? I would have preferred them less well-done but it was still delicious nonetheless.
Memory of Soup Kambing - Lamb shank cooked in spiced stock followed by braising in spiced tomato stew. The presentation made the dish looked like the head of a goat/calf...

I was expecting it to be tender to the point of the meat separating itself from the bone but this wasn't though it had a very nice aroma to it. Soak up the gravy with the bread and both your tastebuds and tummy will thank you for it. Chocolate Cherry Pudding - warm and rich! The tangy cherry did help to cut the richness (and psychologically reduced the guilt of indulging, probably?)
Durian Bavarois - Ahhh.... heaven for durian lovers! Fatal, if otherwise. A potent concotion that is chockful of quality durian. No skimping on this expensive fruit here. It was like eating durian flesh by itself! Indulge without the hassle of having to attack the thorny armour of the King of Fruits himself.

(Barry just read my draft.... and went 'Eeew, even this picture stinks!!!')... Oh well, one (wo)man's food is another (wo)man's poison; so the saying goes.... It was a wonderful dining experience which warrants another visit soon.

Isthmus, Kuala Lumpur
Unit B-G-3 Ground Floor, Northpoint, Mid Valley City,
No. 1 Medan Syed Putra Utara
59200 Kuala Lumpur
Tel : 03-2282 8112
Opens Mon - Sat : 12 to 3pm; 6pm till late.