Many visitors will enjoy walking up the green, serene, steep slope leading to Subak’s reception. I would try too, if only I knew. With hip-hop music blasting from the car stereo, we sped up the slope, to the horror of Subak’s staff. They stopped us immediately and politely explained that vehicles are prohibited from entering the restaurant, which is located on a hill. We definitely made an impression that afternoon.
Subak's NZ Lamb Shank Masala (with sweet potato mash)
Subak reminded me of Naili’s, one of the earliest cafes with a tropical setting that comes with lighted mosquito coils under every table. A decade ago, it was one of THE places to be in and had definitely made Sentul more appealing and cool. As much as I applaud their back-to-nature theme, I never understood the ambiance, which many would describe as unique. I call it humid and stuffy. As for the menu, I would give up the overpriced fries and chops for some fiery, colourful, tamarind-loaded fish head curry from Kari Kepala Ikan Sentul. The last time I checked, that's 10 minutes ago, Naili’s has now expanded to Ampang, Damansara Uptown and Taipan. Us urbanites are just so nature-deprived these days, aren’t we?
Ibu Yati's Gado-Gado
Subak's Balinese Fried Rice with a Grilled Chicken Skewer
Pan-Fried Medallion of Cod Fish and Butterfly Prawns (with tomato and ginger flower reduction)
Subak, with its contemporary landscaping and sort of exotic interior, was welcoming. But still humid lah. It was easy selecting the dishes as the signatures were already widely introduced on the web. Funnily enough, it was that sweet potato mash pillowing the lamb shank masala that I remembered the most. Subtly sweet, it was a brilliant alternative to the usual bland kind.
It started to rain heavily when we were ready to leave. And so, we ordered desserts.
Tapai Pulut with Vanilla Ice Cream
A conservative (or stereotype) sometimes, I came here secretly wishing that I would find some hidden gems of authentic, traditional Malay food amidst the creative menu but that surely just wouldn’t do with such grandeur of a restaurant on a hill now, would it?
Subak
Lot 3213 Jalan Penchala Indah
Bukit Lanjan 60000
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Tel: (+603) 7729 9030
Check out their new menu here: http://www.subak.com.my/
15 comments:
gorgeous photos.. i can almost feel the cloying humidity.. the calm before the storm. Last shot very nice.. i hate u laaaaa!
(i would have thought that you would have SPRINTED up that mini mole hill.. chiss what tok u:P haha)
Aww.. food aint tht good? It's the "nature" huh?
Ahh... yes, we are so nature-deprived nowadays. *guilty*
cumi & ciki, glad you like 'em pics! ;D haha, sprinted up the mini mole hill? i'm losing steam already lah. hopefully i wont faint at the next run. haha.
thenomadgourmand, well, perhaps my expectations were too high. the food's not bad actually. i still think the sweet potato mash's the best. hahaha.
jason, *hi5* on *guilty*! haha. i think we can start to redeem ourselves by using less plastic bags. errrmm, ok lah, i'll try. heeee. :)
I used to hang out at Naili's very often....how come I neber bump into you wan?
Oh, Naili's~~ didn't go since my little Sam born, totally not a place for her =.=" so that this Subak...
Subak's pricing was higher that the Naili's huh...
lyrical lemongrass, omg, i can't believe we've never talked about naili's! in fact, i neva knew u hung out at sentul! we so have to do my kampung one day! and the best lor mai kan around town too! ;D
choi yen, yeah, naili's is definitely too warm for the little ones lah. looking at their expansion, maybe one day they'll have air-con too.. ;D and yes, i would agree that subak's prices are higher than naili's.
I think there is a lot of room for improvement for the food at Subak:D Like the environment. I love all your photos, they are so well taken.
I LOVEloveLOVE that last shot. This, my friend, is why you are the master. And you will find that gem of a nugget or nugget of a gem one day.... Just probably not in a restaurant on top of a hill lah. :P
Quay Po Cooks, i agree that the food could have been better. maybe it's just me, but i thought more traditional food would have been more appealing. am glad you liked the pics! ;D
kenny, thankYouthankYouthankYou for the compliment! the fish was one of the first few interesting things I saw at Subak. thank goodness for the sunlight too! haha, kampung baru's no hill but it certainly has plentiful gems. ;D
Hmm, yeah. Good to see places like this, still embracing the back to nature concept.
Though I wouldn't go for the tapai.
eerrr. so did that last paragraph mean you were disappointed there was no traditional malay food? awww...stunning pics as usual, hairy.
j2kfm, actually, i also felt that the desserts could have been better. the honeydew could have been sweeter too. hmmm...
fatboybakes, yeah, i was kinda disappointed that i didn't find much traditional Malay food there. then again, it's my own expectation la. maybe i should have gone to wau penyu instead for the laksam. hehe. thanks for the compliment, yo! :)
gorgeous photos!! We drove up too! But no hip-hop music blasting lah...
but yeah, i wasn't too impressed with food here either.
jasmine, glad you liked the pics! :) haha, looks like i was not the only one who "crashed" the party...perhaps keeping the menu simple and delicious would hv been a better idea, me thinks.
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