The BIG Group continues to commandeer Bangsar Village's culinary battlefield, swelling its ranks with a fifth recruit to champion the cause of mouthwatering meals. (For the scorecard, BIG's Bangsar brigade also includes For Goodness Sake, Canoodling, Plan B & T Forty Two)
Not to be confused with Ben's at Pavilion and KLCC, this cafeteria-like eatery specializes in wood-fire pizzas, with a staggering 20 (!!!) savory varieties on the menu. Our choice: the super-large Caesar salad pizza, tantalizingly topped with cos lettuce, beef bacon, anchovies & eggs. Can't tell which is crispier: the hot-from-the-oven crust or the lettuce leaves.
Since this is a BIG restaurant, fresh salads are a serious matter. Scrumptious new recipes are available, with our favorite so far being the combo of scorched sweet corn & succulent crab meat with frisee, coriander, lime & mayo. Similar to BIG's other outlets, prices here are praiseworthy; salads cost slightly north of RM10, while pizzas average RM20.
Marinated button mushrooms & barley with spring onions, soy & lemon. Deliciously earthy and indelibly aromatic. We'll have no trouble remembering this when the west wind moves among those fabled fields of barley.
Customers who refuse to cower at the sight of carbs can reward themselves with a hearty plate of orecchiette pasta, baby peas, capers, arugula, garlic & parmesan. More terrific news: Ben's General Food Store will also be stacking shelves at a take-away section soon with bread, cheese, deli produce & wine.
Don't leave without discovering the dessert pizzas. This is one fine mess, flowing with lava-like mascarpone, sticky butterscotch, pears & almonds. Sweet dreams surely are made of this.
Nutella milkshake & chai tea latte. Final words to the food-wise: reservations seem essential, since every table here was taken by 8pm on opening night.
Ben's General Food Store,
Bangsar Village, Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: 03-2284-8790
