Psychotic Operator, Taman Paramount

If you're crazy for Cabernet, mad about Merlot, seek asylum at Taman Paramount's new Psychotic Operator, which pours the fun into the wine-bar experience. Explore the shelves at this cheerful, casual space for vibrant vintages personally selected and brought in by the bar's friendly founders, who also run Monster and Beer a few doors down. House pours by the glass are available at happy-hour prices that could be only a couple of ringgit costlier than a latte.

Psychotic Operator

7, Jalan 20/13, Taman Paramount, 46300 Petaling Jaya, Selangor. Tel:  012-916-6713

Crane KL, Sultan Road

Crane KL takes flight as Chinatown's most charming new venue, set in the former Selangor Grocers' Guild headquarters that's one of Jalan Sultan's most recognisable buildings, with a history that stretches back to the 1930s. 

This space has received a full makeover, making it more brightly welcoming than ever while preserving its structural features. An alleyway-style corridor is captivating with paper cranes and lanterns hanging over tables beside walls filled with classic crane illustrations. 

The menu promises a playful take on diverse dishes - the Nasi Lemak Wonton is the ideal introduction, stuffed with fragrant rice, peanuts, bits of egg, anchovies and cucumber in crisp parcels, rounded out with sambal for all the essential elements of Nasi Lemak in a distinctively different package (RM25).

For a light meal, we'd also recommend the naturally creamy taro root soup with its beautiful earthiness (RM20) and the South American-inspired salad of toasted sweet corn with quinoa, avocado and cilantro, fresh and flavoursome (RM20).

We were too early for Crane KL's cocktail bar upstairs, which opens 4pm daily and serves its own creative concoctions. Still, customers can order more conventional cocktails like Mojitos and a solid selection of wine by the glass for lunch.

Crane KL

78, Jalan Sultan, Kuala Lumpur. Tel: 03-2389 6348

Ken Shin-Ryu Ramen, 1 Mont Kiara

Newly launched in 1 Mont Kiara, Ken Shin-Ryu Ramen is one man's tribute to the ramen master who mentored him in a hole-in-the-wall Tokyo ramen restaurant. 

Sapporo-born chef Kita Koichi trained under the late Kawana-san, who ran Kiori-tei, an omakase-style eatery that served multiple courses of ramen to customers each evening in Kawana-san's own home in the Shibuya neighbourhood of Yoyogi.

The ramen here channels the influence of recipes that Kita learned there, such as Kiori-tei's use of organic pork and eggs. At Ken Shin-Ryu, Malaysian-sourced Sakura pork and Kenkori eggs are part of the ensembles that elevate each bowl.

The kitchen makes its noodles with Japanese wheat flour everyday, without preservatives. for a firm, full-bodied chew. The restaurant's recommended introduction is ramen with clear shoyu broth, a true-to-Tokyo rendition blended with Japanese soy sauce, ringing simple and steady with an umami of unmistakable, uncomplicated quality, free of MSG and artificial flavourings.

A bowl with the works (RM39) not only includes the lusciously layered roasted chashu but plump wonton-style dumplings with a herbaceous yuzu zing and chicken breast slices with a sous-vide smoothness. 

Ken Shin-Ryu Ramen

L1-02 ,1 Mont Kiara Mall, Jalan Kiara, Mont Kiara, 50480 Kuala Lumpur.

Ywine Kitchen & Bar, Taman Desa

Ywine Kitchen & Bar brings a cosy, casual experience to diners and drinkers in Taman Desa: Visit this warm, welcoming venue not only for its selection of boutique labels but its playful food pairings, which include many Asian specialities - match your newfound favourite bottle with glass noodles, gyoza, garlic fried rice and much more for a delicious evening.

Ywine Kitchen & Bar was formerly Wine Kaki, one of the neighbourhood's most popular watering holes. It became Ywine in late 2019 and is now ready to reintroduce itself to KL's wine enthusiasts who might be seeking interesting bars for their next wine night adventure.

Ywine prides itself on stocking a well-curated selection of wines from across the world, not your typical supermarket variety. Its team is capable of helping you discover distinctive wines that you haven't experienced before. Its whisky selection is also noteworthy.

If you'd like to book Ywine's entire space for your private event, you can affordably do so on a minimum spending of RM1,500. It's an elegant setting with rustic brick tones, surrounded by shelves of seemingly endless wines, like having your own personal wine cellar for your party. 

Ywine promises the precise bottle to perfectly complement everything on its menu.

If you're savouring a seafood dinner at Ywine, brimming with fresh oysters, grilled squid and prawn-topped glass noodles, the Saint Clair Family Estate Pioneer Block 1 Sauvignon Blanc 2020 might be the top recommendation - this crisp New Zealand Marlborough conveys citrusy tropical notes that bring a pleasant uplift to rich-tasting seafood and shellfish.

What about meat and robust noodles? 

Ywine's gorgeously medium-rare Wagyu rib-eye deserves the Scriani Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Riserva, a dry Italian red from the Veneto region that balances a smooth oakiness with a bold cherry fruitiness that holds up well to succulent red meat.

Ywine's siew yoke is consistently a bestseller, beloved by fans of Chinese roast pork. It might be intriguingly enhanced by the 2018 Torbreck The Struie Shiraz, a Barossa Valley vintage with an aromatic elegance and powerful structure that make it lovely for punchy pork.

Hokkien Mee might seem like a challenge for wine pairings, but never fear: Ywine's Echo de Lynch-Bages Pauillac 2016 is a Bordeaux that rises to the occasion, complex with earthy hints of blackberry and and tobacco, a memorable marriage with the wok hei of the Hokkien mee.

Even if you're ordering a variety of very different dishes, spanning addictive Keropok Lekor to the kitchen's secret savoury clam recipe of Kobi Lala to the crowd-pleasing Stewed Pork Mee Hoon that's comforting for rainy nights, Ywine offers surprising choices to complement the cooking. A Selbach Classic Riesling with keropok lekor? Or Saito Premium Junmai Sake with stewed pork mee hoon? Make a date with Ywine to encounter this for yourself.

Ywine Kitchen & Bar 

5-0-8, Jalan 2/109f, Taman Danau Desa, 58100 Kuala Lumpur. 
Open Monday-Saturday, 2pm-11:30pm. Tel: 011-5898-8166