The exciting evolution of Et Cetera: A year after opening, one of our favourite venues in Bukit Jalil has transformed into an elegant dinner destination.
From small plates to sharing platters, miso sea bream to mei cai beef, dry-aged duck to acacia honey parfait, Et Cetera is maturing into a noteworthy restaurant with a contemporary, creative sense of ambition and adventure.
The kitchen promises something for everyone: Protein powerhouses of buttered clams, Black Angus steaks and signature fried chicken share the limelight with the harvest of the land, like kulim-glazed oyster mushrooms and grilled cabbage with hummus.
The menu is also filled with comforting flavours, spanning fresh pastas such as pappardelle with house-blended pesto and tagliolini with mixed seafood and lemongrass.
If you need hearty, soulful reassurance at the end of a long, hard day, recipes like the mushroom-loaded Claypot Umami Rice beckon like a warm hug.
With a curation of French, Italian, Spanish, Australian and South African vintages, Et Cetera is also now an intriguing wine bar in its own right - pair your mango turmeric prawns with the perfect Bordeaux Blanc or your beef ragu pappardelle with an intensely aromatic Burgundy.
Fun fact: The restaurant's founder has so far personally hand-picked more than 20 labels of his favourite wines, with at least two on rotation by the glass and the rest by the bottle.
Take a candlelit table by the leafy monsteras and enjoy an enchanting evening at Et Cetera, open all the way through 11pm on weekdays, till midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.
For a playful pleasure to start with, try the Tiger Prawn Carpaccio (RM32) - fresh, fleshy prawns, their naturally potent crustacean sweetness amplified by aioli, turned into a tantalising tartare with crispy Malaysian-style popiah skin instead of conventional crackers.
Grilled Cabbage (RM26) might sound cliched, but Et Cetera's version is memorably mouthwatering - gently smoky with a confident char, its crunchy juiciness cushioned with soft, earthy hummus, spiced up with mala chilli oil for a marvellous medley of tastes and textures.
The Miso Sea Bream (RM35) elevates a pan-fried fish fillet, impeccably prepared for crisp skin that envelops its moist, flaky interior, gorgeous with grilled kailan and a lip-smacking miso white wine sauce that's thickened with onions and cream.
For poultry, the Grilled Chicken Thigh (RM35) reinforces Et Cetera's capabilities in grilling everything from meat to vegetables. This sultry, succulent fowl is moreish to the final morsel, its depth of flavour enriched by a creamy-nutty peanut sauce that evokes memories of satay.
Et Cetera built its initial reputation on fresh pastas, a legacy preserved by the Casio É Peperoni (RM37) - an Italian classic with a modern twist, featuring pappardelle tossed in a lusciously savoury beef pepperoni-infused butter, complete with black pepper and Grana Padano cheese.
Claypot creations also make a distinct impression at Et Cetera.
The Mei Cai Beef (RM65) fuses a French-inspired stew with Malaysian Chinese flavours, bringing together the braised brilliance of bourguignon with the pickled saltiness of Hakka preserved mustard greens for a robust one-pot beef wonder with extra punch and kick.
Meat-free meals are just as satisfying at Et Cetera - the Claypot Umami Rice (RM68, for two to share) lives up to its description, loaded with the fragrance of fungi, blanketed with king oyster, shimeji and oyster mushrooms in a secret 'umami jus,' centred with a runny egg yolk for addictive allure.
The most recent House Pouring White (RM29) is the 2022 Chenin Blanc, South Africa from Perdeberg Cellar's Vineyard Collection, pairing pristinely with prawn and sea bream, while the House Pouring Red (RM32) is the 2019 Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre from the southern Rhone valley's Domaine Maby, a match made in France for dry-aged duck and Angus beef.
Cool cocktails are available, plus non-alcoholic mocktails with a fruity fizziness, such as the Yuzu Spritz (RM25; Lyre's Italian Orange with yuzu, lemon and tonic water) and Grapefruit Spritz (RM22; Lyre’s Aperitif Rosso with fresh grapefruit, Omija cordial and tonic).
Et Cetera
Tel: 011-3905-2650