The Perfect Cellar, Damansara Kim

Manchego cheese from La Mancha with a red Crianza from Rioja makes for the ideal Spanish pairing at The Perfect Cellar, a pet-friendly wine bar that's a welcoming space to spend any evening. Browse books on wines while enjoying your visit here.

The Perfect Cellar

1st Floor, 30A, Jalan SS 20/10, Damansara Kim, 47400 Petaling Jaya, Selangor. Tel: 03-7733-4238

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Lim Chew, Damansara Kim

This friendly wine bar is a calm, cosy spot to snack on cheese (the Grana Padano, Roquefort and Camembert make for a tasty Italian-French triple threat) and sticks (from Japanese-style chicken gizzard yakitori to Malacca-loving pork intestine satay, Thai pork loin skewers to Australian rib eye brochettes - the chunky-juicy beef is our best bet) while sipping a classic Spanish Rioja in the 2005 Melquior CF Reserva Autor- a globe-trotting culinary expedition in one evening.

Lim Chew

First Floor, 6, Jalan SS20/10, Damansara Kim, Petaling Jaya, Selangor. Open Monday-Saturday, 5pm-1145pm. 

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The Swimming Cow, Damansara Kim

For fans of sous vide cooking, spanning steaks to fowl and fish, wade on over to The Swimming Cow: Take a seat at the counter to watch your protein surface from its vacuum-sealed bag after hours of low-temperature cooking in a water bath.

The sous vide chicken thigh roulade is served cordon bleu-style, rolled and layered with turkey ham and cheddar cheese, crisp to the breaded bite, smooth and tender to the chew, rounded out with a refreshing pickle slaw and fragrant truffle fries (RM35).

The other poultry pleasure is the pan-seared duck breast, full-bodied in both taste and texture, complete with cauliflower puree and orange reduction for our favourite sous vide speciality at The Swimming Cow (RM45).

We have mixed sentiments about the salmon with truffled mash, sauteed asparagus and garlic lemon butter sauce (RM45) and the Australian wagyu MB4/5 beef with garlic confit, sea salt flakes, Sarawak pepper and mustard (RM135 for about 260 grams), since our cuts lacked succulence and were too heavily seasoned. Issues like those could nonetheless be easily fixed.

The Swimming Cow

29, Jalan SS20/11, Damansara Kim, 47400 Petaling Jaya, Selangor. 

Open daily for dinner by reservations starting August 18. Tel: 012-206-6599

This post first appeared on eatdrinkkl.com

Uncle Lee Cafe, Damansara Kim

Classic comfort fare, steamy and soulful: Uncle Lee's curry wild boar, served in an old-school bread bowl, comes with plenty of meat and potatoes (RM13.90), while its Eight Treasures porridge enjoyably brings Teochew traditions to a modern cafe (RM12.90).

Uncle Lee Cafe
29, Jalan SS20/11, Damansara Kim, Petaling Jaya, 47400 Selangor. Open Mon-Sun, 8am-930pm. Tel: 03-7733-8615

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Dissolved Solids, Damansara Kim

Coffee cocktails cloaked with grated Gouda cheese; vermouth blended with onions, tomatoes and laksa leaves? If you love experimental exuberance, step on the gas to Dissolved Solids, Damansara Kim's new beverage bar where liquid fantasies run wild.

With no fewer than five coffee cocktails available, day-drinking at Dissolved Solids is delightfully doable - Too Gouda To Be True harmoniously synergises the caffeinated punch of Galliano Ristretto espresso liqueur with the earthy savouriness from a shower of Gouda cheese (RM32); other combinations bring espresso together with everything from Baileys and fresh milk to Kahlua, dark chocolate and mint leaves.

Vermouth, the fortified botanical-flavoured wine, is also celebrated in cocktails like the young-at-heart Hopes And Dreams (RM29; rose vermouth with Cointreau and gummy bears), lemon-loving Yellow Oval Crisp (RM28; blanc vermouth with limoncello, lemon balm and dehydrated lemon), and the acquired-taste Main Course (RM28; blanc vermouth made funky with tomato, onions, wild berries and daum kesum). Non-alcoholic drinks - coffee and tea - are offered for teetotalers.

Dissolved Solids
43-1, First Floor, Jalan SS20/11, Damansara Kim, Petaling Jaya, 47400 Selangor.
Open Mon, Thurs, 3pm-12am; Fri-Sun, 12pm-12am. Closed Tues-Wednesday. Tel: 017-598-1858

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Universal Bakehouse, Damansara Kim

Toasts and tartines, timely and timeless: Labouring for the love of loaves, Universal Bakehouse is Damansara Kim's new sanctuary of sourdough, rising to the upper crust of local bakery-cafes. 

The space is fresh-faced, but Universal is a familiar name in this neighbourhood - Kedai Dobi Universal ran for four decades before its founder recently retired. Its neighbour, Table & Apron, has taken over this lot while preserving a nod to its heritage through a nostalgia-infused signboard, repainted by an artist in his seventies.

At a point when fleeting food fads have become baked into our culinary culture, Universal stands for what's simple and honest, the flour-water-and-salt version of three chords and the truth.

Table & Apron has been known for its bread since its inception in 2014, but Universal Bakehouse amplifies its abilities, with nearly two-thirds of the venue devoted to baking facilities with a brand-new deck oven. Customers can watch all the action - the kneading, stretching and folding - through a wide-open window.

Universal's bread will also be served at Table & Apron next door, though longtime loyalists might note subtle differences in the rustic crumb, with possibly airier holes. It's still satisfyingly affirming, with a resonantly crackly bite and a yielding chew, with a mature but mellow flavour - Table & Apron kicked off five years ago with a two-century-old leavening base inherited from Finnish bakers, and this new set-up challenges them to further explore the boundaries of their baking.

The most basic set of two country sourdough slices with French butter and sea salt starts at RM6; other gentle accompaniments like gula Melaka (luscious), soft-boiled kampung eggs (lovely) or hummus with pistachios can be ordered. A daily-rotating range of other sourdough varieties - walnuts and olives, honey oats, green apple, or seeded - is also available.

Open sandwiches are a highlight too - try the tartine allied with avocado, olive oil and house-strained ricotta, perfectly proportioned for prime pleasure (RM15). Pastries and cakes are also available - Universal makes these carbs count, one madeleine at a time, with the boulangerie-suitable melodies of Les Feuilles Mortes wafting from the speakers.

Universal Bakehouse
21, Jalan SS20/11, Damansara Kim, Petaling Jaya, 47400 Selangor. Open Tues-Sun, 830am-5pm. Tel: 011-3332-7581

This post first appeared on eatdrinkkl.com