Bait @ Telawi, Bangsar

We've fallen hook, line & sinker for seafood specialist Bait, which surfaced this week in Telawi, becoming a big fish in Bangsar's pond of palate-pleasuring practitioners.

O Oysters, come & walk with us! With apologies to Lewis Carroll, we might not be walruses, but we're nonetheless infatuated with the briny brilliance of these freshly shucked Dutch Creuses & Northwestern Irish Pacific mollusks (RM8++ each, minimum order of six).

Seared tiger prawns, sliced mangoes & coriander leaves, a sweetly succulent salad (RM24++) that's far from shrimp-sized for flavor. We'd be delighted to discover prawns like these lurking behind every rock, no matter what their proverbial agenda might be.

We hesitated about ordering the soft-shell crab with cucumber, orange wedges & chili mayo (RM23++). But who knew a recipe that sounds so run-of-the-mill could taste so remarkable? Mighty meaty crustaceans, complemented creatively with citric pulpiness.

Happy as a clam: Steamed little-neck ones (RM16++) with bacon, garlic, thyme & white wine.

Deep-fried baby calamari with salted egg, black pepper & lime tarragon aioli (RM25+). Crisply addictive, but some Chinese eateries still do this better.

For beer buffs: Lager-steamed mussels with mustard, chorizo slices & oregano (RM25++).

Finally, we wade into fishier waters: thumbs up for the butter-poached salmon (RM30++), though  it might be an acquired taste, the aqua-equivalent of steak prepared rare.

Fish & chips (RM24++). Mixed emotions here; the beer-battered John Dory's brilliant, with fragrant steam flowing freely from the flaky fish as we crack open the crunchy exterior, but the shoestring fries leave about as much impression as an amoeba in a lake.

Not totally lovin' it: Pan-seared barramundi (RM30++), moisture-challenged, but it gets by with a little help from its friends: corn kernels, parsley mashed potatoes & baby carrots.

There might be plenty of fish in the sea, but Bait only offers four for now: this one might be the consensus favorite _ rock cod with sauteed button mushrooms, baby spinach, potato cubes & brown shrimp.

Peanut Butter Alert! Bait features no desserts, but customers can take a two-minute stroll to Milk And Butter, where the sweets list occupies a place of pride on the menu.
Main entry on Milk And Butter: December 26.

Peanut butter ice cream with chocolate waffle & bananas. We might not swim the deepest ocean for this, but we'd certainly attempt a not-too-shallow pool.

Back to Bait for booze: no fewer than five Campari-based cocktails & six Pimm's ones are available. Try the Old Pal (a pleasurably potent mix of Campari, Wild Turkey whiskey, vermouth) & Pimm's Deuce (Pimm's No. 1, orange juice, cranberry juice, orange wheel, strawberries).

Organic wine: Emiliana Sauvignon Blanc & Merlot, both Chilean. Wine addicts, note there's an impressive range here priced at below RM100 per bottle.

 Varieties by the glass cost RM20++. Bait must be run by folks who want wine to be affordable.

For lemon lovers: tangy house-made lemonade & sparkling San Pellegrino's Limonata.

Housekeeping notes: Bait currently opens only for dinner, but will serve lunch eventually. It replaces the now-closed Madam Kwan's, sandwiched between El Meson & The Smokehouse.

Bait is a smallish restaurant, so be wise & make reservations.

Last but not least: The black-attired service team here ranks among Bangsar's best. Thank you for taking the extra effort, in terms of smiles, attentiveness & genuine consideration.

Bait Restaurant @ Bangsar,

65, Jalan Telawi 3, Bangsar Baru, Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03-2201-8187

Dinner @ Yeast Bistronomy at Telawi, Bangsar

Returning to Yeast, which has now extended its business hours through dinnertime.

Earlier entry on brunch at Yeast: November 26, 2012.

Yeast's complimentary bread basket is bounteous, boasting the chunkiest of cuts.

Can't fault the foie gras, a simple preparation with mango & ginger reduction (RM45++). The serving's somewhat small but no less satisfying taste-wise.

Catch of the week: Black bass, a meaty-flaky fish (RM45++) that soaks up the savory flavors of a rich lemon butter sauce with capers.

Bistro fare evocative of a 2010 summertime Parisian meal: seven-spice roasted chicken with potato gratin, pearl onions, mushrooms, smoked duck & chicken jus (RM36++). Fowl is seldom more enjoyably succulent than this.

Farfalle with achingly soft braised beef short ribs, sage & brown butter (RM36++).

Duck confit with herb-bread crumb cassoulet & orange-infused jus (RM42++). This comparatively low-sodium rendition does sufficient justice to an oft-abused recipe.

Stock up on starch: French fries or potato-cheese gratin? Pick your pleasure.

Freshly baked madeleines. Proust might have really liked these petite bites.

At Yeast, there are always pastries to bring home for a next-morning breakfast.

Riesling & Pinot Noir, both French. Alsace & Burgundy respectively.

Evenings at Yeast are laid-back & relatively less crowded. Service remains sterling.

Yeast Bistro @ Bangsar,

24G, Jalan Telawi 2, Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03-2282-0118

Click here for online reservations.

This restaurant is available for bookings under TABLEAPP, which enables customers to make instant reservations at Malaysia's top restaurants, while saving time and money in the process. Reserve your table at this restaurant by clicking here.

Milk And Butter @ Telawi, Bangsar

Spreading some cafe cheer this Christmas, Milk And Butter has stirred in Telawi, the neighborhood that's increasingly invigorated _ more than ever, this is Bangsar's promised land, a land of milk & butter, bread & honey, tea & coffee.

Milk And Butter won't revolutionize the scene, but it has the potential to be popular, serving crab bruschetta, spinach frittata & even banana leaf-wrapped spaghetti marinara.

Breakfast is offered from morning through night here, so folks can feast at all business hours on these capably executed Eggs Benedict with turkey ham (RM16++).

Beef burger (RM19++), boasting a house-made patty that flirts not only with caramelized onions but battered onion rings too, for twice the breath-polluting potency.

Egg crepes stuffed with scallops, squid, mussels & prawns (RM22++), smoldering in a partnership of saffron cream & hollandaise sauce.

Pan-seared teriyaki chicken with a buttery, leaf-loaded tart (RM17++). Prices here feel pleasant for a street where the cost of salads regularly spikes past RM20.

Liquor-laced souffle, close to custard, with cheese ice cream (RM17++). Fine finish.

We've tasted the butter, so here's the milk, steaming in this Irish Cream latte (RM11++).

Milk And Butter is a no-pork place but it pledges to proffer wine imminently.

All in all, a solid start for this amiable eatery. We wish it well for the months ahead.

Milk And Butter,

25G, Jalan Telawi 2, Bangsar Baru, Kuala Lumpur.

On the row opposite Bangsar's other newbies Yeast Bistronomy & Coffea Coffee.

El Rincon @ Changkat

El Rincon: Round Three. Earlier entries: May 2 & Oct. 29.

Immersing this entry in seafood, let's dive into dinner with a chunk of red grouper pate, full of gracefully subtle flavors that prove fish pastes can taste as fine as meat ones.

Escalivada, a Catalan salad composed of soft-roasted bell peppers and egg plant, topped here with tuna belly and tomatoes and anointed with slick oils for a Mediterranean marvel.

Baby squid, stuffed with rice and cooked in its own thick ink. Comfort food and squid might not often find themselves in the same sentence, but this rustic recipe could change that.

Galician poached octopus _ not too rubbery, rubbed with paprika and placed on soft-boiled potatoes on a wooden plate. Texture is king; each olive-oil-laced mouthful makes for a moist medley of chewy-creamy sensations.

For a change from paella, try the Valencian Fideua, the best "seafood beehoon" one could ever have, thanks to firm, conveniently chopped noodles, strongly flavored with a mix of saffron and the crustacean brininess of tiger prawns, mussels and clams.

We'd love to let these oceanic flavors linger on our lips, but customers requiring a palate-cleanser after so much seafood can try El Rincon's nice range of traditional sweets, including the milky-creamy "leche frita" fried custard square.

Rice, rice, baby: "arroz con leche," sweet grains cooked in milk, topped lovingly with ice cream, like a Spanish madre might make it.

Kir Royale (cava, creme de cassis) and Tio Pepe (dry sherry).

Two styles of Sangria, the left is with white wine and the right is red.

Spanish wines: Guti Verdejo (2011) and Finca Antigua Petit Verdot (2009).

El Rincon,
14, Changkat Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: 03-2142-7633