New Menu featuring Modern European Flavors with Tapas, Pastas, Mains and More…
I love visiting Mediteca. There is something absolutely comforting about the restaurant and its menu. A few weeks ago, I went back to Mediteca for a taste of their new menu. It’s always great to see a restaurant who makes the effort to update their menu every now and then as it give diners are chance to sample new dishes. It makes dining more fun and diners are also able to go back more often. The chef gets to create more new dishes to be added to his repertoire too.
This round, Chef Riccardo Ferrarotti has whipped up a sumptuous list from tapas to mains and desserts. In addition, Mediteca is now offering more specials on weekends. Besides their gorgeous Saturday Brunch feature various countries (read here for more details), Mediteca is now open Sunday evening where diners can enjoy happy hours from 5pm to 8pm. Join the ‘Aperitivo alla Milanese’ from 5pm to 8pm where order Mediteca’s Italian cocktails and you get to enjoy a spread of delicious tapas and snacks from their counter with no additional charges.
It’s perfect for those who is looking forward to a relaxing Sunday evening!
Choosing favorites is pretty hard at Mediteca. I have been here few times and have always enjoyed Chef Riccardo’s authentic Mediterranean dishes which he manages to add on a subtle modern touch. We kicked off the evening by settling on a glass of Sanfeletto Prosecco Superiore, a lovely vibrant bubbly that makes all problems go away… even if its only for a short while…
Mediteca has a big range of imported wine list so make sure to try them.
Tapas is very popular in some parts of the world and it is also taking off here in our city. Basically it’s a small plate of food meant for snacking and is the perfect partner for wines, cocktails and beer. We savored four plates of classic tapas.
Pan Con Tomate Y Serano is loosely translated to toasted bread with chopped tomato and ham. It is such a beautiful piece of bread… loved the colors. Besides being beautiful, the crispy toasty bread has the most luscious piece of jamon covering fresh juicy chopped tomatoes. Ultra thin pieces of air dried carrot added a lovely sight. The saltiness of the jamon is balanced with the sweet tomatoes while the bread added texture. I love the sheer simplicity of this tapas.
I liked the big tender chunks of artichokes enveloped in soft fluffy egg in the Artichoke and Rocket Omelette. Such comfort flavors in each bite, hence I am pretty happy with this dish.
Arancini… I loved these golden deep fried rice balls! Mediteca’s version is stuffed with mozzarella and ham. Crispy golden exterior, soft risotto rice inside with creamy cheese and ham, the rice ball is just so yummy. Honestly, this is just one of the better Arancini that I have had in a while. I would be really happy to eat quite a few of these rice balls.
Croquette with Spinach, Potato and Garlic didn’t fare far behind from the Arancini. Despite its similarity except that this one has a potato base, the croquette is also delicious. The potato is so creamy and has a strong note of cheese with bits of spinach and sundried tomatoes. It’s a very well made croquette.
Moving on, we had Crostone. It is toasted bread topped with meat according to the dictionary. Our version had porchetta, mushroom and cheese all nicely toasted. Our open-faced sandwich is a cheesy goodness. The porchetta is very well seasoned and tender. This portion makes a good small meal on its own if you are a small eater.
Its my first time tasting Farro or Spelt. It is the grains of wheat. Though not known here, spelt is beginning to be popular here as a health food. We had the Spelt Salad with Tomato, Capsicum, Zuchini and Parsley. Spelt reminds me of barley but has a crunchy texture. The salad is very flavorful with the shavings of cheese. It is savory and has a fresh lightness. I like spelt… though the grain is bland, it can take on any seasoning flavors.
Beetroot Salad with Baby Spinach, Tomato, Leek and Sausage is also a lovely and vibrant salad. The beetroot is baked in salt to retain its lovely colors and flavor. The sliced sausages are quite fatty and I can taste the richness of the paprika in it. The overall flavors are a tad salty and I wished for some citrus to lighten up the salty notes. Though it is a little on the savory side, I love the moreish sausages.
Moving on to the pasta section, we had three types of pasta that night. I already had pasta here before and I adored how the pasta is cooked to al dente perfection.
Rigatoni with Speck, Mushroom & Asparagus is pretty flavorful. Using speck, a type of prosciutto, this is what makes the pasta good. The pasta reminds me of a dish that is whipped up from the home of an Italian kitchen. The pasta is humble, using simple ingredients of meat and vegetable to make a dish that one can enjoy on daily basis.
As soon as I ate the Orecchiette with Broccoli, Sausage and Chili, I knew I had to try and replicate this dish at home. The sheer simplicity of the ear-shaped pasta with bits of sausage meat, crisp broccoli bits and chili is absolutely delicious with a spicy note. The sausage meat is so good I wanted more. I literally interrogated the chef on how to make this. Using white wine for extra flavors, every ingredient just worked so well. Though I tried to make this at home, I still fine that the flavors here were so much better.
Guess I should leave the dish to the experts…
Though some of my other foodies find the Maccheroni with Cheese, Walnuts, Breadcrumb and Parsley too creamy and cheesy, I was absolutely hooked on this mac and cheese. Using four cheeses with one of the strongest cheese included, the Gorgonzola, the flavors are divine. It is very rich and creamy. The walnut crumbs on top also contributed to the star factor in the dish.
Ok… I confessed. I polished most of this dish alone since others only had a small taste!
Main courses feature seafood, meat and sausages, all prepared differently.
Salmon, Scallop, Seared Prawns and Veggie Kebab is a must for seafood lovers. Featuring all three popular salmon, scallop and prawns, the seafood were rolled and skewered together before it was cooked on the grill. Served with a light sauce and a tiny vegetable kebab, the dish allowed the freshness of the sweet seafood to shine. The seafood is moist and sweet. Our foodie table loved this dish a lot.
I have heard of luganega sausages but never tried the since it’s not easy to find them here. I was glad that Mediteca served them here. Luganeta Italian Sausage with Potato and Rosemary features a long coiled luganega sausage grilled and served with sliced potatoes. The sausage itself is quite salty but that is the nature of a luganega sausage as I was told. The flavors come from the spices used and also the fat in the meat. It has a good firm bite and a lovely smoky aroma. I like how juicy the sausage is and would have love to have some bread to go with this dish.
The last main was Seared Beef Entrecote with Crushed Pumpkin and Goat Cheese. The beef entrecote is a premium cut of beef perfect for steak. Our beef was tender and very flavorful. Seared to medium pink, it is paired with tangy slices of goat cheese. The small sweet quenelle of pumpkin makes a nice sweet note to balance the goat cheese and beef.
Chef was really nice to serve a palate cleanser of Ginger Sorbet with Watermelon, Ginger and Kiwi. Sounds like an odd combination but it works and is light and refreshing.
By the time the meal finished, we were all so full. And yet when the chef served up his mother’s recipe of Tiramisu by the tableside, we couldn’t say no. We were glad we didn’t. The Tiramisu is fabulous. It’s a virgin recipe minus the alchohol. The Tiramisu is so light, fluffy and creamy. The sweetness is perfect while the sponged soaked coffee is soft and very moist.
We had a second helping…
Rice Milk Pudding with Amaretto and Vanilla Stick takes some getting used too since we don’t really have much rice milk pudding here. It’s like a creamy sweet version of risotto I guess but with more sauce. Using Amaretto and vanilla, this explained its unique flavors. I detected a subtle hint of aniseed flavor which probably comes from the Amaretto. It is served in a small clay pot to keep the rice pudding warm.
Last dessert of the night was Apple Tart, Sablee and Cinnamon. The apple tart has a beautiful crumbly pastry with a sablee and apple filling. Though some thinks its sweet, I find this wonderful and comforting. The tart is served with a side of rich vanilla custard. I really only managed a few bite since I was so full but it was a really sumptuous piece of apple tart.
The new menu is already available at Mediteca. Coupled with its weekend Saturday and Sunday promotions, Mediteca is really a perfect place to entertain whether it’s for business or pleasure. Chef Riccardo has outdone himself in this new menu. I will certainly be heading back there for tapas and that awesome Orecchiette dish.
MEDITECA
Lot 163, Fraser Place,
Jalan Perak,
50450 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: +603 2181 2426
Fax: +603 2161 1106
GPS: 3.154271,101.709364
Business Hours:
Monday to Saturday - 11.30am till late
Sunday – 5pm till late
