Malabar Palace @ Hartamas Shopping Centre

Foodscapade fun was brought forward a couple of days as Bravo was heading off on yet another holiday. And he calls me Miss Gallivanter!

This week's cuisine - Indian. We went ahead with a recommendation from my colleague from India. If she thinks it's good, it's got to be authentic. However, said restaurant was nowhere to be seen as we drove past the row of shop lots. Determined and hungry, we went on the hunt for this restaurant but as it turned out, it had closed down 5 days earlier!

Anyway, we went with another one of my colleague's recommendation which happened to be in the mall right across the road in the form of Malabar Palace, which specialises in South Indian cuisine.

Malabar Palace.

My pick for the appetizer - Onion Fritters! Covered in lentil butter, green chilli and a range of flavourful Indian spices, this definitely prepared the tastebuds well for what was to come.

Onion Fritters (RM8)

All the names for the dishes were long and unfamiliar so we decided that going with ones with either a chef's hat or a chilli next to it. The Malabar Lamb Varattal has both! Certainly can't go wrong with that. This onion-rich (much to Bravo's dismay surprisingly since he enjoyed the fritters!), lamb masala enriched with ginger, cloves, cinnamon, star anise and cardamon was simply mouthwatering.

Malabar Lamb Varattal (RM21) and Butter Chicken Masala (RM21)

A departure from the previous dish, the Butter Chicken Masala - tandoori chicken cooked in rich creamy tomato gravy has neither a chef's hat or a chilli but was delish nonetheless. It was however, slightly too salty.

To balance the meatiness of our meal, we got a vegetable dish - Palak Paneer. This is basically very rich and creamy blended spinach gravy and diced cottage cheese. It may not look very appetising but it's actually pretty tasty. Nutritious and sweet!

Palak Paneer (RM15)

All this would not be complete without some Garlic and Butter Naan. Fresh from the restaurant's very own tandoor (clay oven), the naan was superbly crisp on the outside yet chewy on the inside.

Garlic (RM5.5) and Butter Naan (RM4.5).

Verdict: Unexpectedly awesome carb-filled and protein-rich meal. Will def be heading back.

What did I learn this time? To be flexible and adaptable to changing situations, like the almost foodscapade disaster above. Nothing from Bravo this time (*hint hint)! 

Where:
Malabar Palace
G13A Ground Floor,
Hartamas Shopping Centre,
60, Jalan Sri Hartamas,
50480 Kuala Lumpur.

When:
Daily 10am - 10pm