Italiannies Italian Food @ The Gardens, Mid Valley City

Italiannies was amongst the first chain of Italian restaurant that started in Malaysia. The first branch was first opened in 1 Utama Shopping centre years ago. It was hoo-ha back then as everyone were talking about the great food being served in Italiannies.

Fast forward, Italiannies can be virtually found in almost all the major complexes in Klang Valley. During Eddie's previous holiday trip back to Kuala Lumpur, I was at the Gardens for a revisit of Italiannies food after several years of absent.

Italiannies The Gardens

I realized the ambiance was rather quiet and peaceful even though there was a sizeable crowd. Was it the Italian way of enjoying the meal?

A very retro setting

With the current economic crunch, Italiannies was no exception to introducing set meals at a very attractive price. For just RM 27.90, you get to enjoy their 2 course meal which include an appetizer and a main course on all night long.

Italiannies 2 Course Meal

Right after the attendant took your order, you will be served a complimentary plate of bread to go with the olive oil and vinegar.

Bread with Olive oil and Vinegar
The bread was really soft and good even on it's own. I find the taste was rather cute when you take the bread with olive oil and vinegar. I'd always associate vinegar to loh mee or shark's fin soup, so pardon me for feeling such. However, I find the taste acceptable though.

Lime Juice (RM 7.50)
"Limau Ais" in an Italian way.

Iced Cafe Latte (RM 7.90)
Pretty good latte with the right composition of milk and espresso coffee.

We ordered 3 sets of the 2 Course meal. This meant that we would have a total of 3 appetizers and 3 main courses.

Italian Clams Soup
A hearty soup with fresh clams and diced tomatoes.
The soup were a little diluted but came with plenty of diced tomatoes. I'm not really keen on the soup because it tasted a little fishy to me, thanks to the exorbitant amount of tomatoes. I supposed the tomatoes fans will love it.

Pizza Caprese
A thin crust pizza topped with buffalo mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, red onions and basil.
It might looked ordinary, but you will be hooked up to the crispiness and the pleasing aroma of the pizza.

Toasted Bruschetta

Homemade Tuscan bread topped with marinated tomatoes, pesto sauce and parmesan cheese.

My first bite unfold the crispiness of the Tuscan bread that were followed quickly by the juiciness of the marinated tomatoes. Parmesan cheese added some kick to it, hence making it my favourite appetizer!

Just before we could finished our appetizers, our main course were served to us.

Shrimp Linguine
Sauteed shrimp served with their in house marinara sauce.
I find the pasta were springy and it went decently with their tangy marina sauce that consisted a lot of tomato puree. The shrimp were big, succulent and juicy too. The only problem was it comes in an extremely huge portion and we had a hard time finishing them!

Romano Chicken Caesar Salad
Caesar salad that comes with roasted mushroom caps, artichoke hearts, roasted red bell peppers and topped with fried Romano Chicken.
I know it is very unusual to ask for a salad as a main course, but let's try the Italian way for at least a night. The salad might be lightly drizzled with sauce, but the combination of all the other ingredients make this salad very enjoyable. I'd particularly like the chunks of Romano Chicken and the crispy diced toasted bread that provide the extra chew and flavour to the salad.

Roasted Chicken with Balsamic Glaze
Oven-baked roasted chicken glazed with Balsamic that served with rosemary wedges and garlic butter broccoli.
The chicken meat were very rough and dry. I find the meat was very bland and not even the sweet balsamic glaze could make it taste any better. The best from this plate would be the garlic butter broccoli. Given a choice, I'd choose pasar malam roasted chicken at anytime than this.

With Eddie and Jenny for the dinner

The total bill for the above came to RM 116.30 after service and tax charges. I supposed the price was reasonable taking into the consideration of their generous portion. Not only that, the price was a huge reduction as compared to my first visit on years ago. Back then, I used to think Italiannies was a ripped off, but I have a second thought now.

Italian Clams Soup: 4.5/10

Pizza Caprese: 5/10
Toasted Bruschetta: 6.5/10
Shrimp Linguine: 5/10
Romano Chicken Caesar Salad: 6/10
Roasted Chicken with Balsamic Sauce: 3/10

Atmosphere: 7/10
Price: 6/10
Verdict: After so many years of absent, I still don't find their food impressive.

Italiannies
Lot S209, Second Floor
The Gardens, Mid Valley City
Lingkaran Syed Putra, 59200
Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia
Tel: 03 - 2283 3675

http://www.italiannies.com.my/location_the_gardens.html

Gelatissimo Gelato @ The Gardens, Mid Valley City

After a recent game review at Asiasoft office, I was rather a little jaded. Whilst strolling down the food street of the Gardens at Mid Valley, I passed by this Gelatissimo ice cream stall. It has been some time since I knew the existence of it. This time round, tempted and needed, I walked closer to the stall to have a closer look on their offerings.

Gelatissimo at the Gardens, Mid Valley

Initially, I thought they only offered fruits ice cream with the big signage being erected next to the stall. As I read further, I realized that this ice cream were actually not that ice cream. It was called the gelato instead. Still consist the most attributes of an ice cream, gelato however consisted lesser sugar and butterfat content.

Fruity gelato

Assorted flavours of fruity gelato or sorbet

Being the typical me, I'd always prefer dairy flavour than sorbet. I had a hard time picking by just looking at them because all of them looked good. As such, I was allowed to sample some of their flavours.

Premium Dairy Flavours

I did ask for a recommendation and I was told that Belgian Chocolate was their best sellers. Being a chocolate fan, I chose it as my first flavour after sampling it. Next, I sampled the Coffee flavour, but the taste did not appeal to me. After a few more sampling, I was recommended that the Hazelnut were the better flavour to go with Belgian Chocolate.

Belgian Chocolate and Hazelnut were my choice

Belgian Chocolate and Hazeulnut in cone (RM 13.90 for 2 Flavour Cone)
Living up to it's name as best sellers, Belgian Chocolate was very rich in flavour, offering the extra chocolaty effect that was bitter sweet. As for the Hazeulnut flavour, it tasted slightly bland but was full with hazulnut aroma. I supposed the mild taste of the Hazelnut was due to that I tasted the rich flavour of the Belgian Chocolate. However, it was simply awesome when these 2 flavours were consumed together!

The gelato was smooth and solid but melted easily upon in the mouth. It was a pleasurable effect when the frosty gelato melts in your mouth offering the temporary icy effect that are full with flavours!

Belgian Chocolate: 9/10
Hazeulnut: 6/10

Price: 5/10
Verdict: A mood booster when you felt a little jaded!

Gelatissimo The Gardens at Mid Valley City
LG K08, Lower Ground Floor
The Gardens, Mid Valley City
Lingkaran Syed Putra, 59200
Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia
Tel: 03 - 2287 8011