A dishy Italian who does Japanese and Chinese too

The amuse bouche of Mushroom Capuccino with Salmon Tamago and Ebiko. — Picture by Cumi dan Ciki

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 2 — It was quite amazing, coming upon Il Primo in such a choice location in Jalan Kia Peng, KL, and with such a big car park. This newly-opened restolounge is all about wining and dining, with a band playing in the later hours. As you enter, a striking and colourful wall mural catches the eye. It’s all at one level, a huge place that has the restaurant at the front and the lounge at the back. Throw in a show kitchen and you are in the midst of dining, with a full view of the chefs who are preparing your food. (In command is well-known chef Federico Michieletto). There’s a sort of deli at the side, with olive oils, artisanal pastas, breads, gourmet jams, Illy coffee, chocolates and cookies and even grappa for sale. A display counter of cakes and macarons, and gelato, tells you what desserts to expect at the end of your meal.

The Chef’s Sashimi Platter. — Picture by Cumi dan Ciki An Italian name means an Italian menu right? But Il Primo bucks the trend, and adds on Japanese and Chinese in addition to classic Italian dishes. We began with the amuse bouche of a light and frothy mushroom cappuccino and salmon tamago (egg omelette) with ebiko. A light beginning of Italian and Japanese continued into the Sashimi Platter of hamachi, tuna toro, salmon and sweet ebi (prawn). The fish was fresh, the ginger pickles were excellent. We went back to Italian again in the Fish and Shellfish Caciucco, Tuscany style, which is like a bouillabaisse, steeped with flavours of fish, shellfish and vegetables like tomato, celery, onions and garlic. Half a marron (like a crayfish) was in the soup, together with fish and clams, and a slice of fried bread. There was a lovely aroma from the soup and you could taste the sweetness of the seafood (especially the marron) in spite of a little too much salt in it. More bread to dip into the soup would have been perfect.

The Fish and Shellfish Caciucco, Tuscany Style. — Picture by Cumi dan Ciki The Rusti Chella D’Abruzzo Orecchiette pasta with stewed rabbit was outstanding. Orecchiette means “little ears” and this artisanal pasta has this shape. Apparently you can even see a thumb print in each “ear”. It originates from the Puglia region of Italy. The pasta had a lot of bite. Rabbit, which is a very lean and healthy meat, had been stewed with pumpkin, tomato and herbs and was so delicious with the ear-shaped pasta. On the Italian menu, there are side orders of duck fat roasted potatoes (yum!), oven roasted mushrooms, onion, garlic and parsley and creamy mashed potatoes, among others.
So good — the ear-shaped Rustichella D’abruzzo Orchiette pasta with rabbit stewed with pumpkin. — Picture by Cumi dan Ciki The food is meant to be shared at Il Primo, which is convenient if you are dining as a group, and especially if you are having pasta. The Homemade Beef Cheek Agnolotti with Porcini Mushrooms, which is like ravioli, would have been better if it had been al dente instead of soft. But the flavours were amazing: the aromas of the mushrooms and truffle oil in the very tender wagyu beef cheek all came together so well. We tried a Wok-fried Garoupa with Spicy Sauce from the Chinese menu. The garoupa is drenched in an intense sweet chilli sauce that makes you think of the Thai samrod fish. This would have been good with rice. You could also order a Sri Lankan Crab with salt and pepper, or a Boston lobster with pepper honey sauce off the Chinese menu, and Il Primo special noodles with scallops, prawns and squid, or a homemade beancurd with bamboo shoot and mushrooms.

The super delicious Lemon Tart. — Picture by Cumi dan CikiDesserts are always the happiest part of the meal. There are various flavours of gelato here – you could even go to the display counter and pick what you want. Meanwhile, I was extremely happy with my Lemon Tart with Fresh Fruits. It’s got a buttery, melt-in-the-mouth crust, a well balanced lemon custard filling that’s not too sour nor too sweet but filled with the oomph of lemon. You could also order the dessert platter that gives you a small slice of Sacher cake with chocolate and apricot jelly layers, Vanilla Bavarese with passionfruit, lemon tart, chocolate cake and a fruit tart.
A view of Il Primo at its entrance.

— Picture by Cumi dan Ciki Il Primo Restolounge@Conlay, which is pork-free, is located at No. 26 & 28, Jalan Kia Peng, Kuala Lumpur. Tel: 03-2143 2798. Apart from the usual opening hours, it serves tea from 3pm to 5pm, and a Sunday brunch from 11am to 3pm.