Ben's, Suria KLCC and Pavillion

I reckon I should blog about Ben's before it got too stale- the photos have been sitting in my album for some time now :p

The first time I noticed Ben's was at KLCC- it took over CPK and refurbished to a 'darkish' corner. Somehow, it didn't pique my interest at all, until Diha told me to check it out- she had a good time there.

And so I did went to have a look.

Went there for dinner (heard lunch's ultra pack), Ben's at KLCC has a relaxed ambiance and jazzy tunes in the background to sooth a hectic day at work. The spacing between diners was at a comfortable distance, compared to Ben's at Pavillion, which had a cosy, cheery concept, diners sitting rather closely to be able to hear next table's gossip..hehe..

I digress, lets get back to the food instead, shall we?

Some mocktails to start...

Muddled Mary and Berry Freeze..

Mary's too spicy to my liking, berry was ok..

We had the soft shell crab salad (RM20.90)..

A lighter version of somtum, they were generous with the soft shell crabs and papaya. Not too sour nor spicy, the salad had a good crunch and eating it with the piping hot crabs does give a nice oomph to this dish.

I always have a soft spot for duck and I zoomed in straight for the Duck Confit Spaghetinni (RM22.90)..

And yes, in case you're wondering why the dish looks so familiar, Ben's owned by the same people who started Delicious. Alas, similar in look does not translate in taste- this was ultra greasy and salty.

The Portobello Mushroom Sandwich (RM22.90) fared much better..

The mushroom was juicy, filled with smoky, woody flavour. The accompanying side kicks were commendable too- the grilled capsicums was juicy, the rocket fresh and nutty and oozing melted cheese completes the picture. Yup, this is a vegetarian dish.

Ben's at Pavi had something that KLCC didn't...

Think it's perfect if you are in the company of introverts and shy people..haha

And the desserts- hits and misses..

The chocolate banana cake

Compact, dry, fudgy. I feel like I was eating Winnie the Pooh, and not in a nice way. Dont like it at all.

Blackforest was way better..

Dark chocolate mousse was fantastic with the moist cake, the meringue bits gave a bit of excitement to the else melting cake.

Not a cake person? Maybe you should try the Banofee Sundae..

Lots of bananas, vanilla ice cream, butterscotch, choc fudge, short cake with chocolate and roasted almond slivers. A delicious combination, what can I say?

I feel that Ben's food was not the main attraction (it's pretty decent, dont get me wrong), but it's the ambiance, target market crowd that draws in the like minded.

There are a few branches around town- Ben's KLCC, Ben's Pavillion and Ben's Bangsar Village 1. I heard that the menu differs slightly between these three branches.