Sunday, August 23, 2009

Dubrovnik, Pearl of The Mediterranean


Dubrovnik
Pearl of The Meditteranean

Dubrovnik is a Croatian city and is one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites. One of the benefits of globalization is the array of international cuisines you can find on our local shore. Put your passports and boarding pass aside, let me take you to Croatia!

p/s: I had initially thought Dubrovnik is a Russian restaurant.


Bread with Ajvar

I guess it's becoming a SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) for all these international cuisines restaurants ie. French and Italian to serve bread and most commonly balsamic vinegar, but in this case, Dubrovnik offers it with ajvar (a type of Croation vegetable salsa-like dip). The bread is served warm and the ajvar dipping is different from the usual balsamic vinegar.


Due Colori Soup- RM16
Perfectly divided plate of creamy leek-spinach with asparagus and cauliflower soup

I am not a big fan of vege blended things, I like my veg to be whole and cooked. So I was a bit skeptical on a vege soup... until it arrived and I had a spoonful of it, oh how wrong I was! The soup was great, especially the green part. The cauliflower part tasted a tad bland but when paired with the leek-spinach and asparagus portion, my skepticism towards vege soups was temporarily removed. This is a Must Order from the appetizer section.


Strukli- RM15
Fresh cheese dumplings, pan fried with bread crumbs, served with sour cream

The waiter attended to us recommended Strukli as an appetizer. Cheese has never been on top of my appetizer list but we decided to give it a shot since it was a Chef's Recommendation. When the dish arrived, it looked nothing like dumplings, or at least the Chinese type (in my mind, dumplings = wanton/sui gao/woh tip). Now I know what Croation 'dumplings' look like! Not a recommended dish for those watching their weight or lactose intolerant. After a piece of Strukli, I felt like my dinner was done.


Flambeed Steak Korcula- RM58
Prime beef loin marinated with spices and Dijon then pan-fried on butter with special mushroom sauce and cognac

I usually have my steak in a piece, not in pieces, so this was quite a change from the usual steak dish. The main is accompanied with some fried onion rings, some blanched vege, and some fried potato-like balls . The steak is nice and tender and has quite a distinct taste but in my humble opinion, a little too oily.


Lamb Peka- RM50
Traditional Croatian way of preparing meat or seafood, under and iron bell for 3 hours in the wood burning oven

The Lamb Peka was another recommended dish. It was stated that the dish needs booking in advance but on that day it was readily available. Hmmm, not too sure on the contradiction but I guess it's a lucky night for us. I'm not usually a fan of ordering lambs but my makan partner in crime was craving for some lamb... the comment on this dish is that it wasn't flavourful enough, at least for the price to pay. We found out that they stuffed some garlic in the lamb, so that was a bit of consolation as the garlicky part has a bit more substantial taste. The dish is served with saffron rice and some vege.



In my humble opinion, I like the service, ambience and the decorations- perfect for a good dine out with your loved one and/or friends/family. However, for the price to pay, the food were not as good as I hoped to be. Then again, this is the Malaysian tastebud talking, perhaps the dishes were meant to taste like that- the Croatian way. The soup was a clear winner that night and we'd love to return again to try out some other dishes to prove ourselves wrong.


Dubrovnik
J-OG-14, Solaris Mont Kiara,
No. 2, Jalan Solaris, Mont Kiara,
Kuala Lumpur.


[disclaimer: the opinions expressed here are based on my personal views, tastebuds and preference and may vary for others. please dont sue me, i dont have money. kthxbye.]
 
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