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Taste is subjective. A few people disagree with my taste in food and they write emails criticizing my choices and ‘poor’ taste. Apparently, enjoying a good meal by the roadside is deemed unhygienic and low class by some.

Someone once commented that I didn’t know how to enjoy good food and by ‘good’, he meant expensive. That person may be right because I don’t have all the money in the world to spend on luxury food. What I do have is enough money to enjoy hearty, hawker fares on a regular basis.

Anyway.

I visited DISH recently with a few friends to try the Weekend Tapas Brunch (RM99 per person, RM179 with free flow of alcohol). The menu was fairly extensive but it was a tapas brunch, so portions were tiny smaller. The organic eggs selection was quite good. I found the egg Benedict well made and beautifully presented.  The white pillow gave way to a golden center, which oozed out like melted butter. I ordered three rounds of this for myself.

The smoked salmon and scrambled egg were nothing to shout about; I liked the poached egg with tomato better. I also didn’t care much for the boiled egg with focaccia soldiers, as the whole combination was underwhelming next to the egg Benedict.

There were three types of croquettes available — turkey ham and mozzarella, mushroom and rosemary, and chicken and red pepper. Of the lot, I enjoyed the turkey ham best. It had a firmer texture and bolder flavour compared to the mushroom, which was a tad mushy. These came with a side of tangy-rich tomato aioli.

Soups were hardly noteworthy — pumpkin soup with truffle, wild mushrooms and Parmesan was gritty in texture and diluted. The French onion soup was alright, but could have done with more gyurere for flavour and body.

We tried the Dish Caesar, Avocado and Crab Salad, Tomato and Mozzarella Salad and Citrus Cured Salmon and thought the avocado salad was the most decent. I liked how the creamy texture of the avocado complemented the crab flakes, but the latter could have done with less seasoning. The caesar salad comprised crispy chicken, tiger prawn, poached quail egg and anchovies with garden greens. I liked this as the prawn was fresh and succulent.

I wasn’t impressed with the tomato and mozzarella salad but found the cured salmon with horseradish ice cream interesting. It wasn’t something of my taste, but the ice cream was akin to the wasabi ice cream which I happen to like.

Service was all over the place despite the restaurant being less than half occupied. Our orders were mixed up and some of the dishes never arrived. The tortellini of braised duck took almost an hour (and 3 reminders) to be served, so I expected it to be good. Sadly, the skin was too thick and lacked that certain ‘spring’ you get with good tortellini. The shredded duck filling was quite tasty though.

My order of carbonara was forgettable, as was the risotto with black olive tapenade. The latter was mushy and under seasoned. What took even longer was the mac n cheese from the vegetarian selection. One of my dining companions said he could make a much better version in just 15 minutes. I believe him.

For a weekend brunch, it is odd that they ran out of ribeye when we were there on a Saturday. We settled for the striploin which I didn’t like one bit. The meat was overcooked – because it was sliced too thin – and lacked flavour. Better was the lamb kofta but like the pasta, it took ages to arrive. The meat was well seasoned and texture was chunky. I was tempted to order another one but considering the waiting time, I changed my mind.

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Skip the paprika chicken and go for the black angus beef burger. This was tasty, but hardly filling. I would need five portions of this to feel satisfied.

From the fish selection, I enjoyed the salt baked cod with red pepper sauce but found both the red snapper and salmon overcooked to the point of being tough and dry. The Thai calamari from the shellfish selection was deeply addictive while the mussels with apple and cider sauce tasted odd. I thought the cider gave the mussel a unpleasant aftertaste.

Desserts were a hit and miss for me. My favourite was the caramel chocolate delice with lime ice cream. Texture was rich, smooth and dense, and I appreciated the complexity. The lime ice cream helped balance the richness of the delice. I didn’t like the strawberry mousse but rif found it ok. The green guava crumble with caramel ice cream tasted decent but I wasn’t feeling the jack fruit in the chocolate mousse. I preferred the mousse on its own.

My second time experience was so-so and service was painfully slow. The only attentive waiter that afternoon was Azman — he was polite and quick to refill our drinks. While I found the brunch just alright, I enjoyed the company. Thanks Antoine and Skip, for joining us. :)

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Ambiance: 7/10
Price: 5/10
Food: 5.5/10 (pork free)
Verdict: A few hits and misses but overall, brunch was decent.

DISH at Dua Residency
Lot 1.1, Ground Floor, Dua Annexe,
No. 211, Jalan Tun Razak,
50450 Kuala Lumpur.
03 2164 1286
Lunch: 12.00noon – 2.30pm
Dinner: 6.00pm – 11.00pm
https://dishfinedining.com/