The brainchild of a couple with a love for good food, The Elk in Solaris Mont Kiara serves a combination of Western, Fusion and Asian dishes inspired by their travels across the globe. The Elk’s promise of generous portions and rich hearty flavours was what attracted rif and I to check the place out.

The interior felt cosy and personal, with pictures of their vacation in various parts of Europe and a sofa area at one corner. My latte (RM7) was alright, but rif’s Spicy Lychee (RM9) was most interesting. Sweet and fruity with a mildly spicy aftertaste.

Stuffed Squid (RM12) was an interesting starter of tender squid with minced pork, garlic and onion. I was told it was inspired by the Vietnamese grilled squid. The garlicky-porky flavour of the filling gave the squid an extra oomph; perfect with a cold pint of beer.

We shared the Black Angus Roast Beef (RM40) and the Extreme Porky Pork Burger (RM28). The latter featured a monstrous composition of 200gm minced pork patty, ham, cheese and crispy bacon, and was rather delicious. A sunny side up would have been a nice complement to the already massive burger. #forevergreedy

The patty was well seasoned and moist – one of the best pork burgers I’ve had so far. They have a less decadent version, Special Pork Burger, if you’re not that big an eater.

Also good was the Black Angus Roast Beef (RM40), served with red wine butter gravy. According to Khaw, the dishes have gone through various tasting processes until they were satisfied with the outcome. Almost everything was made in-house; seasonings, oils, sauces and even the pastas.

I found the rim of fat on the beef particularly tasty as it was redolent of the seasoning and had a soft, almost buttery texture. Try to eat this as quickly as possible as the meat is most tender when it is warm.

The Grilled Seafood Squid Ink Fettuccine (RM25) was cooked for too long, so the handmade pasta was a tad soft. A pity really, for the seafood was relatively fresh and well accented by the white wine sauce.

Dessert was a simple Banana Fritters with Vanilla Ice cream (RM12) – a simple and sweet finish to a hearty dinner. It’s hard to go wrong with fried bananas and ice cream, unless you have a talent for messing up. On a whole, I liked the portions and the food was hearty — just a bit of fine tuning needed. Who wants to go for pork burger? :P

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Ambiance: 6/10
Price: 6/10
Food: 6/10 (non-halal)
Verdict: Some fine-tuning still needed, but I’m definitely coming back for the pork burger.

The Elk
15G Jalan Solaris 4
Solaris Mont Kiara
50480 Kuala Lumpur