KL's newest boutique hotel may deserve to be a destination for restaurant enthusiasts: The Kuala Lumpur Journal flaunts two enticing eateries, a short stroll from bustling Bukit Bintang - the street-level Bounty, with a serene, shimmering setting & bistro-inspired menu, & The Shack, a leafy alfresco venue on the first floor that focuses on casual comfort cooking & easy drinking.
Bounty lives up to its name, with a bumper crop of recipes that defy the predictability of most hotels' all-day-dining outlets. Brunch staples & pastas take on a luxe twist while remaining competitively priced - amid a selection of inventive sandwiches, poached eggs on Bounty's own-baked buttery brioches with grilled asparagus would be swoon-worthy on their own, but the aromatic application of truffle shavings & white truffle oil intensifies the pleasure quotient (RM26). Pasta al pomodoro is also reinterpreted, relying on house-made tagliatelle enhanced with sweet Momotaro tomatoes & creamy Burrata cheese (RM26).
Onion rings come coated in crispy-puffy batter, handed a European touch with melted Gruyere cheese & Bordelaise red wine sauce thickened with Wagyu bone marrow (RM23) while grilled prawn risotto is granted a Korean, kimchi-imbued tang (RM32). Bounty & The Shack are both run by the team behind Bangsar's Bait, which explains the creative confidence for these recipes.
The Bounty's repertoire is beefed up further with Vietnamese-style oxtail stew from the East (RM29) & Guinness stout slow-cooked Angus beef cheek with parsnip puree from the West (RM32), tender & toothsome matches for the outlet's house reds.
The Shack's menu is less extensive, but it does spotlight something that only a handful of KL's joints offer: a gumbo-inspired Louisianan stew with mud crab, shrimp, okra & rice at the base of the steaming-hot serving pot (RM55 for a portion for two).
We had a glimpse at the rest of The Kuala Lumpur Journal - the rooms are noteworthy, looking irreproachably clean & cosy, with specially commissioned blow-ups above the beds, depicting street scenes of the city taken by Malaysian photographer Che' Mat, giving each room a real sense of character & identity bound to KL. You'll also find meeting & working spaces with a cool vibe, plus a pool overlooking Bukit Bintang's main shopping street. Based on first impressions, it's a hotel to recommend.
The KL Journal, 30, Jalan Beremi, Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur.
Great location, the hotel. Will certainly check it out should I happen to hop over. Construction works at BB done already. Always stayed around there but I was told to avoid that area as it was such a mess, all the things going on there and the resulting massive jams so I have not been back for quite a while now.
Ooh, risotto with a tang, I'm up for trying that. I'd be grateful however if they switched those DB wines off the menu for something a little more interesting.
To stay here with kids, is it safe to walk at night from Sungei Wang? Any short cut?