Pasta with roast vegetables and sage
D’italiane Kitchen serves Italian food with a local twist. STEPHEN NG and his celebrity guest check out some new creations for the restaurant’s menu
AS we settle down at the D’italiane Kitchen, Kimberlee exclaims, “I love the food here!”
Born to a Malaysian father and a Canadian mother, Kim as she’s fondly known, is the latest addition to the MIX.fm radio team. She is also a businesswoman, fashion photographer and emcee. As with most radio deejays, Kim prefers to be known by her online persona so her full name remains a mystery.
Slurping the fresh water prawn soup, our first dish at this Italian restaurant with a local twist, Kim talks about her leisure interests.
The sweet and soft-spoken Kim is an outdoor person who enjoys skateboarding.
She also dedicates her free time to helping people and animals in need. She has adopted four cats and two dogs, and volunteers at The Soup Kitchen, a shelter for the homeless, on weekends.
Healthy food
The lovely soup is followed by other equally delicious dishes — peppered salmon with sun-dried tomato dressing and pasta with roast vegetables and sage.
“It’s nice being a food taster, being a so-called Canadian tourist myself,” says Kim, adding “but my tummy has to work extra hard, especially when every dish is great!”
Restaurant owner K.H. Saw then introduces the fourth dish — broiled sweet and tangy codfish.
“All the dishes that you are trying out today will be added to our menu soon,” he says.
“The restaurant practises healthy cooking — we use only olive oil while the vegetables go through a food detoxification process known as ozonation that eliminates toxins which are bad for health.”
For example, to maintain the freshness and quality of its beef dishes, Saw only uses chilled beef air-flown from Australia. “We only obtain our supply from farms where the cattle feed mainly on grains.
“We get our vegetables from the same suppliers who supply some of the five-star hotels here,” he says, adding that the food offered is not purely Italian so as to cater to local tastebuds.
Simply irresistible
By then, Kim is almost full but the Sicilian seafood pizza and the mascarpone raspberry crepes are too tempting to resist.
“I will have a piece right now!” she says with a laugh. “You can pack the rest so that I can bring it to the office.”
Just before leaving D’italiane Kitchen for her office — the studio at Astro in Jalan Sungai Besi to start work at 8pm — she stops short at the tempting sight of some ice cream. “It’s Grand Marnier ice cream with Baileys vanilla. It’s made using fresh vanilla pods and high quality creams,” says Saw.
“It’s a result of our innovation. When I first saw the liquor ice cream at the Food Hotels Association exhibition, I decided that I would come out with my version of Red Wine Ice Cream as well.”
“I like it! It suits my taste perfectly,” says the bubbly Kim.
Before dashing off, she says, “The food is as good as the ambience — breezy, private, alfresco-style dining. The temperature is very inviting. Service is good, with smiling waiters. I enjoyed the pasta as it reminded me of my mother’s cooking. The ice-cream… it’s so good, I will come back for more!”
Fast Facts
The first D’italiane Kitchen opened as a casual family dining outlet in Jaya 33, Petaling Jaya in 2007. Two years later, the second outlet opened in Sunway Giza in Dataran Sunway at Kota Damansara.
To get there, take Lebuhraya Damansara-Puchong and turn into Persiaran Surian.
Drive straight on until you see a junction then turn into the road that leads towards Sunway Giza.
D’italiane Kitchen
Block D, F.10, First Floor
No 2, Sunway Giza Shopping Mall
Kota Damansara, 47810 Petaling Jaya, Selangor
Opening Hours: 10am-10pm daily
Tel: 03-6148 1828
For details, visit www.ditalianekitchen.com.my
