Grub by Ahong @ Section 17, Petaling Jaya

"Cooking is about passion, so it may look sightly tempremental in a way that it's too assertive to the naked eye.'- Gordon Ramsay 

Well that's how we feel when it comes to great food with a touch of homey atmosphere.. Let's welcome in the new kid on the block- Grub! This little homey and no frills restaurant is located in section 17 Petaling Jaya area that is facing just opposite of the ever popular Instagram cafe of Cafe Tujoh! This place is a special treat if you managed to find it as it was like a needle in a haystack as the signage was rather petite to be notice at a glance, so be sure to be more observant! 

This place is rather unique in terms of it's setting as it has a vibe of a sundry shop but what hidden behind this facade would surely amazes you as there is a huge industrial fitted kitchen present and is ready to motor in preparing you scrumptious dishes! This restaurant may seem to look rather simple and plain but it has 2 floors that is there to cater more people on the 2nd floor and also it's airconditioned! The first floor is more of a malaysian temperature seating with huge communal like seating in the centre of the restaurant.. 

We chose this Malaysian Temperature seating in comparison to the 2nd floor Cameron Highland inspired seating as we would like to be witnessing all the action of the Kitchen! Their side station layout is also on the simple and no fuss free side with it's huge table that has an array of colorful crockery, cutleries and also beverages on a cooler tub.. 

The entire restaurant is surrounded with the great works of art be it from the modern era or the masterpieces from the greatest artist of the Renaissance era! If you're abit confused and shocked on the combination or their restaurant setting, wait till you be more surprised from it's menu appearance! 

After we were comfortably seated, we were given a clipboard menu which is really funky and truly malaysian! The menu are really simple, straightforward yet it is playful as you get the melting pots of western and malaysian influences in it's cooking! Their entire menu was described so poetically that it gave us a tough time in deciding on the dishes we want to try out! 

Their price is an affordable too! So you won't go bankrupt enjoying their food.. 

 After much deciding and pondering, we decided to try out a 3 course meal and the chef here advise us strongly to share it! 

Beetroot, Fresh Fig &Feta Salad (RM13.50)

So we followed the advice of the chef and we started off with an amazingly unique and refreshing starter of Beetroot, Fresh Fig & Feta Salad which is actually one of the first things that caught our attention in this menu!
This is  really unique combination as this dish we would always watch it at the cooking tv show but it's a rarity in KL.. We are really lucky that Grub decided to be different and challenges our palates in this cuisine!

This starter has halves beetroot that is poached till it's soft on the inside yet sturdy and sweet and it was being paired together with the fresh figs that is halves that have a final touches of a shower of feta cheese jewels that decorates the rocket leaves, croutons, honey and peanuts! This starter can either be a single portion or you can even share it.. We opted the sharing platter..

The moment it came to grace us it's captivating beauty that just made us really excited! We couldn't help but to just take numerous pictures of this beauty to remind us the glory of mother nature and she is one heck of an impeccable chef! The color contrast of it is really mesmerizing and it does resembles those dishes you've seen on a cook book.. 

Now, it's tasting time! 

We tried all the elements individually and it was really perfectly cooked with great balance of seasoning to not overpower the others later.. So the beetroot was perfectly poached that has retain it's structural integrity and enhances the natural sweetness.. The figs doesn't really need any help as they are really juicy and slightly tart but the tartness helps the dish to be not overly sweet.. The feta cheese is actually my favourite bit of the dish as it has some creamy and crumbly texture with a hint of umami in it.. The rocket leaves is on the bitter side with crispy mouthfeel alongside the sprinkle of peanut that brought out the crunchy and buttery feel on the palate.. All this elements together creates an exquisite musical symphony in our palates in every bite! 

Lamb And Clams  (RM35)

With an impressive and deliciously good starter, we can't wait for the 2nd course which is the mains! For this course, we decided to share a Lamb and Clams which is really interesting as in their menu description it has the inclusion of both the clams and pan fried lamb being immerse in a shellfish broth..
This dish consist of Pan fried lamb loin that is swimming together with the fresh clams in shellfish broth.. This dish comes with an accompaniment options that is either Ramen or Sourdough.. For us, we went with the option of Sourdough as the bread isn't an easy bread to make especially it is really fickle with the requirements in regards to the weather..

Their timing for this dish is really fast and doesn't leave us really long to wait.. The presentation is really simple and homey.. The portion itself also is quite generous and suitable for 2 person to share which is great as you get to explore the other dishes available on their dinner menu.. 

After much documenting of this wonderful yet homey dish, we firstly had a taste of their broth and it has a taste which will struck you for a chinese style vegetable soup and it is really clear and clean broth as the vegetable flavours do shine through eventhough there is a usage of shellfish as the main components of the broth.. The harmony of the broth is really fantastic and it wasn't overly seasoned; a great balance of vegetable and seafood flavour intensity in every spoonful!

 From the amazing and flavourful broth comes the moment of truth and that is the pan fried lamb loin! Well the idea of having a pan fried lamb loin being incorporated alongside the clams and shellfish broth has intrigued us as we would normally see the lamb loin to be on their own with just a touch of gravy on the plate but instead this is swimming with a broth and an ocean of clams.. In this bowl, they have portioned for us 2 pieces of loin and the moment we sliced and we were amazed by the skills of the chef to have it perfectly medium and the meat was just tender and melts in your mouth! The clams is really fresh and juicy and it goes swimmingly well with the broth and the lamb loin as a dish.. The sourdough is really light and fluffy! 

Mysterious Refresher 

Actually we've ordered a dessert which is the Hummingbird cake but we were truly being surpised with an eye catching creation from the chef which according to him is a compliment to his fellow guests that spent their dinner of RM50 and above..

This unique presentation of a tear drop shape ice art is really cute and does reminds us of a Japanese comic and with this appealing tear drop shape cutie that was filled with cubes of mango and nato de coco that was sprinkled on with copius amounts of mint and dressing of calamansi juice! All the elements together really made this show stopper dessert a refreshing and zesty one! 

HummingBird Cake (RM12)

After that show stopper of a dessert, there it was the dessert that we all have been waiting for which is the Humming Bird Cake.. The presentation of the dessert is really homey yet beautiful but we were wondering about their custartd puff pastry case as it wasn't on the plate.. 

Well, we were too happy to just ignore the missing element that was stated on its menu and to just solely concentrate on the majesty of this humble yet scrumptious dessert.. 

In terms of taste, this hummingbird cake surely packes a punch in terms of flavour as the cake was really moist and airy just like a pillow would be and in between the layer of the cakes there was a hidden surprise of the caramlized apples that just makes every single bite of the cake really meaningful as the apples as the combination flavour of floral and honey sweetness, nuttiness from the walnuts and sweet baking spices ( cinnamon) on the palate.. The ice cream on the other hand was really excellent and stand out on its own but it goes buzzingly well with the cake with it's marbling of chocolate swirl and melted chips..

Verdict: 

Delicious yet affordable and generous home cook meal

Great for sharing

Must Try: 

Beetroot, Fresh Fig & Feta Salad 

Local Seafood Bouillabaise 

HummingBird Cake 

Ambience: 3/5

Food:3.5/5

Price:3/5

Service:3/5

Grub by Ahong 

608, Jalan 17/10

Section 17

Petaling Jaya 

Opening Hours: 

Tuesday- Friday 

6pm-10:30pm

Saturday & Sunday 

5pm-10:30pm