KUALA LUMPUR, April 27 — I've driven past Pietro many times on the way to pick up cake from a home baker who lives nearby. However, I always thought it was just an Italian restaurant so I was surprised to discover from a friend that they also serve an array of Malaysian dishes which piqued my interest.
Such an interesting contrast. There's pasta, risotto and paella standing side by side with their signature dishes like fish head curry, beef rendang, chilli crabs, grilled squid and assam fish.
It seems they started serving local fare about four years ago and it's a "secret" enjoyed by those in the know.
The versatility lies with their chef Juwahir Mustafa, better known as chef Ell. He may have trained under Italian chef Frederico Michieletto but his skills are still rooted in local fare.
For Ramadan, Pietro's buka puasa menu is an extensive one. There's something for everyone whether you like murtabak, mee rebus, kambing masak kerutuk or even ayam masak merah.
They also serve desserts like bubur pulut hitam and bubur kacang hijau to satisfy any sweet cravings. Their signature items like the fish head curry and chilli crabs do need pre-ordering so a little planning is needed.
The ultimate must-eat has to be their fish head curry for RM180. It's a whopping 1.8 kilograms of grouper fish head cooked in an addictive curry.
It will keep you happy for many days so mop up that thick, rich curry with bread or drizzle it over rice.
I'm actually not a fan of crazily spicy food so I liked that the curry wasn't overly hot but still packed with flavour. I couldn't finish it so I shared it with a friend who is a curry addict.
He didn't waste a drop of that curry as he even used it to make his own curry laksa by adding noodles and prawns!
My friends have been talking about crabs so I was happy to see they make two types of crabs on their pre-order menu. There's the chilli crabs and a salt baked version.
The chilli crabs (about RM190 per kilogram for a crab that is around 800 to 900 grams) are perfect for dining at home.
You can slowly savour eating the crabs as you dip your fried, fluffy mantous into that thick sauce. It's an interesting balance of sweet and salty with a hint of chillies to spice things up.
When I got my order, I was a little worried as I didn't have any utensils to crack the crab shells with but it was easy to extract the sweet flesh.
One of the things I miss during the Movement Control Order (MCO) is going out to the satay stall so I was happy they served beef and chicken satay.
I was a little sceptical at first as there is always the danger that the meat is hard and chewy.
But Pietro's version is good and incredibly enjoyable as the meat is tender and juicy. You can pair it with a thick peanut sauce, ketupat, cucumbers and onions.
You can order the mixed satay for RM60 which will give you 15 sticks of chicken satay and 16 sticks of beef satay for variety. They also serve chicken satay and beef satay on its own too.
A classic Ramadan dish is ayam percik. Pietro's version is percik spring chicken (RM35). While it's not the Kelantan version slicked with the creamy white sauce or even the KL version dribbled with a sweetish red sauce, this version was really tasty with the spices used. They had butterflied the spring chicken and grilled it, giving it a nice smokiness.
Of course, biryani is also another must-eat during Ramadan and there's chicken, lamb shank and even plain biryani on their menu.
The lamb shank biryani (RM48) came with fluffy, aromatic rice. I reckon I will be happy just eating the rice on its own... it's that good.
They also have beef rendang (RM18) on their buka puasa menu — tender beef cubes stewed with aromatic spices and coconut milk.
There's lots to explore with their buka puasa menu. I spy more favourites of mine like laksa Johor, nasi dagang Terengganu style, sambal petai prawn and sotong plus sago gula Melaka.
Maybe next time... another feast for the weekend.
Pietro, Bangunan ECM Libra, 8 Jalan Damansara Endah, Damansara Heights, KL. Tel: 03-20936433. You can call or WhatsApp your order to 012-272 5585 (Wendy), 012-7789972 (Edward) or 011-11776430 (Sajib).
There is free delivery to Damansara Heights, Sri Hartamas, Mont Kiara and Bangsar areas with a minimum of RM200 per order. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pietrodamansara/ Instagram: @pietrodamansara
