Albion @ Jalan Berangan KL

Albion is a new addition to Jalan Berangan (just a street behind Changkat Bukit Bintang) beside Bar Italia. This street might be quiet and dark but if you want something away from the crowded Changkat, Albion is actually quite the perfect place for a romantic dinner for two.

This establishment serves modern British cuisine and IMHO, it was a rather brave move to label it as such. "Albion is the oldest known name of the island of Great Britain. It is thought to derive from the white cliffs of Dover. Today, it is still sometimes used poetically to refer to the island or England in particular."

British food pales in comparison when you compare it to Italian, French and Spanish cuisine because in every corner of the world, you can definitely find any of these restaurants be it good or bad. But for British cuisine, not many knew what British cuisine is all about!

The staple foods of Britain are meat, fish, potatoes, flour, butter and eggs. Their popular traditional British food includes Bangers & Mash, Toad-in-the-hole, roast meats, Yorkshire Pudding, Shepherd Pie and Fish & Chips. More info here. Nowadays, the most popular British food is - CURRY! Yikes... what happened to the real British food, one wonders.....

Egg Benedict (Single RM16)

Poached egg with runny egg yolk, ham and generous serving of Hollandaise sauce.

Albion do not serve the typical/traditional British food but they have a creative chef whom has been working for ages in Britain and is able to marry the British cuisine with the continental dishes. The menu is still filled with dishes that one might not have tried and I like that fact that the list does look refreshing! Thinking that Jasmin & Siu Ann might not have tried any modern British dining, I took them here for lunch on Sunday.

Don't you just love their expression?!!

When I saw the Serano ham with Melon (RM24), I knew I had to order this (although it's Spanish and not British). I'm a sucker for all things ham.

The first thing Siu Ann did when the dish came was "Do you eat olives?"

"Err... No." (I was thinking to say yes to appear more cultured...)

"Oh. GOOD! So I can have your share!"

(Phew!) "Yeah you are most welcomed!"



Since we are all so hungry, and it's already 2-3pm, I ordered a few dishes to share. We had a plate of Soft Shell Crabs with capers & anchovy butter sauce at RM18, the Quinoa & Asparagus Risotto (RM24) which is using the organic King of Grain in Peru and cooked as risotto. It's quite an eye-opener but I think the parmesan slices made it a little too salty for my liking. The Ballotine of Chicken (RM26) is actually a stuffed drumstick with bacons and pork stuffing served with vegetables.

The Soft Shell Crab is a great starter!

I was very tempted to try their desserts as the last time I was there, the Ice Cranachan Parfait was really good. I heard the Sticky Toffee & Date Pudding is another thumbs up but we were so full to the brim, we couldn't take in any more food!

The whole lunch only cost us around RM120+ and I think it's very affordable. Their set lunches are a steal as well but I have yet to try since my office is really far away. So, the next time you want to skip Changkat, just give it a try at Albion and see whether you have a palate for the modern British food.

Albion
31, Jalan Berangan, 50200 KL.
+603-21419282
www.albionkl.com