BREF (TTDI) by Darren Chin *(BUSINESS CLOSED)

First time here for an intimate birthday dinner. It was quite good. We really liked the bun, it was fresh and fluffy. The sliced bread was just normal though. We also liked the chowder, cold capellini, Hokkaido scallop. The main and dessert not really as good as we expected.

Had an amazing dinner at Bref recently. The fun part of sitting at the counter is watching the food being prepared. Of course, being a regular, Chef Ben would always come by for a chat and update us on the menu. On this particular night, Chef Ben was available to prepare a few new ideas for us to sample. All excellent ! It was appetising and visually appealing. A blend of Southern Asian and Japanese flavours. Light, tasty, and yummy textures. In one particular dish, there were no less than 6 different flavors. It was like having 6 dishes on one plate. Nicely done. We were so ready for the main courses. Our favourite Lamb Ribs and Trout. In many places, the trout is usually overcooked, hence, dried and hardened. Not this trout. Still crispy outside, while 70% cooked inside. Tender and juicy inside. Delicious! The lamb ribs, as expected, soft, meat almost slides off the bone. Marinated. The meat was so tasty, each bite you would want to chew a bit longer to maintain the lingering lamb flavour. Then, a nice sip of Purple Angel to complement it. What a wonderful dinner. Thanks to Chef Ben for the food. The services were excellent as usual. I always enjoy having dinner at Bref because of its nice neighbourhood restaurant feeling. Cozy, clean, classic. Excellent value.

Dinner menu was RM388 per person but with drinks, tax and service charge expect to pay over RM500. Was it worth it? Absolutely yes. Each dish was perfectly executed, packed with flavor and well presented. Even the bread was so good. The main protein - wagyu steak and duck were both excellent. Restaurant is small and can be quite smokey. The waiters need to speak up and articulate when presenting the food. Otherwise it is an excellent dining experience.

Discovered this establishment after spending weeks looking through restaurant lists. Based on the good things I've read, ultimately chose them for my parent's anniversary dinner. Contacted the restaurant manager, who was very nice and helpful, to make the reservation. They do offer a course meal, but we decided to give their seasonal menu a try instead. Overall, we had an amazing dining experience at Bref! We were greeted by the manager himself and was brought to our private dining area by one of the waiters. The level of service we received was incredible, the waiters were always checking up on us, cleaning our tables after every dish, and filling up our drinks. As for the food, we absolutely loved the spreads that came with the complementary bread basket. A medley of onion jam, artichoke spinach spread topped with sun-dried tomatoes, gave us the perfect savoury start to our meal. For appetisers we had the Italian Burrata and Panache of Zucchini, both were amazingly light and refreshing, especially the Zucchini! The combination of the mint pistou and smoked yoghurt gave it a fresh, zesty and delicate taste. Personally, the mains that stole the show were the Black Angus Tenderloin and Cherry Valley Duck Breast. Both were exquisite in their own right. The steak was seared to perfection, making it juicy and succulent with every bite packed with rich and savoury taste that tantalises your palate. It was served on a bed of truffle celeriac cream that just elevated the dish, the truffle wasn't overpowering too. As for the duck, it was my personal favourite of the night, it was tender and just exquisite. Served with roasted duck bone jus, every bite offered a juicy, sophisticated and refined taste, making it a luxurious dining experience. Not a fan of fish, but I loved the Seabream as well! It was more zesty and lighter compared to the other two, but delicious nonetheless! We had the signature chocolate dome for dessert, and for lack of a better word, it was probably the most decadent and rich chocolate dessert that we've ever had, and yet it was not over-powering! The non-dairy chocolate ice cream with 60% cacao chocolate was definitely the highlight for me, it was velvety, intense and yet bittersweet. We had the meal with a bottle of the sparkling Merlot grape juice, for those looking for the "wine and dine" feeling but can't drink alcohol, it's recommended! All-in-all, we had an amazing dining experience and would definitely return in the future! We were told the menu was about to be revamped, so definitely looking forward to the new menu!

I was excited to try Bref by DC after getting recommendations and looking through the reviews and menu, but ultimately I was disappointed by the experience. Let's start with the good parts: The food presentation was impeccable, the servers were polite, and the ambience is casual yet intimate. However, the food doesn't taste as good as it looks. We ordered 4 dishes for 2 pax. 1. Entree: Grilled Asparagus The asparagus tastes ok but the other elements on the plate don't complement each other. 2. Pasta: Parpadelle umami XL truffle pasta The pasta was cooked al dente and the sauce was nice, topped with a respectable amount of truffle flakes. However, the parpadelle was too thick and the flavour of the sauce was long gone halfway through a bite. All that was left was the bland taste of flour when I finished chewing. 3. Mains: Galician octopus The octopus was tender but still firm enough to have a bite to it, without feeling tough or chewy. Kudos to the chef for nailing the texture! Sadly parts of the tentacle were too charred and tasted bitter, the unburnt part tasted nice though. 4. Dessert: Tualang honey milk ice-cream The honey milk ice cream was quite novel and pairs well with the cream cheese foam and sponge. However, the nuts in the florentine tasted rancid and completely ruined the dish. Perhaps the most disappointing thing was that we were never once asked what we thought of the meal, despite spending over RM 400+ for dinner. Meanwhile, the customers at the next table were getting chef's explanation and feedback for every dish that was served. Conclusion: Food looks good but the taste isn't worth the price. Service was good, but I think getting customers feedback is important when you're selling at this price point.

Summary: Food is tasty and generously portioned, but I feel it's priced at near-fine dining prices but prepared at just below that standard. Still worth a try. Bref by DC is a more casual version of DC, with a lower price tag as well. I did enjoy all my dishes, and they were certainly good portions, but at the price i kind of expected a bit more WOW I had the Mushroom Medley, which was varied with different deep fried and sauteed mushrooms, and the Duck Fricassee which was delicious with its mustard cream, but the duck was too dry, and the fried potato mille-feuille was a little too oily. The dessert of pannacotta, icecream and meringue was just up my alley i.e. varied and not too sweet, but my tablemates thought it was too simple. One of my friends had the XO spaghetti which they and i both thought was overly cream-forward, such that it overpowers the XO and is frankly a bit stomach-turning. Their Jerusalem artichoke soup was delicious though Overall, an enjoyable restaurant worth visiting, but just not sure it's worth the asking price.

We ordered 3 appetisers, 2 main and 1 dessert for our dinner. The appetisers are good and highly recommended (Beef Tartare, Foie Gras and Scallops). However was disappointed with the main dish (Grilled Lamb Racks) for my own liking, as I don’t feel it’s anything special given small portion and high price for it. Dessert (Chocolate Dome) is good with rich chocolate taste. Overall services and dining experience is good.

Mains: 1. Australian Wagyu (5⭐) - perfect tenderness 2. Canadian lobster (5⭐) - perfect 3. Papardelle Umami XL (5⭐) - they ran out of papardelle and gave us normal pasta. Generous portion of truffle, very flavourful 4. Trout (4⭐) - pretty good, carries a slightly smoky flavour on the skin 5. Duck (4⭐) - slightly rarer side, meat was good but fats also unchewable 6. Lamb (3⭐) - some parts undercooked, rubbery and unchewable 7. Linguine ala Vongole (3⭐) - lots of clams but flavour-wise so-so Entrees: Brefs Cold Cappellini, Buttermilk Fried Chicken, Norwegian Salmon, Oysters, Bread - all 5 ⭐ Desserts: Pistachio Paris-Brest (5⭐) Signature Choc Dome (4⭐) Charcoal & Black Sesame (4⭐) Overall: 4⭐ Good dining experience but when you pay RM400+ a head you expect perfection. Was disappointed to see a fly around our table. Also, the waiter did not tell us they ran out of pappardelle, and just swapped it out for regular pasta. Very unprofessional for a 'fine-dining' restaurant.