Wine & Dine on Porky Goodness!
Wine
lovers will be pleased to know that there is a newbie in town for affordable
wine and dine. Hoopla Lounge, located
in the popular hangout area of Desa Sri Hartamas, is the sister restaurant of ChapterOne Bar + Bistro.
I
can think of plenty of reasons why Hoopla
is going to be a popular hotspot to come. Located in a strategic location, Hoopla offers all its diners free valet
parking. Yes, just hand your keys to the valet and head on upstairs to the
lounge. Parking in that area can be a tough feat but with free valet offered by
Hoopla, hanging out at the lounge is now made easier.
The
moment one walks into Hoopla, you
know that you’re in for a good time. The décor is dim and yet posh. Dark décor are
brought to life with bold and colorful art pieces on the wall. A beautiful bar,
a wine cellar, high back lounge chairs and low tables, spaciousness that offers
privacy, these are definite reasons to visit Hoopla too.
Hoopla prides on offering a solid list of
wines and currently have over 100 wines on their list. More wines are already
in plan to be added to the current list, added owner Ernest C. An ardent wine
lover himself, he believes that wines should be affordable so everyone can
enjoy them. That evening, we enjoyed St Martin Reserve Merlot and Chardonnay
from France. Though I am normally a white lover, I really enjoyed the red
Merlot. The medium-bodied red has a refreshing acidity with smooth tannins.
One
cannot certainly survive on wine alone! Here’s another delicious reason and a
porky one indeed. Hoopla shares the menu with ChapterOne and there’s plenty of
tempting dishes from local favorites to international dishes to keep everyone
pretty happy indeed.
There’s
plenty of snacks to go with wine or beer and one must-have bar snack is Hoopla’s Chicken Wings (RM22). Glorious
crispy wings and drumettes well-marinated in Asian inspired flavors are so
good, we happily dig in with our fingers. Served alongside house made chili
sauce, the chicken wings are deliciously addictive as the moreish and salty
flavor hit all the right spot together with the spicy kick-ass chili sauce.
Another
house specialty is a simple one but goes great with wines. Lady Fingers (RM6) are lightly parboiled and dressed in Mentsuyu, garlic oil and sesame oil.
Clean and delicate flavors coupled with the unique lady fingers texture makes a
light appetizer to go with wines.
The
next few dishes comes from the Connor’s special menu. First up, a Cracklin’ Chicken Karaage (RM38).
Homing in on classic Japanese crispy fried chicken, this version has chicken
marinated in Connor’s stout, fried crispy and drizzled with a creamy sweet and
spicy sauce. Another great and delicious bar food and this dish comes with a
glass of Connor’s stout.
Mains
are next and from the same Connor’s menu, the Conner’s BBQ Chicken Thigh (RM40) was a crowd pleaser. A whole
chicken Maryland roasted and basted with an unctuous sweet and sticky Connor’s
infused BBQ sauce has such comforting flavors that one can savor often. It has
such a down-to-earth flavor that makes the chook a treat to enjoy. Served with
roasted potato wedges and another spicy and tangy chili sauce, we hope this
dish stays on the regular menu. This dish also comes with a glass of Connor’s
stout.
Porky
goodness is up next and the Connor’s Rib
Slab (RM85) wowed our crowd. The pork ribs are given a 48-hours marinade of
Connor’s stout porter. Then it’s slow roasted till tender with on-going basting
to create a sublime sticky and sweet BBQ glaze. The glaze caramelized and gave
the ribs a luscious sheen of deliciousness with crisp edges. The ribs are so
tender and moist. We enjoyed how the ribs still has a good bite too. Guess
what? The porky ribs comes with 2 glasses of Connor’s stout porter in case one
thinks that it’s not Connor’s enough!
The
evening got even better when the Crispy
Pork Knuckle (RM77) was placed in front of us. This mega platter of a
gargantuan pork knuckle served with sausages, potato, crunchy veggies and three
sauces had everyone flashing their cameras in paying homage to the hog simply
because it looked amazing.
Full
blast crispy, crunchy, salty and porky goodness, the pork knuckle had everyone
going back for seconds. What makes this pork knuckle even more memorable was
the sauces. There was a tangy brown sauce, a super spicy and sour sauce with
herbs and a regular brown gravy. The pork knuckle richness was well-balanced up
with all the sauces, especially the spicy one and makes it easy on the palate
with that adrenalin and addictive heat from the sauce. Love the robust flavor
of the sausages and the crunchy sticks of veggies does make the dish less
sinful. Great platter for sharing and went so well with our red St Martin
Reserve…
Despite
all the meaty goodness, there was this amazing Pan Fried Seabass (RM31) too. The seabass was cooked so well,
crispy skin with firm and moist flesh. The skin had lots of flavors from spices
and the lightly pickled onion salad really gave a zesty zing to the fish. A
squeeze of lemon added more flavors too. Served with creamy potato salad, I
really adored the fish and would certainly order this again.
Hoopla
also has a list of local favorites such as Char Kway Teow, Tomyam Meehoon,
Hokkien Mee, Mee Goreng and more. We opted for their Hokkien Mee (RM19), a plate of lardy infused braised dark fat
noodles fried with cabbage and pork. The noodles are decent and has a good
oomph of that rich and aromatic flavors associated with Hokkien noodles. I
heard from another diner that the Mee Goreng was even better. Looks like I need
to head back there for the Mee Goreng.
The
evening was certainly fun and fill with lots of laughter and food. And since
everyone was in full merriment, we ended up also enjoying the only dessert available
on the menu, Chocolate Brownies (RM15).
Now the portion seen here is actually 3 portions as there were quite a few of
us sharing it. A decadent dark and rich way to end the evening.
And
there you have it, all the reasons to head on over to Hoopla! Affordable wines, scrumptious menu filled with porky
goodness, beautiful lounge made for hanging out and free valet parking, it’s a
lethal and irresistible venue to relax and unwind at the end of the day. Olé
for Hoopla!
HOOPLA
LOUNGE
First Floor, 72-1 Jalan
27/70A,
Desa Sri Hartamas,
50480 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 036-2116484
Facebook: www.facebook.com/hooplalounge
No comments:
Post a Comment