Lunch today was at ๐๐๐ฒ๐๐ฎ, a newish 20-day-old casual eatery at Gurney Walk. It was surprisingly good, displaying some very proficient cooking by its multinational kitchen crew of 6 which seemed to transcend cultural boundaries.
๐๐๐ฒ๐๐ฎ is Spanish for โcaveโ, but here, the well-balanced flavours and textures in the dishes we had pointed to a higher level of culinary competency. No Paleo or caveman diet here, but a well-paced parade of tasty dishes that emerged from their kitchen to satisfy our hungry appetites.
We wanted a quick lunch, so opted for a set of 6 tapas items (RM168), where we were allowed to choose two tapas dishes from each of its three categories: ๐ฆ๐๐ฟ๐ณ (seafood), ๐ง๐๐ฟ๐ณ (meats) and ๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ป (vegetables).
- Garlic Prawns โ shades of Spanish ๐จ๐ข๐ฎ๐ฃ๐ข๐ด ๐ข๐ญ ๐ข๐ซ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ๐ฐ, but its generous scattering of sliced garlic leant more towards the Asian. Generous, bouncy-fresh prawns.
- Clams in White Sauce โ more a clear โwhite wine sauceโ than the creamy, bechamel โwhite sauceโ weโd imagined when we read the menu. We enjoyed it all the same โ deep flavours from the clams that I always enjoyed, think the soup from Italian ๐ฑ๐ข๐ด๐ต๐ข ๐ข๐ญ๐ญ๐ฆ ๐ท๐ฐ๐ฏ๐จ๐ฐ๐ญ๐ฆ.
- Beef Tenderloin Cubes โ nothing beats a well-seared piece of steak. The one here was charred on the outside, pink & medium-rare inside. It cuts like butter, perfectly toothsome on the palate. Cubed, the meaty morsels formed a delicious ring around a cloud-like poached egg, dusted with paprika. Spear one of the cubed steak-let and dip into the poached egg, letting the molten yolk impart an added richness to the meat.
- Chicken Meatballs โ another Spanish staple: ๐ข๐ญ๐ฃ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฅ๐ช๐จ๐ข๐ด, given an Asian makeover (no European spicing detected, i.e., fennel seeds, oregano, bay leaves). This is a pork-less eatery, so I rather miss the richness and sweetness which pork could have imparted on the meatballs.
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Brussels Sprouts โ the simplest side here, halved Brussels sprouts given a thorough sautรฉing in the pan, then served with a sweetish creamy dip (mayo?).
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Vegetarian Tacos โ very nice vegetarian rendition, with chopped tomatoes, onions, corn & cilantro.
Very simple but enjoyable meal โ weโd only explored the tapas menu, so will need to return to try the main dishes which Cuevas offers.
Address
Cueva
G7, Gurney Walk, 18 Persiaran Gurney (Gurney Drive), 10250 George Town, Penang
Tel: +6011-8888 0079
Opening hours: 11am-11pm Mon-Thu, Sat & Sun.
11am-1am Fri.
