Namoo On The Park @ Publika

Price Range : Mid-range   

Cuisine : Korean Fusion, with an interesting Tex-Mex influence

Recommended For : Comfy enough for large parties, yet cozy enough for a date 

Catphobia-Friendly? : Yeap!     

To be completely honest, our affinity for Korean food is still pretty newfound. It’s funny how we used to recoil in fear at the mention of kimchi a few years back, but now we’d travel to the moon and back for a good tub of what is essentially fermented cabbage pickle...

Hungry for more interpretations of Korean cuisine, we thought of this adorable little café. Each time we pass by Namoo On The Park, fantastic scents waft through its open doors. Eventually, it became our chosen spot for a colleague’s farewell dinner.

We love a straightforward menu, and theirs is neatly divided to showcase their main offerings, ranging from Rice dishes, to bowls of Noodles, to the rather intriguing sections of Tacos and Rice Burgers.

Upon scanning the prices, we were at first hesitant about the RM20+ price tags on the rice burger and bulgogi beef tacos. And then the plates arrived on our table, and we could clearly see why: the food platter can comfortably feed two persons!

The Bulgogi Beef Taco (RM22.90) was enjoyable right down to the last bite! The umami-achieving marinated beef strips are rolled in a cheese-topped tortilla wrap with a generous amount of fresh vegetables! The colossal tortilla wrap comes with a side of fries, side salad (more veges, yay!!) and a bowl of kimchi. We truly appreciate the amount of vegetables incorporated into the dish!

The Bibi Rice Burger (RM19.90) was definitely our favourite little (okay, not so little) indulgence for us that night! The novel use of glutinous rice patties as burger buns (well, novel to us anyway) was deliciously complemented with a grilled chicken breast patty, a sunny side up, a slice of cheese, and some lettuce and tomato slices. As with the Taco, this glorious burger dish is served with sides of fries, salad and kimchi.

Now this is interesting; imagine if Nasi Goreng Pattaya and Fettucine Carbonara had a baby. In our minds, that baby would probably resemble the White Cream Omuto Rice (RM19.90). You’ve got fried rice wrapped in omelette, topped with three substantial pieces of chicken fillets, and smothered in a rich cream sauce! To up the health properties a little bit, presumably, the dish still comes with a side salad and kimchi, though without the fries. It is rather rich of a dish, so sharing plans are highly recommended!

For all its amazing main dishes, we were curious as to why Namoo is referred to as a desserts café. Curiosity inevitably led to us exploring their desserts and drinks menu:

Sweet Potato Cake (RM9.90), served with ice cream. This was the first time we had ever heard of and / or tried sweet potato cake, but unfortunately, it may be the last. Not that there was anything wrong with the cake; we like how it’s not too sweet, and is incredibly dense, but personally, we are not a fan of sweet potato as a cake flavour. If you are a fan of desserts inspired by Asian flavours, this is one interesting entry to add to your must-try list.  

Chocolate Banana Cake (RM 9.90), served with ice cream. Now this was a bit more up our alley. What’s interesting is that instead of it being a chocolate cake that has bananas in it (which is the standard format for Chocolate Banana Cakes everywhere), it is actually a moist banana cake topped with bittersweet chocolate ganache!

The drinks menu is incredibly colourful and innovative, from multi-grain teas, to red bean lattes, to the super-tempting cinnamon punch with dried Korean persimmon! Once again, unfortunately, our tongues were unable to fully appreciate the quintessential Asian flavours showcased through the beverages. We felt that our Sweet Potato Latte (RM9.90) was a bit savoury and had a rather odd consistency. The Cinnamon Punch (RM12.90) was aptly-named, as the overpowering cinnamon dose was a total turn-off.

All in all, we applaud Namoo On The Park for its refreshing twists on Korean-inspired offerings! We would probably give their desserts and funkier drinks a pass the next time around (again, we don’t think there’s anything wrong with them in general, just our personal taste), but are eagerly planning for our return visit to savour them beautiful rice burgers!

Namoo On The Park

Lot 4A, Level G3

(where the children’s playground is)

Publika, Solaris Dutamas

50480 Kuala Lumpur

T: +603 6411 6698

Opening Hours:

11 a.m. – 10 p.m. (Monday to Thursday; Sunday)

11 a.m. – 11 p.m. (Friday to Saturday)

GPS:

3.170854, 101.667641

Parking:

Choice of basement parking or you can park right outside the restaurant at the valet bays.