Kumar’s, Mont Kiara

Avoid this overpriced Indian eatery with its watery curries and generally flavourless food.

Go downstairs… then down… then down some more and you’ll get to Kumar’s, the Malaysian Indian eatery at the corner of the lowest level at Arcoris plaza in Mont Kiara. Mark had been here before for a work lunch, and repeatedly claimed it was good, so I was eager to finally try it.

Ambience & Amenities

Outside there is seating that faces the plaza, and on the other side, with a view of Jalan Kiara 4. Right in front of the main doors, there is this more secluded section enclosed in a half wall. The rest of the tables share space with the cashier counter and a nice faux brick wall at the back. There’s a washing up sink if you go toward the restaurant signage at this wall and turn right.

There are no toilets in the restaurant, so you’ll have to use the public Arcoris facilities. To get to the washroom, go outside and turn right from the restaurant’s main entrance. Go through the doors toward the parking lot next to the escalators.

Menu

Click on any menu picture to enlarge

One annoying thing to note about the Kumar’s menu: there is no filtered water on offer. We tried to order some but were told “don’t have” before the waiter pointed to the menu. The only options for water are the bottles on the menu for a fucking ridiculous price of RM15. Are we at Coachella? That’s more expensive than some of the vegetable dishes here.

Food

After we ordered, with the exception of the chicken tikka, all of the food came out suspiciously fast. In less than ten minutes, the samosas, biryani and vegetables were arriving at our table. Biryani, especially if cooked even remotely from scratch, should not be ready that quickly. It made me think that the food was sitting in a heating tray in the kitchen, or worse, the refrigerator and they simply nuked it in the microwave before serving it to us.

The Vegetable Samosas (RM8.90) kicked off dinner on a high note. These three golden brown morsels are overstuffed with potato and peas. These were nice and big – I hate it when a place gives you dinky samosas! The outer shell could’ve been crunchier, but I do think these at least were freshly deep-fried. It came with a pot of what Mark called a “berry chutney.” How ritzy! But it tasted a lot like the standard sweet chilli sauce that you find at all Malaysian restaurants. Something higher quality than Maggi brand though, I hope.

The Mutton Biryani (RM33.90), though presented very nicely, didn’t have any of the elements that make a delicious biryani. The rice was mushy and didn’t have that pleasant crispiness that you get from metal or claypot biryanis. I can tell from the colour of the rice that it was not cooked with enough spices. The mutton was buried at the very bottom of the bowl and it wasn’t much better. Perhaps to distract from that fact and in an attempt to boost the flavour, it came with two sauces: a savoury option, and a yogurt-based one with cucumber and pomegranate.

Mark liked the long beans with tauhu and ikan bilis (RM15.90) but in my opinion, when you didn’t get a bite with any anchovy this was pretty generic tasting. We had to look up what “tauhu” was, but it’s just fried tofu. Watch out for that wrinkled olive looking thing on top – it’s spicy as hell. I thought it was a dried date, so I gobbled it in one go. A quick search tells me it may have been a cascabel pepper, a type of dried pepper from Mexico.

The Chicken Tikka Masala (RM25.90) was the biggest disappointment of the meal. There were far too many filler tomato chunks masquerading as chicken, and the few chicken pieces that I actually got were dry. The curry it was cooked in was thin, watery and not flavourful at all. It had the taste and consistency of a bad, sour minestrone soup.

The Iced Chai (RM8.90) barely left an impression. It had the taste of being watered down at the very first sip. You know when you get an iced coffee and near the end of it, all the ice has melted and now you’re just drinking diluted coffee? This was just like that but throughout the entire glass. The Marina Breezer (RM13.90) was coconut water that was lightly sweetened with gula melaka. Nothing special, but the large chunks of coconut in it (which made for a refreshing after-dinner sweet) was neat.

Saturday Worthy?

The food at Kumar’s is absolutely not worth what we paid. With the number of Indian places in KL, you can literally get the same food but much tastier at a banana leaf restaurant for RM10. After what I’m sure was a bout of embarrassment at his earlier high praise for this place, Mark agreed that the food was not good and we would not be coming back to Kumar’s. He had last been here during a weekday for lunch when prices always drop. This place might be okay when you’re paying “lunch value set” prices, otherwise, it’s just expensive, crappy Indian food in a trendy setting.

Price for 2 Pax: RM118.15

Vegetable samosas: RM8.90
Chicken tikka masala: RM25.90
Mutton biryani: RM33.90
Long beans with fried tofu and anchovies: RM15.90
Iced chai: RM8.90
Marina Breezer: RM13.90
10% service: RM10.74
Rounding: RM0.01

Kumar’s

Arcoris Plaza, Lot LG 5-2 (lower ground 5 level), 10 Jalan Kiara, Mont Kiara, 50480, Kuala Lumpur
Friday – Monday: 7:30–10am, 11am–3pm, 5–11pm
Tuesday – Thursday: 11am–3pm, 5–11pm
Alcohol Served: No