Mukha

Right from the start, this winsome cafe has nailed the formula for keeping customers content, with a thoughtfully crafted menu of well-executed fare, warm service and a spiffy setting.

The highlight is Middle Eastern-influenced food & beverages. Try the fava bean stew, addictively creamy & aromatically steeped in gentle spices. This might pair perfectly with some liver & a nice Chianti, but booze is verboten at Mukha.

Baked eggs with toast. Seems deceptively like a simple recipe, but takes 15 minutes to make. Scrape below the three yolks _ not runny but not too hard _ for hot, mushy layers of roasted tomatoes & shredded cheese that rescue the egg white from blandness.

Beef bamia with okra _ a thick, tangy Egyptian casserole. Everything feels freshly prepared, with surprisingly rich, multidimensional flavors.

Shahi Arab tea, infused with mint leaves.

Gahwa, Mukha's house-blend coffee, laced with cardamom & ginger.

A mocktail in lieu of something stronger: Virgin Mango Mojito.

Shisha is available as well for visitors who prefer to puff the night away.

Things appeared relatively quiet on this recent Friday evening; but we left early, before 7:30 p.m., so it's likely that everyone else only came in after that.

Mukha Cafe @ TTDI,

15, Lorong Rahim Kajai 13, Taman Tun Dr Ismail.

Tel: 03-7732-2248

Melina

So many tempting types of honey-sweet, guilty-pleasure treats are showcased here, but a language barrier and the lack of a clear menu kept us from knowing how to narrow our choices.

Baamieh (Persian egg cake) & pistachio butter puff. Starchy and sugary, with all the aromas that swathe Middle Eastern desserts (a hint of yogurt, a splash of rose syrup, a tinge of nuttiness).

This beautifully illustrated menu that explained nothing ...

... and an Arabic-to-English dictionary were our only real guides to ordering.

Iranian Swiss rolls? We'll return sometime to investigate. Ermmm, or maybe not.

Sufficient cookies for an open-house feast to feed a multitude!

Not sure how Melina ever finishes selling its wares, since the outlet is often empty.

Melina Persian Confectionery,

Iranian Fine Pastries & Cakes,

Jalan Solaris 3, Solaris Mont Kiara, 60480 Kuala Lumpur.

Babylon

In the beginning, this was MunchHaus, a European bistro. Then two years ago, Chef Max Chin took over the kitchen and turned the place into Max @ Ihaus.

Now, the restaurant has moved in a completely new direction and become Babylon, trafficking in Middle Eastern & Mediterranean fare, with Iraqi cuisine being the highlight.

Both indoor and alfresco courtyard seating are currently available.

They're alive! Choose a fish (or two) from Babylon's aquarium for your meal.

We picked a 1.5-kg trout-like whopper for our supper ...

... served on a platter scarcely 30 minutes later.

Cooked Maskuf-style, the most popular Iraqi way of preparing fish. It's sliced open lengthwise, sprinkled with salt & smoked on an open fire until flaky.

Moist and meaty, but extremely bony. All in all, a fair bargain at RM50 per kg.

Another Iraqi specialty: Tashreeb Lamb, featuring lamb shank in tomato stew with flat bread. Hearty and rustic; supposedly a centuries-old recipe.

Last orders are at midnight, so keep Babylon in mind for late meals in the city.

Babylon,

Jalan Jati, Kuala Lumpur.