12 Places for Paella in KL and Selangor

Typically regarded as Spain’s national dish, paella is comfort food of the highest order. For fans of this ravishingly aromatic rice recipe, scented with saffron and crowned with princely portions of meat or seafood, here are 12 restaurants in the Klang Valley that offer wide-ranging types of paella and its variations.

1. Mercat

The newest kid on Bangsar’s block serves Arroz Negre, which some call the ‘black paella,’ the Catalan speciality of rice cooked with squid ink, squid, shrimp and aioli. The rice boasts a nice bite, very moist but fully firm, flooded with an intense inky flavour that speaks of the ocean. Scoop up every spoonful while savouring the soulful Spanish music on Mercat’s soundtrack.

Find:  Mercat directory listing here

See Also: Mercat Barcelona Gastrobar at Telawi, Bangsar: Restaurant Preview

2. Cava

Also in Bangsar, but on the calmer Bangkung row, Cava is a long-time favourite for paella, packed with the likes of mixed chorizo, lamb marquez sausages, broccoli and wild mushrooms. Best savoured with Cava’s ultra-refreshing sangria.

Find: Cava’s directory listing here

3. Huck’s Café

Available by advance order, Huck’s take on seafood paella is a pleasure, brimming in a black pan with flavoursome rice and fresh prawns, mussels and squid. We believe he uses turmeric instead of saffron for the rice, so this isn’t the purist’s Spanish paella, but it’s still sumptuous.

Find: Huck’s Cafe directory listing here

See Also: Huck’s Cafe at Bangsar: Restaurant Review

4. Mediteca

Mediteca is best known for its remarkable range of tapas, but save space for the paella too, which comes with a choice of chorizo and Iberico ribs or mixed fish and seafood.

Find: Mediteca’s directory listing here

5. Ohla Tapas & Cocktails

The version here is labelled ‘Mediterranean black rice,’ firm to the bite, cooked with squid ink and olive oil, mixed with pleasurably chewy bits of squid and crowned with little prawns. The flavours of the soil and the sea blend together beautifully.

Find: Ohla Tapas & Cocktails directory listing here

See Also: Ohla Tapas Bar at The Intermark, Tun Razak: Restaurant Review

6. Estilo

Estilo, a no-pork place at Publika, serves fun variants of paella, including a fowl one filled with turkey chorizo, chicken and French beans.

Find: Estilo directory listing here

7. El Meson

Paella that’s made meaty with pork, chicken and chorizo in a rich chicken stock is merely one of El Meson’s many highlights. It’s well-prepared – a firm-to-the-bite, no-nonsense version that’s a far cry from the mushy paella at some other outlets.

Find: El Meson directory listing here

8. Moussandra

Nestled in Solaris Dutamas, Moussandra’s seafood paella lands on the table with a strong scent of saffron; one of this restaurant’s most reliable traits is its refusal to cut corners.

Find: Moussandra directory listing here

See Also: Moussandra at Solaris Dutamas: Restaurant Review

9. Chef Diary

Over in Plaza Damansara, Chef Diary serves beef paella with muscularly hearty chunks of meat, though the rice could be more potently infused with saffron.

Find: Chef Diary directory listing here

10. Nexo

Nexo in Bangsar South offers a very respectable rendition of paella, specifically the seafood-heavy serving that two or even three can share.

Find: Nexo directory listing here

See Also: Review: Nexo Spanish Restaurant at Nexus Bangsar South

11. Hokkaido Bier Garten

Despite its name, which sounds like a hybrid of Japanese and German watering holes, this Puchong restaurant hands top billing to a pork sausage and prawn paella (with squid as the supporting star), piled prodigiously and pleasurably on the pan.

Find: Hokkaido Bier Garten directory listing here

12. La Bodega

For something a bit offbeat, try La Bodega’s Fideau, a recipe from Gandia in eastern Spain. It’s angel hair pasta cooked as a paella with baby octopus, chicken and green peas. Extremely tomatoey.

Find: La Bodega directory listing here

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