Ohla Tapas Bar at The Intermark, Tun Razak

It’s the tapas bar KL has been waiting for: Ohla is one of 2013’s most exciting new eateries.

The sister restaurant of The Intermark’s heavily hyped nightclub Providence, Ohla throbs with the talents of not one but two head chefs: Toni Ruiz and Mario Valiente, both of whom plied their trade in Barcelona before taking a stab at Southeast Asia.

Communal Eating

It’s a narrow space; seating’s limited to one long bar and a communal table. The bar boasts the best seats in this industrial-chic house, facing the open kitchen where every move & misstep of the food preparation is nakedly exposed to searing scrutiny.

Chefs Ruiz and Valiente (the latter of whom oozes a Gosling-esque masculinity) are far from the chattiest of chefs, but that’s OK; they let their cooking speak volumes.

Fois Gras

Ohla’s one-page, soft-launch menu features nothing but tapas; everything’s worth trying, particularly the pan-fried foie gras with sous-vide egg, mashed potatoes and shaved truffles (RM40, nett it seems, based on our receipt).

Crazy-chunky liver, super-runny egg, milky-creamy potatoes, stunningly generous servings of truffles: immediately after finishing this, we seriously contemplated ordering it again right there.

Rice

Mediterranean black rice (RM46), firm to the bite, cooked with squid ink & olive oil, mixed with pleasurably chewy bits of squid and crowned with little prawns. The flavors of the soil & the sea blend together beautifully. Love it, want to worship it.

Pork

Ohla serves pork; the chefs can’t imagine cooking without it. Can’t blame them, since these scallops grilled in a Josper oven and laid on a bed of citric mash (RM46) might be less ravishing without being blanketed in pork belly. Tastiest scallops we’ve had this year.

Octopus

Octopus with potato foam, potato water and crispy Pimenton de la vera (RM35). What thrilled us about each recipe here was its revelation of intricate nuances; it’s food that’s meant to be chewed slowly, first savored wordlessly but then discussed enthusiastically.

Soup

Who knew a sad-looking soup could prove a stunner? Almond-and-garlic broth with dill and olive oil (RM32), layered and complex, featuring the freshest flavors of terra firma.

Cheese

Wrap up with a Spanish cheese platter (RM35), made intriguingly innovative with pairings like quince paste and almond meringue for specific cheeses

Wine

Wines are offered mostly by the glass, with cava starting at RM20. On a recent weeknight, we were the only customers at Ohla from start to finish, but expect this place to explode eventually.

Final note

We’re ready to start talking about the next phase in this blog’s evolution. On Oct. 1, we hope to launch an initiative (call it Eat Drink KL: 100F for now), a project born of passion. It’ll require the moral support of readers to succeed, so many thanks in advance & in anticipation.