Ampersand By Culinary Rebels@Uptown Damansara (Closed)

Last Friday I was very pleased when my partner suggested dinner at Ampersand. Yeshhh!! I was pleasantly surprised because he is usually a rice and Chinese dishes sort of guy and I tend to shy away from suggesting meals at "funny funny" places with him, if you get what I mean.

Ampersand is where Ecole P used to be and I have been passing by this place (on my walks to the bank/chap fan shop) almost everyday. 

We got there for an early dinner and were greeted by a tall soft spoken young man. He showed us to our table, gave us the menu and made some recommendations. 

We were told that the Cacao Ribs and Thom Thom Wing are among their bestsellers and then he left us to decide.

I was very curious about the Cacao Ribs. Very. It's hard for me to imagine Valhorna cacoa (I'm thinking chocolate cake) and chocolate balsamic glaze coming together with ribs. That does indeed sound mighty rebellious to me. But I was feeling adventurous so I went for it.

For my partner, I chose the most conservative item on the menu, the BBQ Ribs. And knowing how he loves his carbs, I also made an order for a Spaghetti Aglio Olio.

I also ordered the Thom Thom Wing, 4 pieces.

The young man was concerned. "You all can eat, yah?" Oh yes, we can. "I'm just concerned you may have ordered too much food". My partner assured him that we were good.

Sorry this is blur.

This was my drink, the iced Americano.

We were provided with water as well, which is great.

My partner had orange juice, freshly squeezed. It came with a separate jar of ice.

The glass is 3/4 full because we both took a generous sip before I snapped the pic.

The Thom Thom Wing, wings marinated with garlic and served with a sticky garlic glaze, garlic chips and lime were amazingly good.

The wings were of a good size and served piping hot to the table. My partner was very impressed. We found the wings very flavorful. We love the robust garlicky punch and these wings are highly recommended. Next time I want to order 6 pieces hee...hee...

Oh, we were also provided with plastic gloves which come folded in little triangles like this.

That's great because we can eat with our hands and keep it clean.

My partner in a playful mood. Don't ask me what he was trying to do.

My much anticipated Cacao Ribs came looking like this. My black beauty.

This is the half rack and it was a very generous portion. At RM26.00 I think this is very good value for money. 

I took a tentative taste of the chocolate balsamic glaze. It was sweet and yes, I can taste the chocolate. I admit that I found it very strange at first. 

I made my partner taste. Hmm...he nodded his head and remarked "That is why they call themselves Culinary Rebels. They do things differently". 

I dug into the ribs, which were very meaty and tender and dipped the meat into the chocolate balsamic glaze. As I progressed, it sort of grew on me and it didn't taste that strange anymore. However, I must be honest to say that this is not my favorite flavor. I guess it's just too radical for me, you might like it.

The small serving of pickles was nice to help cut through the meatiness and balance out the sweetness of the glaze. 

I tasted the BBQ sauce from my partner's order. It wasn't the regular BBQ sauce that usually accompanies ribs elsewhere. This one is made in house and it was unique, not like anything that I have tasted before. I liked it and I could see that my partner clearly enjoyed his ribs.

This is our Spaghetti Aglio Olio, kosong. I could have opted to add bacon and mixed mushrooms but I kept it simple because we were already eating a lot of meat.

It was a very generous serving and is good for two persons (even big eaters like us). The chili flakes added a lot of heat to the spaghetti. This is one delicious platter of pasta, simple and yet so darn good. My partner, who in spite of his low tolerance for chilies, ate the lion's share of the pasta. 

We did rather well. We finished all our food.

Spaghetti gone.

BBQ Ribs gone.

Cacao Ribs gone. The platter for the wings were cleared off earlier
to make room for more food. We need a bigger table next time.

I actually wanted dessert but I was quite stuffed. That would have to wait for another time. I love the food here and true to their moniker "Culinary Rebels", the flavors here are unconventional. So, if you love ribs and wings, pay Ampersand a visit and give yourself a taste of revolution.

I will be back. That's for sure. In fact I did the very next evening but that would be another story for another day.