Lunarich Pizza and Pasta

December 2012

There are already 60 of this Korean-owned Italian restaurant chain in Korea to date. The first one in Malaysia was opened in November this year at Gurney Paragon. The food here is a result of the healthier trend called the slow food movement that prioritised slow-paced dining and fresh ingredients. In short, Lunarich cleverly straddles fine and casual dining, leaning a little more towards the former but without the wallet-denting cost of fine dining.

Their menu consists all of the usual Italian favourites such as a variety of risotto dishes, pizzas, pasta dishes and salads. Atop these offerings, you’ll find fresh herbs such as basil leaves, slices of real cheeses as opposed to the ultra-processed sort and pasta sauces made from scratch.

Flavour-wise, there’s an authenticity to these Italian fare but with a small, delightful twist. For instance, try dripping a touch of honey to their gorgonzola pizza that’s topped with pumpkin, blue cheese, pine nuts and its thin, delicately crusty pizza base made out of especially imported Italian flour is spread with a thick creamy sauce. Or how a simple margherita pizza or caprese salad come alive with fresh basil leaves. And how real extra virgin olive oil makes a world of difference to their spaghetti aglio alio in that it retains the lightly pungent oil flavour but none of its oiliness. What’s more, in the latter dish, there’s the sublime flavour of real garlic!

Lunarich’s pizzas begins at RM32++, risotto from RM28++, pasta from RM23++ and salad from RM12++. The thing about fresh ingredients in food is, you’ll achieve a lovely satisfying and full feeling devoid of guilt. With this in mind, it’s a small price to pay for such an experience, isn’t it? Su Aziz