Free-flow Brunch Kuala Lumpur – MAZI Greek Taverna KL
Words: Jacob Weber
Photos: Peter Tan
MAZI Greek Taverna might just have one of the best Sunday free-flow brunch set-ups in Kuala Lumpur.
On the last Sunday of every month, you can settle down in this cosy, leafy corner of Bukit Tunku and feast on 10 courses of delicious Greek starters, mains and desserts at just RM199++ for the set — which will easily feed two or three people.
Add RM150++ per person for free-flow prosecco, red or white wine, and gin and tonics, and you’ve got yourself a κόμμα. (That means ‘party’ in Greek.)
Usually, free-flow booze at a Sunday brunch is the cheap and nasty stuff that you might not notice after a couple of glasses. When Yin How Wong, head honcho of the Tinkerman Collective and legendary wine importer, is running the show, cheap and nasty are neither in his vocabulary nor found on the menu.
(It’s a good thing free-flow is only available between 12-2:30 pm because you could get rather carried away quaffing down wine of this quality. *Food is served until 3 pm.)
As much as five-star hotel Sunday buffets might be popular, they can often be loud and intense affairs where everyone scrambles to the smorgasbord, taking far more than needed and making a mess of the place. This is something quite different — and all the better for it.
The food is just as good as the wine, by the way. I have to pause between bites to ask Yin How if there was a Greek chef in charge of the kitchen, and nearly spit out my saganaki when he says no. Just a very, very well-trained local chef and supporting team. I raise another glass of quality wine in appreciation. Kudos to them. (Oh, and ‘kudos’ comes from the Greek word ‘kydos’, which means praise or renown. I learnt a lot today.)
Free-flow Brunch Kuala Lumpur – MAZI Greek Taverna KL
MAZI’s Sunday free-flow brunch menu is a classic collection of the usual favourites in smaller portions. They’re all fun to say, and even better to eat. There’s tzatziki. Shakshouka. Spanakopita. (That was a new one for me.)
As all good Greek brunches should, ours starts with homemade pita bread and three kinds of dips: tzatziki, hummus and tirokafteri. The bread is aromatic, to say the least — which we’re told is the yoghurt used in the baking process — and very nicely seasoned. The dips are excellent. We’re all politely dancing around the serving dishes with our pita bread slices, gently insisting someone else try this dip and that dip while secretly desperately wanting to scoop the whole lot out for ourselves.
The Horiatiki — a traditional Greek salad — is Insta-perfect. It’s a fresh, vibrant and colourful medley of cherry tomatoes, cucumber, kalamata olives, onion, oregano, feta cheese, and olive oil (extra virgin, of course). It’s wholesome and healthy — which totally makes up for the two-and-a-half-hours of free-flow booze, obviously.
The Feta Saganaki is generous chunks of fresh, pungent goat’s cheese pan-fried for a crispy bite with a creamy middle, served with honey. It comes with Spanakopita, a traditional Greek spinach pie featuring feta and cream cheese wrapped in a perfectly flaky filo pastry.
Moving onto the meatier main courses, we sample a Greek-style Shakshouka, a hearty dish featuring bell peppers, chickpeas, egg, chicken sausage and tomato coulis, well seasoned with oregano and coriander. The Moussaka is equally nourishing, with eggplant, minced beef, potatoes, tomatoes, bechamel cheese and mozzarella cheese-bake. It’s rich and well-balanced, with deep savoury profiles in every spoonful. It soaks up the booze almost as well as the pita bread. Vegetarians will appreciate the Cannellini Beans with Aubergine, which has almost as much ballast as the beefy Moussaka.
Next up are some house specials from the charcoal oven. The Grilled Stuffed Squid — delicious, chewy, and burnt in all the right places — is seasoned with cumin and cinnamon, which is the closest you’ll get to Asian spices on this menu. The clever combination of flavours and textures works perfectly. The Bertha-grilled Sardines are equally delightful. The fresh, sharp, briny taste of the fish contrasts beautifully with the rich tomato coulis.
The Chicken and Lamb Skewers are meaty mouthfuls of premium protein, marinated and seasoned with a fine selection of herbs and spices. After a few glasses of the good stuff, you’ll be holding one in each hand and tearing them off with your teeth.
And then, the desserts — oh, the desserts. A zesty, sticky, sweet Greek Orange Pie, and Galaktoboureko (a baked custard dish). We’re doing the polite dance around the sharing plate again, but more aggressively this time. We’re not shy about wanting more of these.
MAZI Wine List
The wine selection will change according to availability—no stockpiling cheap grog here—so no monthly free-flow may be the same. But trust us, it’ll all be excellent.
Our prosecco is a Ca Di Rajo Spumante Bianco Prosecco from Italy. It’s intense and fruity, with hints of apple, pear, and citrus. It’s dry and refreshing, with a very pleasant finish.
For the white, it’s a lovely Weissburgunder SL Trocken 2022 from the Thomas Haag Schloss Lieser winery. It’s a fruity mineral Pinot Blanc from Moselle with mandarin, peach and acacia aromas.
A Y.Amirault Amirault Bourgueil Cote 50 2022 is the red wine on offer today, and how grateful we are for it. The Cabernet Franc is a bold, acidic red bursting with black and red fruits and goes very well with lamb, poultry (hint: skewers) and goat’s cheese (hint: starters). It’s delightful and very drinkable.
Alongside a very good G&T, MAZI also serves the ‘Gunner’ on the free-flow brunch menu—an old-school (read: colonial-era) drink enjoyed at “the clubs” for decades. It’s a sweet, fruity, and refreshing blend of root beer and Angostura bitters. Personally, it’s a quick pit-stop between more alcoholic beverages, but it’s fun to try all the same.
Still, any more booze, and I’ll start breaking plates in the classic Greek celebratory tradition. And there is plenty to celebrate about this outstanding Sunday brunch. But we’re in Bukit Tunku, so I’ll reluctantly resist. (And I don’t think you’re supposed to smash these plates.)
Reasons to visit MAZI Greek Taverna KL: one of the best value-for-money free-flow brunches in Kuala Lumpur; authentic Greek food in generous portions; excellent, friendly and attentive service; pleasant ambience and outdoor patio seating in the lush greenery of Bukit Tunku; outstanding wine list; a welcome alternative for Sunday brunch in KL.
MAZI Greek Taverna KL
Unit A1 Taman Tunku, Off Jln Langgak Tunku, Bukit Tunku
50480 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Link to MAZI Greek Taverna on Google Maps
MAZI Greek Taverna Opening Hours
Daily: 11:30 am–3 pm & 5:30–10 pm
Free-flow Brunch Kuala Lumpur Hours
Last Sunday of the month
12-2:30 pm (free-flow) 12 – 3 pm (food)
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Great menu and very nice place.