The carefully-seasoned food at Villa Danieli draws on Chef Alessandro Graziosi’s culinary expertise, pushing boundaries by blending seasonal, local produce with western-influenced dishes consistently full of flavour.

We start with intensely-flavoured baked mozzarella burrata (RM48), served with a side of Mediterranean-style roasted cherry tomatoes – soft and savoury, it proves to be a great introduction to the meal. Meanwhile the RM38 wild mushroom soup, gently flavoured with truffled crispy Shimeji mushrooms and ricotta cheese mousse is similarly impressive. For mains, we indulge in the thoroughly-inventive Australian beef sirloin (RM238), with sautéed mushrooms, poached quail eggs, Toma cheese and truffle fondue – it has perfectly-seared skin encasing fleshy meat that practically melts in the mouth. Conversely, the RM 56 ravioli stuffed with boiled spinach and ricotta cheese has zesty flavour, with walnut sauce balancing out the savoury cheese.

The collection of Santa Margherita wines is so impressive, you wonder where they keep it all, ranging from cheery glasses designed to complement the food, to splash-out showcase affairs fit to savour on their own. Meanwhile floor staff are pleasant and professional, yet response time may be a little slow, but since the beautifully crafted food arrives with such grace and flair, this can be forgiven easily.

All in all, Villa Danieli is certainly a restaurant that further ups the ante for other eateries on the popular Jalan Sultan Ismail street.

• Opening Hours: 12:00 – 14:30 Monday – Friday; 18:30 – 22:30 Mondays – Saturday
• Address: Sheraton Imperial Kuala Lumpur Hotel, Jalan Sultan Ismail, 50250 Kuala Lumpur
• Tel: +603 2717 9900