Cata Christmas Takeaway Dinner 2020 KL

Cata Christmas Takeaway Dinner

Words: Kitty Noble Photos: Monica Tindall

Cata, run by Austrian / Malaysian team of Karl and Ming is in the trendy Damansara Heights ‘hood, nestled amongst old favourites of Sticky Wicket, Huckleberry’s, Sids et al. 

The interior, reflective of its food, is Mediterranean in style with tiled flooring and rustic tables and chairs, designed for conviviality and sharing. Knick-knacks and paintings adorn the walls, memories of Karl’s globe-trotting, giving it an individual flair. However, if you want to enjoy their excellent food without stepping out of the comfort of your PJ’s, why not order from their Christmas takeaway menu? 

Cata has put together some really comprehensive selections for the whole Christmas period, to delight just about every taste-bud and whim.

Bubbles

Why not start off the Christmas cheer with some bubbles? When it comes to mini Moet, the more you buy, the cheaper it is… RM 110 for one, two bottles for RM 200 or four for RM 388. Or you can plump for Champagne from our local friend Laurent Robert at RM 368 for his Cuvee Prestige or RM 338 for his Blanc De Blanc. Otherwise, you might want to add on a jug of their yummy sangria with an Austrian twist. Fittingly it errs towards a chilled mulled-wine at just RM 80… it’s Christmas, why not do both?

Cata Christmas Takeaway Tapas

Rather than sticking to just the traditional turkey and trimmings, Cata has additional tapas options available. If you are a larger group, you might want to select more than one choice and mix and match (note, tapas are not interchangeable between set A and B).

Set A tapas leans more towards seafood and cold-cuts and is priced, like set B, at RM 300 for two or RM 530 for 4 people. Foil trays are filled to the brim with their goodies and delivered inside a box with a transparent window, prettily garnished with whole capsicums and lettuce. It comprises items such as gambas with subtle garlic butter, chargrilled octopus, gnocchi, which is delicate and comes served with deep-fried sage and artichokes, rustic bread and crab croquettes. Regular readers won’t be surprised to hear that the highlight for me is their scrumptious tomato salad, but the gnocchi really is stand-out too.  

Set B, the more meat led tapas, comprises chargrilled sirloin, served medium rare and patatas bravas, the sauce of which, is particularly delicious and authentic. Serrano ham is the filling for the croquettes on this platter. A choice of Iberico skewers or perfect, slow-cooked ribs are available as an ‘either/or’ option. Tuna carpaccio is accompanied by deep-fried shrimps, which are served whole, giving them a crunch as well as a healthy serving of calcium. Additionally, there are grilled king mushrooms, which are full of flavour with great, meaty texture, pan con tomato, padron peppers (one of Mon’s favourite things ever), chimichurri and garlic mayo complete the feast. I can’t emphasise enough, that you really want to be approaching these platters with empty tummies!

Cata Christmas Takeaway Turkey

A turkey of between 4.8kg and 5.2kg (pre-cooked weight), is served with delicious, crunchy Brussels’ sprouts, honey-glazed Japanese sweet potato (another fave), a thick giblet gravy, bread, chestnut-sausage stuffing and cranberry sauce. Often finding turkey dry and bland, I was pleasantly surprised by the juiciness of the breast. Ming tells me the secret is to use a smaller bird, keeping it moist and tasty. At RM 599, this serves around six people and saves on the effort and washing up. Paired with the tapas dishes, this will comfortably feed 10 people. If you still feel that isn’t enough, you may order extras of any of the accoutrements.

Hogmanay

For Hogmanay (New Years’ eve to my non-Scottish friends) for one day only, you can order pork knuckle. Coming in at a hefty 2 kg (RM 190), it is plenty enough for four to six people. It comes served perfectly crispy on the outside and soft and juicy on the inside. The crackling is simply coated in Sarawak pepper and salt. Served with pickled Chinese cabbage (a local nod to replace traditional sauerkraut) and creamy mashed potato, this is definitely a ‘cheat day’ meal. It also seems, for the price, very affordable, particularly when thinking of the efforts required in reproducing the same.

Wine

If you care to add alcohol to your feast, a bottle of tasty Tempranillo with bright red fruits or a Verdejo are available at just RM 80 per bottle.

What strikes me, is despite the multiple dishes, inspired from Spain, Italy, UK, Austria and beyond, each one is given the same attention and love, to create food that is super tasty and true to its heritage. 

You can find a copy of the menu and order form here. Make sure to order a minimum of two days in advance of your needs, or by the 20th December for Christmas Day order and 28th December for New Years’ Eve order. 

Reasons to order Cata Christmas Takeaway Dinner: super tasty and plentiful food; generous portions; mix and match; a good mix of tradition and variation from the norm; NO WASHING UP.

Cata Whatsapp: +6 019 242 3522 or call +6 03 2011 8587

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