WE liked everything we had the first time at Emilio Cibo e Vino, a new Sicilian restaurant at Glo Damansara. It had only been open for a month, and we were back the next week.

There was the signature dish of caponata, the mussel and clam stew of zuppa di cozze e vongole, the special pasta in tartufo, and the Sicilian lemon tart.

The caponata was delicious, with zucchini, eggplant, capsicum, celery, and green olives brought together harmoniously in a sweet and sour tomato sauce. We enjoyed this with toasted slices of rosemary sea salt focaccia bread.

“It’s done to my grandmother’s recipe,” Emilio, the affable Sicilian chef-owner, declared.

I could never resist a mussel and clam stew if it is on the menu. The zuppa di cozze e vongole had black mussels from the Netherlands and local clams cooked in a chilli tomato soup. I loved the knobs of plump and sweet meat in the mussels, and the clams were fresh and delightful.

Emilio told us how he asked for seawater from the supplier to keep the clams alive. We mopped up the slightly spicy stew with slices of bread and drank the rest of it.

Tartufo is another of Emilio’s signature dishes. This featured paccheri pasta, shaped like a large tube, cooked in a truffle cream sauce, and crowned with a poached egg and a shower of parmigiano. The pasta was tossed at the table with the poached egg, releasing some subtle truffle flavours. The broad pasta “tube” was al dente, embraced by the delicious creamy and cheesy sauce with hints of truffle.

The Sicilian lemon tart was the best I’ve had, compared to lemon tarts which are usually extremely sweet and sour. The biscuity tart shell was filled with lemon cream, topped with thin apple slices and meringue. It sat on a base of mixed berry sauce. The tart had oomph, beginning with the gently tart and lightly sweet lemon cream and ending with the berry sauce, which added a little acidity. We loved it.

On our second visit, we began with the arancini al nero di seppia, which were deep-fried crumbed rice balls with chopped cuttlefish and zucchini combined with black squid ink. We bit into a crispy ball and into the moist, flavourful dark rice and cuttlefish. The arancini was accompanied by a garlic mayo dip.

We had the timballo, which is like lasagne except that it had macaroni in it, baked with beef bolognese, besciamella (bechamel sauce), peas, and parmigiano. This was certainly better than a lasagne, with firm bites of macaroni thickly covered with the sauce and cheese.

I had to have the zuppa di cozze e vongole again and that fabulous Sicilian lemon tart.

Of course, there are pizzas and main courses such as grilled lamb cutlets and veal ribeye, done in that inimitable Sicilian style by Emilio. He had opened and sold two successful Sicilian restaurants in Seoul before coming to live here.

There are also lunch sets for two, three, and four people at RM56++, RM84++, and RM118++.

Emilio Cibo e Vino is at LG 10, ground floor, Glo Damansara, Jalan Damansara, Kuala Lumpur. Call 03-7731 6337, for enquiries.

* Eu Hooi-Khaw has been writing about food for the longest time, covering all aspects, from restaurant reviews to cooking and recipes, as well as the healthy side of it. She has written for major newspapers and magazines, published the cookbook Fresh Ingredients, and also writes for her website hooikhawandsu.com.