Food Explorer & Home Chef
The latest upscale restaurant in town serving authentic Chinese cuisine, EMP KL invites food connoisseurs to step back in time and feast like an emperor in ancient times. Located at The Westin KL, EMP KL adds that touch of grandeur reminiscent of imperial China with …
Savour a wide array of enticing Chinese New Year Delicacies at The Oriental Group of Restaurants including Shunde Style Poon Choi; Triple Wealth, Health and Happiness Gift Set; and together with Chinese New Year Specialties and Gourmet Celebration Sets, the CNY delicacies are available at …
Fans of authentic Thai cuisine are in for a treat as Niyom 26 opens at Tropicana Gardens Mall. Located on the concourse floor of the mall, Niyom 26 is a spin-off of the established Thai restaurant Baan 26 at Changkat Bukit Bintang, KL.
“Our menu serves all authentic Thai dishes, and we truly believe that classic is the best,” says the founder Chai Kah Fei, better known as Fei. “After 16 years, Baan 26 is ready to expand its family and give diners an elevated experience.”
The word ‘niyom’ means popular and famous in Thai, and what sets Niyom 26 apart from others is the delicious Lobster Tomyam. For our review, this stood out from the rest of the dishes and there was plenty of other luscious seafood in the pot as well. The piquant soup was everything tomyum should be – sweet, spicy, sour and savoury – and you can up the spice level if you prefer a spicier rendition. I felt RM180 for this was a very good deal as a full lobster don’t come cheap.
Another signature dish is the Lime & Chili Steamed Sea Bass, tangy medley of spicy and sour gravy over fresh sea bass, using freshly squeezed lime juice and balanced portion of bird chili.
Rest of Niyom 26’s menu consists of a choice of “best of” what Baan 26″. The other dishes we tried were some – fish cake, raw shrimp in spicy fish sauce, pineapple fried rice, som tom (papaya salad), stir-fried brinjal and pandan chicken. In particular, the raw shrimp, akin to cerviche, was new to me with hidden ‘bombs’ so this should be approached with caution. Loved this unusual pairing with bitter gourd!
Quite a lot of effort has been put to achieve an authentic Thai ambience at Niyom 26. To achieve a vibrant and sophisticated aesthetic, Fei worked closely with renowned designer Orson Liyu who infused the three sections with a different colour theme. The red main dining area plays on ‘East meets West’, with classic chandelier and ancient wood craft, highlighting while the purple private dining area features elephant pop art, Fei’s favourite animal. The orange-themed peacock corner is centered around the bar, promising delicious drinks to complement the palate.
Prices are decent for a resto in a mall setting and this is certainly a great Thai option for folks from this part of town.
Add: Niyom 26, Lot CC-40, Concourse Floor, Tropicana Gardens Mall, 2A, Persiaran Surian, Tropicana Indah, Petaling Jaya. call 019 204 9926
Tiger Beer roars into the Chinese New Year with a renewed spirit with its ‘Cheers to Bold Beginnings’ campaign. The notion is all about celebrating moments of reflection, as we recognize our past courage while gearing up for a bolder tomorrow. Tiger wants its fans …
This Chinese New Year, Oversea Restaurant is hopping into the Year of the Rabbit with their rich traditions of Chinese cuisine. Look forward to seasonal signature Chinese New Year dishes such as Yee Sang, Waxed Meat Rice, Prosperity Treasure Pot, Dried Meat and an assortment …
It’s tong-tong chang time! Truth be told, I already had yee sang weeks ago! Didn’t want to ruin the Christmas mood, so am sharing Chinese New Year festive food news only now.
The Year of the Rabbit – symbol of longevity, peace and prosperity – is regarded to be a year of hope and those born in the Year of the Rabbit are said to be vigilant, witty, quick-minded and ingenious.
To usher in the Year of The Rabbit, Executive Chinese Chef Eric of The Emperor, Dorsett Grand Subang’s Muslim-friendly Chinese restaurant has curated a special menu featuring some of his specialty such as wok-fried white prawns with cumin powder and chilli, stir-fried smoked duck meat with three kinds of fungus, stewed Hong Kong lai pak with yam gravy and crispy squid; and braised sea grouper belly with bean curd skin to name a few. This Lunar New Year a-la-carte menu is available for both lunch and dinner till Feb 5, 2023.
A selection of Lunar New Year set menus for those planning for family reunion dinners; and that important end-of-the-business year dinner for business associates and working colleagues or just social gathering between friends. There’s the Prosperity Set Menu priced at RM1388 nett; the Health Set Menu at RM1,688 nett and the Wealth Set Menu at RM1,988 nett.
All the set menus come with a full portion of Yee Sang (Dish of Prosperity) and caters for 10 people per table. For every table booked and paid, an exclusive CNY gift set comprising 2 Dorsett Tea and Fortune Cookies will be accorded for the Prosperity Set Menu, a Radish Cake in gift packaging for the Health Set Menu and a bottle of wine for the Wealth Set Menu.
Whether it’s for dine-in or takeaway; diners can also opt for the most important and symbolic dish of the Lunar New Year -– Yee Sang. Also known as Dish of Prosperity, The Emperor is offering not only the traditional favourite, the Emperor Deluxe Salmon Yee Sang (RM88 nett for ½ portion; RM168 for full portion); there’s also the premium option of Sliced Abalone Yee Sang which is priced at RM218 nett for ½ portion and RM298 nett for a full portion.
This year also sees a new variation: Smoked Duck Breast Yee Sang at RM88 nett for ½ portion and RM168 nett for a full portion; and for those who prefer to go meat-free, there’s the Mixed Fruits Yee Sang or Vegetarian Yee Sang at RM68 nett for ½ portion; RM98 nett for full portion respectively.
Besides the Dish of Prosperity being an ideal Lunar New Year gift for family and friends, the popular Lunar Radish Cake is also available. Steamed to perfection with generous sprinkles of dried shrimp and scallops, spring onions and chillies, this delectable gift comes in a special gift box and is priced at only RM48 nett each. Serving radish or radish cake is a way of wishing the recipients an abundance of luck for the coming year, so be sure to place in your orders early as quantity is limited.
The Chef’s Specialty Ala Carte Menu, Dish of Prosperity and Lunar Radish Cake are available for takeaway (self-collect or chargeable delivery) via the hotel’s online shop.
Dorsett Grand Subang offers a special limited selection of Lunar New Year Dim Sum with delights such as steamed blue pea flower dumpling; steamed siew mai with dried oyster and sea moss, steamed green mussel stuffed with Oriental buttered sauce, deep-fried banana with red bean and prawn and deep-fried crispy ‘nian gao’ with sweet potato and yam. The Lunar New Year Dim Sum is available for lunch daily from 12 noon to 2.30 pm at The Emperor, the hotel’s Muslim-friendly Chinese restaurant.
For table reservation, call 03-5031 6060 or email
bookfnb.subang@dorsetthotels.com
Add: Jalan SS 12/1, Subang Jaya, Selangor
There’s dimsum and then, there’s Le Sense. Conceived by founder Chris Chew as a means to promote dimsum which he perceives to be an elegant art form rather than just traditional Chinese small plates of dumplings, the modern contemporary Chinese restaurant serves each course of …
Be it cupcakes or macarons, cakes or brownies, Elevete Patisserie has them all, all prettied up for this Christmas season. Choose from an array of lovely, sweet desserts such as: *The Gâteaux De Voyage Trio: Grandma’s Fruit Cake with Biscoff Ganache – made with mixed …
With the rainy weather these days, a hotpot meal with Sichuan mala soup is perfect to heat up the tummy, in more ways than one!
Riding on the trend, DeMala Hotpot Restaurant – the name is a wordplay of ‘the mala’ – offers halal mala hotpot which promises good quality meat and seafood. Located in a newish part of 1 Utama mall opposite KFC (LG) in the food hall area, you need to make your way to the area just outside the mall.
Varying sets are available, depending on the number of diners (from RM88/2 pax to RM188/4 pax), and you can top up with more meat such as lamb, chicken and premium beef slices. Seafood options include fresh grouper, snapper, baby lobster, mussels and scallop, among others. Prices range from RM16 to RM78 (tiger prawns)/RM128 (seafood platter). Fresh fish go by market price.
There are also a whole variety of meatballs and other stuff as well as a selection of side orders such as veggie, mushrooms, noodles, etc. Demala goes the extra mile by providing fresh hydroponic vegetables which you can freshly pick from the rack. Veggie, mushrooms, noodles and dessert are on free-flow here.
You have 5 choices of broth to choose from: Sichuan Mala, Mushroom, Tomato, Tom Yum and Chicken Bone Broth. We had the mala and chicken bone broth. The mala wasn’t as killer spicy as some places, which was a good thing ‘coz if your whole mouth becomes numb from the spice, the meal is no longer enjoyable as you can’t taste what you’re eating anymore. The chicken broth started out mild and subtle but by the end of the session, it had a lot more depth and flavour after all the ingredients that were dunked in it.
For this review, we found the prawn paste (cleverly shaped like a koi fish) and prawn balls particularly delightful as they were fresh and springy. Tiger prawns and other seafood come super fresh as well as the farm is just nearby. We also had the lamb and beef slices – good quality slices and tender to the bite.
In case you have that family member or friend who prefer separate dishes to pair with a bowl of rice, Demala has an la carte menu offering dishes such as sour spicy Sichuan Fish Slice Soup and super crispy Spicy Diced Chicken, laden with dried chillies that will give that extra kick.
Service is prompt and friendly with choices aplenty in the menu, making Demala a good bet for those looking for Muslim-friendly hotpot places to dine.
Add: LG603, 1 Utama Shopping Centre, 1, Lebuh Bandar Utama, Bandar Utama, Petaling Jaya.
call: 03-7499 3705
What does yum-cha mean to you? It literally means ‘drink tea’ in Cantonese and usually, it denotes dim sum time. So at @SantaiYumCha, it basically means – relax and drink tea – and you get to enjoy a nice repertoire of dim sum plus a …