vkeong loves good food, travel and photography!
Posts tagged Kuala Lumpur
San Francisco Steakhouse @ KLCC
Sep 15th
Was feeling like eating at a classy Western restaurant while shopping in KLCC one day. There are many options in [tag]KLCC[/tag] but we settled at San Francisco Steakhouse, simply because I suddenly craved for [tag]steak[/tag] that time. And not to mention [tag]San Francisco Steakhouse[/tag] was a winner of [tag]Malaysia[/tag] Tatler best [tag]restaurant[/tag] not too long ago. So, I guessed it was worth to try at least. The ambiance was quiet and nice, with most of the patrons being foreigners.
After long consideration, I chose the Tiger Prawn with Lamb Cutlet which cost RM51.90. Expensive stuff.. in fact it was the most expensive ala carte dish I’ve ever ordered. Well, luckily it was well worth the price tag because of the huge portion of lamb. And most importantly, the lamb cutlet was very meaty and tasty – that mattered the most.
Eden Dim Sum City Restaurant @ Bandar Menjalara
Sep 13th
Eden Dim Sum City restaurant in Bandar Menjalara is a popular place to go for good dim sum in Kepong. I stumbled upon this [tag]dim sum[/tag] restaurant one day when I was driving aimlessly looking for a place to have breakfast. The large crowd even well after breakfast time was an indication that Eden should be pretty good.
It was one of the most expensive dim sum [tag]breakfast[/tag] I ever had – RM30. My own mistake actually, I didn’t ask for the price before taking all the expensive stuff, lol.
Nagomi Shabu Shabu @ Menara Hap Seng, KL
Sep 3rd
During the National Day last Sunday, I had a [tag]shabu shabu[/tag] dinner at Nagomi Shabu Shabu in Menara Hap Seng, KL. Ms Tam Poh Poh, the acting COO of Nagomi Shabu-Shabu was our host that night. My first impression on the restaurant was bright, classy and the huge entrance gives people a welcome feeling.
Shabu shabu means swish swish, referring to the swishing action when cooking thinly sliced meat in the broth. This method of eating was actually introduced by Genghis Khan in the 13th century, who intended to feed his army more efficiently by gathering them around the food cooked in a huge pot of broth. It was then introduced in Japan in 1948 and subsequently to the whole world.
We chose a window side seat, so we could enjoy [tag]Kuala Lumpur[/tag]‘s night view while enjoying our [tag]Japanese food[/tag]. Shown here is the single pot each customer will be using for shabu shabu. Purpose is to promote a better hygienic dining experience. According to Tam, shabu shabu restaurants in Japan are small and they use only one pot for cooking.
Because of that, customers have to huddle around the pot and it could be pretty uncomfortable. Which is why Nagomi Shabu-Shabu chose the Japanese word ‘Nagomi’ as the restaurant’s name, it carries the meaning of peace and harmony.
Maguro Pirikaara Age, Fried Tuna @ RM18 is an appetizer consisting of white and red tuna. Behind the tuna are Japanese cucumber and fresh mango juice. The juices in [tag]Nagomi[/tag] are prepared by blending freshly cut fruits with crushed ice and no sugar is added (honey is added into the cucumber drink) The fruit juice’s creamy and thick texture is nice but I would probably like it even more if it was sweeter lol.
If you look carefully you’d make out the white and red tuna in the dish. Red tuna would have a darker color and has a stronger taste compared to white tuna. Maguro Pirikaara Age is light and fresh in taste, a palate opener and an excellent way to start the meal.
Besides shabu shabu, Nagomi also serves good sashimi and [tag]sushi[/tag]. There are over 30 items to be ordered from the sushi and sashmi menu alone. One of them being the Soft Shell Crab or Spider Maki @ Rm18. It is a delicious hand roll sushi made using generous amount of deep fried soft shell crabs.
Although the price is quite expensive, it is value for money because of the huge pieces – look at the big chunk of soft shell crab meat in the sushi, you can really feel its crunchiness in your mouth, damn nice. And the satisfaction of enjoying it in a mouthful was just indescribable, haha!
A set of shabu shabu in Nagomi, be it Sake Nabe, Ribeye Nabe or Chicken Nabe is always complemented with vegetables as side dish. There are three types of broth available in Nagomi – Nagomi’s signature broth, spicy or chicken broth. All the broth as well as the dipping sauces in Nagomi are specially handcrafted by their Master Chef Ikuo Tanabe-san. Tanabe is one of the most experienced Japanese chef and was also the head chef of Daikoku, now known as Kampachi in Equatorial Hotel.
The vegetables used for shabu shabu in Nagomi are all soaked in icy salt water for 20 minutes, twice. This process is done to remove all unwanted pesticides, bacteria and insects from the vegetables. I really felt the difference, the vegetables are fresh and have a sweeter taste.
Shabu shabu is best enjoyed none other than getting to dip and swish Kobe Beef in the soup, then savoring it. Since young, I have read a lot of comics and watched some dramas from Japan. So, I know a little about [tag]Kobe Beef[/tag], it is a top-grade beef from the breed of Wagyu cattle which is so expensive it can be considered a luxury.
How luxurious? At Nagomi, it is priced at RM125 for 120g. That’s more than RM1000 for a kilo for a kg of the meat! From what I read, Kobe Beef is so soft and tender it could melt in your mouth.. that’s how special the meat is.
California Pizza Kitchen @ Suria KLCC
Aug 15th
A few days ago I was invited to join a food tasting session organized by IntegratedPR for California Pizza Kitchen (CPK) at KLCC. I was really flattered and surprised by the invitation, as the others on list were real journalist from major local newspapers and magazines.
Anyway, who would say no to free food tasting in a nice restaurant!
The food tasting session is aimed at introducing as well as promoting the eight new dishes in the [tag]CPK[/tag] menu. Among the eight new dishes, there are two [tag]salad[/tag]s, three [tag]pizza[/tag]s, three [tag]pasta[/tag]s and a [tag]dessert[/tag]. Miso Salad was featured first – a salad that has Shredded Napa cabbage with fresh avocado, julienne cucumbers, daikon, edamame, carrots, red cabbage, green onions, cilantro, crispy rice noodles and crispy wontons tossed in a Miso dressing.
Two additional ingredients – chilled-grilled chicken and grilled shrimp can be added to the salad at RM22 and RM14 respectively. I fully recommend adding the grilled shrimp to the salad, as they tasted awesome together. And the crispy rice noodles and wontons gave the salad even more “biting” texture. Miso Salad was one of the dishes I liked most that day, which came as a total surprise. It was just a nice, tasty salad!
Although the salad (and other foods) could feel pretty expensive by looking at the menu alone, be assured it’s well worth the money spent for the huge serving size. Since CPK is a US based restaurant, the serving size is bigger compared to those served locally. As you can see in the photo, the salad is more than enough to be shared among three people!
Next up was Mediterranean Salad, a chilled salad of cucumbers, red onions, fresh tomatoes and Greek olives tossed with crisp Romaine leaves and lemon-herb vinaigrette, served on a bed of hummus. It is topped with Feta cheese (cheese made with ewe’s and goat’s milk), sun-dried tomatoes and [tag]California Pizza Kitchen[/tag]‘s own homemade Tzatziki sauce. Pita bread is also served alongside.
Some of the ingredients in the salad are very new to me. For example the hummus is actually a dip made from cooked, mashed chickpeas then blended with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and garlic. Hummus is also known as one of the oldest known prepared food, popular throughout the Middle Eastern world. It was certainly a great idea by California Pizza Kitchen to incorporate so many fresh and colorful ingredients in creating this dish.
For me, the Mediterranean Salad felt like a really healthy dish, obvious from the amount of greens used. I didn’t eat much of the salad because I wanted to save space for the pizzas and pastas later lol. Like the Miso Salad, you can also opt for additional ingredients like grilled rosemary chicken breast @ RM10, sauteed salmon @ RM14.50 and grilled shrimp @ RM14.
The Works Pizza uses sweet Italian chicken and beef sausage, beef pepperoni, sauteed mushrooms, Mozarella cheese, mild onions, green peppers, black olives and CPK’s own tomato sauce.
