Wednesday, August 17, 2005

STEAKING IT OUT

Small cake that's big on taste - guaranteed to make you break out in song!

Scrumptious Charcoal-Grilled Lamb Steak - no sauce required


Char-grilled NZ Steak at its best!

It's hard to imagine a good steak is best savoured without sauce. But here's what Somerset Grill is advocating. The owner, Augustine Kow, who has spent his tertiary education years in New Zealand, is keen to educate local palates on the fine art of appreciating steaks on its own. Using prime cuts of NZ beef and lamb of course.

Kow's personal interest and inherent talent for cooking and eating probably stems from his Hainanese background. His father was a cook and used to work for Federal Hotel in Kuala Lumpur. But it was not until recently that Kow has the chance to pursue his interest in food - bread and butter issues took precedence as he focused his energy on building his jewellery and watch business.

With Somerset Grill, Kow is aiming to recapture the fond memories of great steaks that he had in NZ.

“When you pay to eat steak, we believe that is exactly what you should be getting,” said Kow firmly. “I want our customers to be able to taste the meat’s natural flavour, its juiciness, its tender and succulent texture, instead of steaks with sauces that disguise or overwhelm the meat’s taste and texture.”

Here the beef and lamb are marinated or ‘aged’ for a day or two with specially concocted herbs and spices, based on recipes that he has kept with him for the past 20 years. The chefs are trained for 3-6 months on the finer rudiments of using the charcoal grill to produce varying degrees of doneness for the steaks.

Opened about one and a half years ago, Somerset Grill is located along the busy main road leading into the residential area of Taman Tun Dr Ismail.

The outlet has a relaxed and friendly ambience about it. Several beautiful Tiffany ceiling and standing lamps make for interesting conversation pieces whilst you wait for your food to arrive. For the prices that you pay here, do not expect fine-dining service but the young wait staff is alert enough to ensure diners are promptly attended to.

Light eaters can opt for the Augus goulash (RM9.90), a hearty lamb stew that is cooked for over three hours with lots of root vegetables and fragrant herbs, or their delicious pies – Marco Polo (filled with chunky chicken, melted cheese, diced vegetables and spices, RM9.90), Sinbad’s Diet (fish, tuna and crabmeat pie) and Nemo’s Choice (salmon pie, RM9.90).

The best-selling items are the Somerset Rib Eye (RM33.90) and the Augus Lamb (RM21.90). When the steaks were served, we were already salivating after inhaling whiffs of the dishes’ mouth-watering aroma.

The Somerset Rib Eye is quite substantial. We had asked for it to be medium rare and it turned out exactly to specifications. Extremely tender and moist with a delicate briny after taste, the meat has a splendid smokiness in it. Don’t turn your nose up on the side dishes as the simple salad of shredded lettuce and cabbage actually complemented the steaks very well.

For those with a penchant for lamb, the Augus Lamb is splendid with its elegant peppery and slightly nutty nuances similar to that of a refined, well-marinated lamb ‘satay’. Other equally salubrious choices include the Somerset t-bone steak (RM38.90), Somerset sirloin (RM32.90), Somerset Bay char-grilled salmon (RM23.90) and Somerset Valley spring chicken (RM18.90).

Dessert mostly consists of cakes in singular servings. The Opera cake (RM8.90) is irresistible with layers of coffee almond cream alternating with Japonais biscuit mix whilst the Chocolate Exotica (RM9.90) is an indulgent treat of French chocolate mousse and hazelnut paste with a soft-centred filling of chocolate praline.

If you prefer something slightly fruity, sample the Oona Apple Pie (RM6.90), a Swiss apple pie with cinnamon and raisins or the Apple Cheese Cake (RM9.90), a rich cream cheese cake with apple dices.

The remaining sweet treats include Cappuccino Corretto (RM8.90), Hungarian Walnut (RM7.90), Felchlin Caramel (RM9.90), Mocha Glory (RM6.90) and Mississippi Mud Brownie (RM6.50).

Somerset Grill definitely makes the cut if you want to enjoy a good steak and other Western-style dishes without having to spend a fortune.

SOMERSET GRILL (pork-free)
No 10 Jalan Tun Mohd Fuad
Taman Tun Dr Ismail
60000 Kuala Lumpur
Tel : 7722 1678

Business hours – daily 11 am to 3 pm; 6 pm to 11 pm

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