THURSDAY ASIAN BBQ NIGHT AT LE MERIDIEN PETALING JAYA

 

Asian BBQ takes centrestage at the dinner buffet (630 pm – 1030 pm) every Thursday night at Pasar Baru all day dining restaurant, Le Meridien Petaling Jaya. Priced at RM98 nett per adult and RM49 nett per child, eat to your heart’s content the plethora of barbecued fare, hot off the grill.

Chef Afifi Ghani said the idea is to allow diners to select their protein of choice: chicken, beef, tiger prawns, clams, flower crabs or fish fillet and the chefs on duty will cook the ingredients on the spot. Whether it’s Malay, Chinese or Indian style of cooking, all you have to do is pass the chefs the tag indicating your table number and once the food is ready, it will be delivered hot off the stove, wok, grill or tandoor.

While waiting for your Asian BBQ order to be prepared, scour the buffet where a myriad of appetisers, main dishes and drinks await. Curtain-raisers include a DIY salad station where salads of choice or fruit rojak can be made, or sample chilled appetisers such as Assorted Cold Cuts, Melon Salad with Prawns, Potato Salad and Smoked Duck on Skewers.

Lending substance to the parade of offerings are a huge steamer filled with piping hot bowls of Chinese soup, a range of Italian pasta and a noodle live cooking station proffering soupy noodles of your choice.

Head over to the Chinese section for crunchy Deep-fried Spring Rolls, Money Bags and nugget-size Fried Chicken. Kabsa Rice, Mutton Sukka, Butter Chicken and Palak Paneer beckons invitingly. If you fancy some Chicken Tandoori, the chef will be happy to oblige.

 

We like the comforting Duck Fried Rice, tender and slightly peppery Ginger Beef and Steamed Egg with Prawn Sauce from the Chinese kitchen.

When our platter of seafood, meat and fish arrived, we dove in and relished the various items with two different sauces: black pepper and tartar.

Dessert includes Assorted Ice Cream with various toppings, Bread and Butter Pudding, Malay Kuih, Ais Kacang, French Pastries, Lavender Panna Cotta and Strawberry Mousse. My most notable pick was a refreshing and subtly sweet Cendol Jelly. 

Don't miss refreshing and hot beverages served to accompany your meal. I like the Dilmah flavoured tea range and freshly prepared teh tarik or coffee. They make a most satisfying round-off to wrap up the hefty dinner.

For reservations at Pasar Baru, call tel: 03-7682 0000. Le Meridien Petaling Jaya is located at No.1 Jalan SS7/26A, Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

 

FOOD & FUN AT SAMA-SAMA FOOD FIESTA

Guests were treated to food and fun in a carnival atmosphere recently at Sama-Sama Hotels KL International Airport from 19 to 23 April. Besides the wide variety of tempting dishes served, the event featured fun fair type games, a roving clown and screening of movies and cartoons for children. A Beer Garden was also included to cater to the international clientele.

A battalion of 21 chefs from Sama-Sama Hotel KLIA, Sama-Sama Express KLIA and Sama-Sama Express klia2 teamed up to present popular local, Western and Lebanese food at the different stalls set up at the sprawling Rooftop Garden of KLIA.

Although we were spoiled for choice with 21 stalls to choose from, we zoomed in for Sama-Sama Signature Mee Rebus. The tasty serving came with thick, sweetish gravy smothering yellow noodles, slices of fried beancurd, a wedge of hardboiled egg and crispy fritters.

I also enjoyed Laksa Kedah, tantalising rice noodles in tamarind and flaked fish gravy. Fresh cucumber strips, onion and thick gooey prawn paste were the accompaniments for this offering. The delightfully sour broth was surprisingly zingy on the palate but that added to its irresistible appeal.

Family-friendly fare which proved popular with the young ones was the pretty Sushi Rolls served at the Japanese stall. Both traditional and reverse rice rolls with assorted fillings were attractively presented so many diners made a beeline for them.

Rice fiends had a gala time sampling Nasi Dalcha Daging Rendang Mamak. The aromatic rice was redolent with fragrant spices and really hit the spot when eaten with chunks of tender beef rendang, veggie pickles and crackers.

Noodles seemed to dominate our favourite eats list that evening we were there. The Char Kuay Teow had plenty of wok hei, that splendid smoky accent few cooks managed to imbue into this tricky dish. Chives, egg and beansprouts lent textural dimension although the tiny cockles were nothing to shout about.

Heh, our penchant for Penang fare was obvious as we followed up with a serving of Pasembor Penang after that. While it wasn't the best, we agreed the version was decent enough to pass muster.

 

If you like watching chefs in action, stop by the Curry Puff and Apam Balik stalls. These local snacks deserved equal standing with foreign imports like waffles and pies...in my opinion ours taste way better and are much cheaper!

Thumbs up for the Apam Balik which came in normal and pandan variants. The pancake was crisp and crunchy; the thickness too was spot on.

Colourful and rich, the variety of Malay Kuih left us in a sweetly jovial mood. Washed down with a cup of hot Teh Tarik, we couldn't cope with much more food. How we wish we had tummy space for Hainanese Chicken Rice, Rojak Sotong, Ikan Bakar or Chef Ammar's signature rice and curry specialities but alas, it was futile for us to fit anything else in.

If you missed this Food Fiesta, fear not. Sama-Sama Hotels may organise similar events in future and possibly for the fasting month so keep your eyes and ears open for upcoming news. 

BOSCH UPS THE COOKING ANTE

 

BOSCH - Europe’s leading household appliances launched its newly introduced Asian Range hobs and hoods  recently.

Gary Ong, Chief Executive Officer of BSH Home Appliances Sdn. Bhd. highlighted that the INTELLI innovations were conceived to cater to Asian kitchen needs and Asian cooking techniques, enabling its users to cook in style while keeping the kitchen and the rest of the house clean and odour-free.

 

According to him, the gas and electric hobs of the Asian Range are designed wider than the existing European Range, to accommodate Asian-style cookware such as woks and larger pots. He also points out that the oil collection channel on the hoods come with a patented double filter system to capture condensed grease instantly and diverts it to the oil cup, keeping the kitchen grease free.

Ong said: “Kitchen is the heart of the home, a place where cooking is devoted to loved ones. We endeavour to produce efficient and elegant products with the most advanced technology  for kitchens around the world. The Asian Range brings German efficiency and technology to the Asian kitchens such as even and precise wok burners, efficient extraction for hoods and INTELLILINK, an innovative, convenient and practical feature that links the hob and hood.” 

Chef Alina Hew demonstrated Bosch's latest Asian Range by whipping up a quick, stir-fry dish at the launch. Canopied tents were also set-up to show the versatility of the hobs where Thai, Korean, Indian, Malay and Nyonya dishes were served for guests' sampling.

 

Also present at the launch was Jimmy Ang, Head of Marketing for BSH Home Appliances Sdn Bhd. Product manager Ms Chee Lin Kit also explained in detail some of the features of the new Asian Range.

 

Priced from RM1,388 onwards, there will be 10 different models available from January 2014 onwards. For more information on Bosch Asian Range or to locate the nearest Bosch dealer, visit www.bosch-home.com.my