GREEK FOOD'S THE WORD AT AEGEAN BLUE

Contemporary Euro-Greek dishes takes the limelight at Aegean Blue within the imposing New Ocean Fine Food City, Petaling Jaya. As we set foot into the Greek restaurant, a projected image of Apollo, the Greek sun god greets us at the entrance. 

Inside the cream and sand enclave stands another life-size statue of Apollo amidst several Grecian columns. Modern, sleek partitions, mellow lighting and gauzy white curtains adorned the interior of this newish Greek restaurant. A tastefully decorated private dining room is also available onsite.

The most notable dish to savour IMHO is Ammos Moussaka (RM55), a befitting choice definitive of this Greek restaurant.

Topped with kefalotyri, a salty Cypriot-Greek white cheese made from sheep or goat’s milk, the baked gooey layers of eggplant with potatoes, minced beef and bechamel sauce looked like lasagna at first glance. We found its hearty richness agreeable and not overly cloying.

Another memorable speciality is Kolokythosoupa (RM20), a velvety pumpkin cream soup. Its smooth, delicate sweetness proved memorable, especially when paired with crusty garlicky toast.

Light and refreshing, the Aegean Blue Salad with Smoked Salmon (RM48) comprising fresh garden greens, smoked salmon, crème fraiche, black olives and balsamico vinaigrette is a well-balanced and wholesome creation to satisfy healthy diners. It was a welcoming precursor to our meal.

On a previous visit, we ate outstanding dishes such as grilled octopus salad, pan-fried duck breast and braised lamb shank. Although they aren't no longer in the menu, be assured plenty of culinary gems worth sampling await at Aegean Blue so a single visit may not suffice.

To lure the white collar crowd, there's an Executive Set Lunch at RM55+ per person inclusive of one drink is available from 1130am-230pm.

You can either start with Soup of the Day (think Vegetable Cream Soup with Shrimp or something similar to it) or salad du jour of Mixed Greek Salad with Grilled Chicken and Cheese. The mildly savoury vegetable broth was on-point, and superbly delicious when accompanied by crusty slices of buttery-garlicky toasts.

We also enjoyed the substantial Greek salad that included a sizeable piece of grilled chicken breast dusted with paprika. It sat atop fresh lettuce, boiled potato and carrot dices, blanched cauliflower and broccoli florets, cherry tomatoes, and boiled egg. TBH, this could be a meal itself for light eaters.

Main course was a toss between Grilled Chicken Leg with Mashed Potato and BBQ Sauce or Pan-fried Seabass Fillet with Dill Sauce, Orzo with Mushroom.

Both dishes were deftly prepared although the slab of seabass held extra appeal for us thanks to the fish’s natural sweetness. Perked up by creamy dill sauce and orzo (semolina pasta shaped like rice grains), we fell hook, line and sinker for it.

Juicy and tender, the slightly smoky chicken earned extra points on the deliciousness scale with a most stellar concoction of butter-honey-barbecue sauce.

Dessert fell somewhat below expectations as the Carrot Cake with Vanilla Chantilly appeared a tad too dry for our liking. Hopefully, this would have improved after our feedback. Aegean Blue has many good things going for it so give this resto a chance where Greek food is the word.

For reservations at Aegean Blue, please call tel: 012 988 2790 and 03-8408 8030. Address: L3-12A, Level 3, New Ocean World Fine Food City, 15 Jalan 19/1, Seksyen 19, Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

 

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.