READY, SET, PIVOT...XIN CUISINE DELIVERS RM15 SET LUNCH

Hainanese Chicken Rice. BBQ Spare Ribs with Rice. Stewed Chicken with Chinese Wine with Rice. Sweet Corn Puree with Fish Fillet with Rice. Minced Pork and Pickle Omelette with Rice. These are the new temptations available from Xin Cuisine’s Set Lunch for Takeaway and Home/Office Delivery.

Launched in June 2020 during the Movement Control Order (MCO), each Set Lunch (RM15 per serving) is a delicious one-dish meal of rice and meat. Available for takeaway or delivered right to your home or office doorstep, it comes with FREE soup of the day. For an additional RM5, you can enjoy the Chef’s Choice Dessert. This dessert is free for Concorde Cash Card and Priority Plus Members.

We find the various options featured in the menu superb value and reflective of the hotel's uncompromising quality. The yellow ‘oiled’ rice for the Hainanese Chicken Rice is good enough to be eaten on its own. Complemented by succulent smooth poached chicken, it’s a surefire crowd-pleaser. There’s also a chilli dip to give it a punchy finishing touch but unfortunately, we didn’t have a chance to try that.

Those hankering for a taste of hearth and home will be drawn to the Minced Pork and Pickle Omelette (choy poh jin darn) with Rice. A defyingly simple dish, its evergreen appeal lies in the combination of pickled radish (choy poh) and eggs, creating a homey staple that had withstood the test of time.

Most of us are familiar with pai kwat wong – literally translated as king pork ribs – a perennial Chinese restaurant staple with different chefs and restaurants proudly touting their own version. Xin Cuisine’s BBQ Spare Ribs with Rice ticks all the requisite boxes for us: chunky and glossy with sticky, flavourful sweet-tangy sauce, the meaty ribs beg to eaten with plain rice.

Slightly boozy-gingery on the palate, the Stewed Chicken with Chinese Wine has plenty of crunchy wood ear fungus for textural contrast. Personally, I’d prefer a stronger Chinese wine accent but understandably, the Xin team opts to strike a middle ground with its clientele.

Sweet Corn Puree with Fish Fillet with Rice will reel in pescatarians. If you like deep-fried, battered fare with creamy mayo-type sauce then this should hit the spot.

Todate, Roasted Pork & Hong Kong Kailan with Rice remains the most sought-after dish on the Set Lunch menu. The various dishes featured in this review will be available until 9 August. New temptations will be revealed on a fortnightly basis whilst certain saleable dishes will be retained by popular demand.

Dessert fans will be pleased to know a choice of three types of tong sui (sweet broths) is available daily. The selection may include Barley with Beancurd Skin, Honey Dew Sago, Waterchestnut with Snow Fungus, Longan White Fungus with Monk Fruit, Black Glutinous Rice, Wheat Porridge with Coconut, Sweet Mung Beans, Peanut Puree and Black Sesame Seed Puree.

Xin Cuisine's RM15 Takeaway/Delivery Set Lunch is available from 10.30 am to 2.30 pm and from 4 pm to 8.30 pm. No minimum order is required. Delivery fees starts from RM5 (0-5km from Concorde Hotel KL) upwards. For a single receipt amounting to RM150, the hotel will accord complimentary delivery (within 10km from the hotel). 

There are also two Set Menus available for lunch and dinner daily, priced at RM148 nett for 4 persons and RM188 nett for 4 persons. The 4-course and 5-course menu are for dine-in, takeaway or delivery until further notice.

For information and to pre-order, WhatsApp: 012 399 5007/016 906 3220.

TIPPLES & TREATS AT FARQUHAR'S BAR

Lovers of Happy Hours and discerning bon vivant who yearn to slake their thirst can make a beeline for the much-loved Farquhar’s Bar. Remodelled as a vintage cocktail bar, Farquhar’s Bar at the Eastern & Oriental Hotel Penang is relocated further down the marble and French doors walkway at the newly refreshed Heritage Wing.

Subdued, mellow lighting coupled with deep teal blue hues and white cornices evoke a rarefied atmosphere similar to a gentlemen’s club and private study. The oak and brass-finished long bar serves as a focal point near the entrance whilst the inner sanctum boasts studded leather Chesterfield sofas, retro arm and wing back chairs, antique fittings, and collections of monochrome prints. Scenic views of Penang’s waterfront beckon beyond its expansive picture windows.

Cocktail o’clock has never been more atas...the resident mixologists are adept at whisking up classic and contemporary tipples. To wet our whistle, we opted for Gin Setengah (RM45) – London Dry Gin with Grand Marnier, longan and a splash of pineapple juice (3rd pix below); Pink Lady (RM50) – London Dry Gin with Applejack, lemon juice, housemade grenadine and egg white (2nd pix below); and Moscow Mule (RM45) – Vodka, lime juice and spicy ginger beer (pix below).

Should you wish to chase your drinks of choice with light refreshments, the snack creations are worth the calorie intake. Simplistic in approach but lush and big on flavour is Potato & Caviar (RM28), airy-light potato crisps with sour cream and caviar dip.

Heartier but a definite palate-pleaser is the sumptuous and melty Gruyère Cheese Sandwich (RM28). Savoury rich with a smoky aftertaste, the brioche toast triangles were sublime and satisfying.

Delectable options to stave off hunger pangs include Peranakan Sliders (RM20) of braised duck breast sandwiched in crispy mantou with chilli dip, and

Beef Lollipop (RM28) – superbly tender and juicy marinated beef cubes with saffron and garlic aioli. 

Having sampled them, the snacks hit the spot well. We even ordered additional portion of the Beef Lollipop and Gruyère Cheese Sandwich.

Note: Farquhar’s Bar is open daily from 230pm to midnight during the pre-Covid19 days. To sample the Sundowners' Tapas mentioned above, head over to Palm Court from 4pm to 7pm daily (refer below pix).

For more information and reservations, please call Eastern & Oriental Hotel Penang, tel: 016-419 8923 or visit:

 https://www.facebook.com/eohotels/

NEW MENU FEEDS ALL AT HOTEL MAYA KUALA LUMPUR

One menu integrating signature specialities from Still Waters (Japanese and Cantonese), Maya Brasserie (all-day dining) and Ramah Tamah (deli) makes it debut at Hotel Maya KL, to provide a seamless dining experience in the new normal.

 

Sharmini Morganasundram, General Manager of Hotel Maya KL said “a lot of thought has been put into this initiative, to ensure diners can enjoy their preferred cuisine at affordable prices whilst maintaining safe social distancing guidelines.”

 

The expansive selection lists Malaysian favourites, Western choices, Japanese and Chinese specialities, and even healthy vegan fare. 

 

 

Deftly prepared appetisers such as Wok-Fried Shelled Tiger Prawns with Butter, Golden Oats, Curry Leaves and Bird’s Eye Chillies (RM23), and Butter Squid with Salted Egg Yolk (RM28) hit the right note thanks to the delicacies’ airy-light batter and on-point crispiness.

We highly recommend the show-stealing Set Nasi Kerabu (RM18) – blue-tinged rice with butterfly pea flower jus accompanied by delectable fried marinated fried chicken, fish crackers, salted egg, grated coconut fish flakes and shredded raw vegetables. A marvellous ensemble of vividly robust accents and varied textural interests that will induce you to make short work of everything.

For a perennial dish that conjures up the feeling of festive revelry, nothing beats the stellar Set Nasi Tomato, Ayam Masak Merah, Jelatah, Sambal Belacan & Papadom (RM18). Again, the culinary team here pulls off the tomato rice with aplomb: the zesty-tomatoey chicken in chilli is sublime especially when augmented by the tart pickled vegetables, zingy shrimp paste sambal and crunchy papadom.

More sedate, non-spicy fare like Olive Vegetable Fried Rice with Shrimps, Fish and Golden Crispy Garlic (RM18) should go down well if you’re not partial to spices and chillies.

Tastes of the Orient take centrestage in three set menus: Ixora (RM60 nett for 2 persons), Hibiscus (RM80 nett for 2 persons) and Rafflesia (RM100 nett for 2 persons). Crowd-pleasing curtain-raisers such as Japanese Gyoza with Shrimp & Chicken and Unagi Tempura with Tobiko pave the way for heartwarming broths — my personal pick is the tantalising Braised Hot & Sour Szechuan Soup with Crabmeat, Fish Lip, Shrimps, Black Fungus, Mushroom, Szechuan Vegetable and Beancurd.

Creamy Chicken with Curry Leaves and Housemade Spicy Dried Shrimp Sauce, Deep-fried Spicy Seabass Fillet with Housemade Plum Sauce and Shredded Young Mango, and Stir-fried Sweet Beans with Celery, Carrot, Black Fungus, Lotus Root, Ginkgo Nuts and Crispy Almond Flakes are among some of the main dishes featured in the set menus. They pass muster with white or brown rice serving as the foil to partake them with.

 

Dessert to choose from range between Chilled Sea Coconut with Longan and Lemon Syrup and Double Boiled Dried Pear with Chrysanthemum, Sea Bird’s Nest, White Fungus and Dried Longan.

 

Dine-in at Hotel Maya KL on weekdays (except public holidays) from 11am to 8pm (last order 7pm). You can also bring Maya Meals Home via self pick-up or delivery: hotelmayakl.beepit.com daily from 11am to 8pm. Free delivery for minimum spend of RM60 within 5km from the hotel and RM80 within 10km radius.

For more information, contact Hotel Maya Kuala Lumpur F&B Hotline: 012-282 8187. Hotel Maya KL is located at 138 Jalan Ampang, KL.