Best Western i-City Hotel Staycation with All You Can Eat Seafood BBQ

Stay & Relax, Enjoy Seafood BBQ and QR Code Room Service and Play at i-City Theme Park

A short weekend retreat, we found ourselves back at the Best Western i-City Hotel for some R&R time with the family. A great place for a simple and affordable Cuti Cuti Malaysia without having to burn a hole-in-the-pocket, Best Western I-City has all the great markings for a family retreat with its nearby i-City Theme Park and Central i-city Mall – the latest mall in Shah Alam.

Its been a year since our last visit and the hotel has certainly been well-kept at a glance. From the moment one walks in, the hotel staff greeted us with warm smiles. We quickly checked into our room but not before stopping to check out a quaint corner where kids can pay RM5 to take a fish to their room for the hotel stay.

We were debating as Crush here was so beautiful with its shiny glowing blue…

Anne Elizabeth The Deli Restaurant @ Taman Segar Cheras

Meat Up at Anne Elizabeth!

Tucked away in the bustling area of Cheras is Anne Elizabeth The Deli Restaurant. A truly hidden foodie gem, I wasn’t even sure how this restaurant never got on to my radar for the last five years since its opening. Perhaps Cheras was never my usual food haunt but then again, I would have gone to the end of the earth for food that is worthy of travel.

Anne Elizabeth, owned by a dynamic duo husband and wife team, Jacob Fong and Sandra Lee had the foresight to take a chance with introducing ‘Select and Order from The Deli’ concept to diners five years ago in the location where they lived. Jacob hails from Brunei and has been a chef for more than 20 years specializing in European cuisine. When asked to elaborate, he specifically named British, Italian, Spanish and French as some of his main signatures.

Parking can be a problem in that area as it is located on one of the rows near Cheras Leisure Mall. However, this has never deterred the restaurant’s loyal fans from dining at Anne Elizabeth as it is always crowded throughout the day and especially on weekends.

The two-storey restaurant is located on a corner lot, catering up to 80 pax of diners per floor. One simply cannot miss the bold black and white signage of Anne Elizabeth. The owners decided to use their favorite religious names of Anne and Elizabeth simply because it felt more personal while echoing a lovely name together.

The restaurant décor is rather simple as the owners wanted the food to speak for themselves. A minimalist décor that echoes European minimalist with a deli counter and a bar, Anne Elizabeth has an easy-going vibe that makes dining casual and comfortable.

Sandra admitted that she enjoys running the front dining space while Jacob handles the kitchen and the deli. Both shared that their concept truly allows them to always have a personalized service with every customer and made sure that their staffs are trained well on this concept too. Business is brisk and constantly heavy during the day and so the owners have lots of staff trained to provide solid and fast service to customers.

Taiwan Travels - TK Seafood & Steak @ Hotel Proverbs Taipei

Exquisite Italian Farm to Table Dining

In sequel to my stay at Hotel ProverbsTaipei in Taiwan, we dined at the exclusive TK Seafood & Steak restaurant housed in the hotel that evening.

Helmed by Culinary Director and Chef Fudy Chen, TK Seafood & Steak is inspired from his childhood memory of what a perfect barbeque would be. The pride and joy of the restaurant is a result from Chef Chen’s effort in having his own organic farm located at the foot of Yangmingshan, where he pays tribute to his organically grown ingredients nurtured by Mother Nature. He aged his own premium quality beef and duck while utilizing sustainable fresh seafood, caught barely hours from the local fishing wharfs.

Going back to his roots, Chef Chen returns to Taiwan after his experience at a three Michelin star restaurant in New York. The passionate chef decided to fulfill his dreams of farm to table dining concept to city dwellers and foodies and thus TK Seafood & Steak was born.

TK Seafood & Steak’s gorgeous interior is also designed by renowned architect and designer Ray Chen. In theme throughout the hotel, the swanky restaurant oozes with glitz and glam through its high ceiling architecture flanked by elaborate crystal chandeliers, mirror panels for kaleidoscope reflections, subdue dark table setting and earthy tones of surrounding ambiance.

TK Seafood & Steak commands a sense of class in modern day luxury dining and yet it pretty hip to be seen here, dining like you are on top of the world.

Open kitchen concept, there’s nothing to escape the glance of the diners. Chefs are meticulously at work in the kitchen, focusing on the highlight flagship of the restaurant, a Spanish Josper oven for the grill. Nothing but the very best for Chef Chen as he goes all out in churning meat and seafood cooked in the best grill cum oven before finishing it with an aroma of an oak wood smoke from 1866 JACK DANIEL’s barrels. TK’s steaks will leave diners in satiable senses with its signature whiskey aroma lingering on the premium beef.

While one can opt for lunch on ala carte menu, the dinner Tasting menu is more value-for-money. It also offers flexibility for diners who can then select how many courses they wish to enjoy. Tasting menu is listed in Italian courses – Antipasti, Zuppa, Primi, Secondi, Contorni, Dolci

Amuse Bouche of Terrine of Cured Meat with Pickles and Seeded Mustard and Radish

House bread from L’idiot Bakery served with Balsamic Vinegar and EVOO

An Antipasti (+NTD280) course featuring Zucchini Burrata Cheese Cannoli, Arugula, Cherry Tomato Salad with Truffle Dressing. Sheer simplicity highlighting some of the best fresh Italian ingredients in this dish. The burrata cheese was a sinful bite of creamy lush with sweet vegetables and heady scent of truffles.

The next course of Zuppa (+NTD1800) was Sicilia Style Fishermen’s Soup. King prawn and fish in a tomato based broth pumped with robust seafood essence, soothes the tummy warmly after a day’s travel. The subtle sweetness of the seafood broth whets the appetite along with the fresh seafood.

The Italians love their primi course of pasta. There are several choices of pasta but the two we had came highly recommended as signatures of TK. For Primi (+NTD1800), we tucked into Shrimp and Truffle Ravioli with Foie Gras Veloute and Grilled Spicy Octopus with Squid Ink Capellini.

The Shrimp and Truffle Ravioli with Foie Gras Veloute looked deceptively simple with a minimalist presentation. However, the ravioli is simply marvelous. Beautiful thin pasta filled with sweet prawn and truffle filling and blanketed with a luscious thick goose liver veloute. Each bite of the ravioli was exquisite on the palate, heady with truffle aroma and flavours of buttery richness follows upon contact with the veloute.

The moreish flavours of the next dish was a complete opposite to the ravioli. The Grilled Spicy Octopus with Squid Ink Capellini was a delightful dish. Smoky with hints of heat and bold salty notes from chargrilled octopus, chilies, capers and sundried tomatoes elevated the squid ink capellini well. Pasta cooked well and the octopus was tender, rendering a nearly perfect plate of pasta.

For the Secondi course, this is where all the barbeque comes into play. The Grilled Market Fish, Grapefruit, Pickled Chili, Pine Nut Salad (NTD1380) uses the freshest catch of the day. That evening, it was a fish named ‘Wu Zai’, similar to a mullet of sort. Chargrilled to lovely doneness and topped with lots of citrusy flavours and pine nuts, the fish has a fine and silky-smooth flesh. The grapefruit and chili worked so well with the fish, enchancing its sweetness.

Chef Chen uses a wet-aging process for his beef and the Texas: A Bar N Ranch Wagyu Strip Loin (NTD2780) looked might fine at sight. A marbling grade of A8, this wagyu is brashly well-marbled with superb beefy flavours. The charred smoky notes coupled with juicy meat is a revelation piece of wagyu steak. Served simply with slow roasted garlic cloves, fresh watercress, wholegrain mustard and a tiny dollop herb sauce sealed the deal for this majestic plate of wagyu.

For more primal indulgence, the USDA Prime Sirloin 15oz (NTD2180) fared well too. Cooked medium rare, the sirloin had a solid charred on the outside. Chef Chen likes to leave the fatty bits to the sirloin to give it an extra ommph of flavours as well as juiciness. Generously seasoned with just sea salt and served with slow roasted garlic bulbs and watercress, the sirloin is another great choice of steak.

The 14 Day-Aged Yilan Duck Breast with Braised Endive, Roasted Tangerine and Watercress (NTD1680) highlight Taiwan’s local produce of Yilan Sakura duck. The aging process enhances the duck meat texture and flavour. Its then cooked till medium pink and served with a citrusy sweet and savory sauce before finished with caramelized endive, juicy roasted tangerine segments and watercress. Tender and juicy duck meat is ravishingly addictive, each bite seemed to taste better than before…

With all the main courses of meat and seafood, we also savored some Contorni. From creamy Mashed Potato to delicious cheese Truffled Mac&Cheese, Sweet Potato Leaves with pine nuts and sweet Purple Carrots.

Dinner ended with Dolci (+NTD120), a classic one of Tiramisu. Decadent, smooth and good hit of coffee, the tiramisu completed our lovely Italian journey at TK.

Every little detail is meticulously thought through by Chef Chen from the moment one steps into the restaurant to the finale of the dining experience. Food and service is excellent. Quality is an obvious focus from the culinary team as all the meat, seafood and vegetables are prepared with minimalist and paired with much thoughts of flavours and textures. If you’re ever hankering for an awesome piece of beef, TK Seafood & Steak would be the place to go for in Taipei!

TK SEAFOOD & STEAK

Hotel Proverbs Taipei

56, Sec.1, Da'an Road, Da'an Dist.,

Taipei City 106, Taiwan

TEL： +886 903 393 008

Website: www.fudychen.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/fudychen/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/tkseafoodsteak/

Business Hours:

Breakfast     6,30am to 10am

Lunch          12noon to 3pm

Dinner         5.30pm to 10pm

*This trip was made possible by Taiwan Tourism together with First Class Magazine and Eva Air. However, all stories and comments in my posts are purely derived from my own experiences through the trip.

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PJ’s Bar and Grill @ New World Petaling Jaya Hotel

Latest Rooftop Dining in Petaling Jaya!

With a stunning view that stretches over our cosmopolitan city to mesmerize diners, PJ’s Bar & Grill is potentially a favorite hotspot for many to coome. The latest rooftop dining in Petaling Jaya, PJ’s Bar & Grill is located at PJ’s newest hotel – New World Petaling Jaya Hotel.

The restaurant is located on level 30 of the hotel, strategically set in Paradigm Mall in Kelana Jaya, in the middle of prime location for PJ. Being the tallest building in that area without any other high rise building to block its view, PJ’s Bar & Grill boast of a 360-degree view that will have many diners opting to snatch up its alfresco area to enjoy the beautiful cityscape view meeting the backdrop of nature.

A cocktail or an aperitif in hand is all one needs to complete this gorgeous scenic view in the evenings when the sun sets and the sky turns into a kaleidoscope of colours.

There hotel’s infinity pool is located next to the restaurant and echoes much gorgeousness at sight. Tempting us with its reflections of the sky, one is tempted to book a stay at the hotel to use this pool!

The restaurant’s indoor dining area is set spaciously with simple and minimalize design. Allowing natural lights from all the glass wall panels and a peak of the cityscape, dining indoors is just as lovely as its viewing deck area in different ways.

The bar offers plenty of beverages from cocktails, aperitifs, beers and wines to non-alcoholic drinks to keep every thirsty traveler happy.

PJ’s Bar and Grill is helmed by Executive Chef Alexander Chong and his culinary team. With over 20 years of culinary experience in internationally acclaim restaurants, Chef Chong brings forth his repertoire of Western and Asian cuisines in the menu of the restaurant.

As the name says, the menu is filled with small bites, soups, seafood and meat with a solid list of desserts thrown in for good measure. If you fancy live cooking, another focal point of PJ’s Bar & Grill is its indoor open grill, serving up the city’s freshest ‘Catch of the Day’.

Our mocktails of Hibiscus Cooler was nicely thirst-quenching for the evening to go with our meal.

For starter, Chef Chong whipped up his specialty of Crispy Fried Fish Skins with Salted Egg to tease our appetite for more to come. These crispy unctuous fish skins are super addictive with salty egg sinfulness and fragrant aromatics that will have you reaching out unconsciously.

Under Bites, we tucked into Beef Tartaré (RM28), classic French appetizer of chopped raw beef cubes seasoned with mustard aioli, served with sprouts, chili and capers as well as toasted garlic bread.  Add a little of everything to the beef tartare on toast and you get a delicious hit of flavours with a little heat and tangy.

House cured Marinated Salmon (RM28) was a classic crowd pleaser. Slices of sublime salmon with its smoky salty notes goes well with a salad of rocket leaves, thinly sliced onions, capers and a creamy sauce.

The Chowder (RM16), served in a pretty royal blue enamel pot, was lusciously thick with unctuous seafood essence. There were also pieces of chopped seafood in the chowder, finished with sprigs of dill and herb oil. Each spoonful is decadent and the portion was just right as it was very rich.

More from Bites, the Chicken Wings (RM26) came in a sticky sweet and spicy BBQ sauce. Sides of celery and blue cheese dressing completed the dish to echo the classic buffalo wings that we all enjoy.

For mains, it’s a feast of the grill! Savor Jumbo Satay of Chicken (RM28), Beef (RM38) or King Prawns (RM88). These were marinated and nicely chargrilled till cooked. The accompaniments of a spicy BBQ sauce and Chimichurri sauce jazzed up the meat and seafood skewers nicely.

For sharing, the PJ’s Party Platter (RM38) makes a hearty plate of various bites. From breaded Crabcakes and crispy Fried Soft-Shell Crab to hot Steak Fries and crispy Wonton Chips with various sauces, this platter is perfect with cold beer, cocktails and wine. The presentation also makes a wow factor at sight too.

To wrap up the evening on a sweet note, we opted for Classic Vanilla Crème Brûlée (RM28) and Citrus Baba (RM28).

Stunning night view from PJ's Bar and Grill

For dining enquiries or reservations at PJ’s Bar & Grill, please call (603) 7682 0000, e-mail marketing.petalingjaya@newworldhotels.com or visit petalingjaya.newworldhotels.com.

PJ’s BAR AND GRILL

Level 30, New World Hotel Petaling Jaya

Paradigm, 1 Jalan SS7/26A,

Kelana Jaya,

47301 Petaling Jaya, Selangor

Website: www.petalingjaya.newworldhotels.com/en/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/NewWorldPetalingJaya/

Business Hours:

11:30 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. daily