New European Menu from Chef
Sharusmizal Salleh & Culinary Team
There
are restaurants that leave an unforgettable and lasting impression in our
dining scene and Urban Restaurant is
one of them. Located in Hotel Istana
Kuala Lumpur, the modern and eclectic European restaurant has been serving
fine dishes with very affordable pricing for a while.
The
restaurant’s ambiance reflects a modern Aussie inspired dining venue that
splashes with vibrant colors throughout the décor. There are sectioned areas
for casual bar dining as well as main dining area and private section for
private or special functions.
Urban is rather humble despite the
exquisite fine dining menu it serves. For gourmands who have had a taste of
Urban’s menu through the years, they will attest that Chef Sharusmizal Salleh
and his award winning culinary team has served some of the finest European
dishes in the city. The team of talented chefs have been making headlines in
several international as well as local culinary competition through their
intensive and creative training of producing European fine dining menu couple
injected with local ingredients.
No
longer a stranger to Urban, I have
personally dined on their new menus several times over the years. Each menu
showcases a unique gastronomical theme encompassing clever fusion of East meets
West through local ingredients and flavors together with premium ingredients
and French techniques. Back for another showcase of Chef Sharusmizal’s latest
menu that focuses on fine European classic dishes, diners are in for another
new journey of flavors.
The
menu option is pretty simple. Opt for a la carte and the Appetizers are priced
at RM55 nett each, Main Course RM95 nett each, Gourmet Specials RM165 nett each
and Dessert RM45 nett each. If you choose the set meal, these are definitely
value-for-money as a 3-Course Set Dinner
is priced at RM150 nett and includes an Appetizer, a Main Course and a Dessert
of your choice from the a la carte menu. The Gourmet Special Set Dinner is priced at RM210 nett for Amuse Bouche,
Appetizer, Gourmet Special and Dessert. There is also a 7-Course Degustation Menu priced at RM250 nett.
From
the appetizer menu, we feasted on plenty of land and sea treasures. We love how
versatile the menu is and it even offers diners vegetarian option. Starting off
the list is a lavish Foie Gras, pan
seared and served with celeriac vanilla mousseline, glazed peach, yoghurt
passion fruit crisp and truffle Sauce. Unctuously decadent with velvety
texture, the foie gras melts-in-mouth heavenly. The truffle sauce
compliments the liver well while the charred peach added a touch of fruity
sweetness.
The
Smoked Farm Quail was a masterpiece
at sight. Stuffed Quail Roulade is paired with braised miso daikon, sour lychee
and toasted brioche topped with quail egg benedict. Finished with truffle
vinaigrette and Cabernet Sauvignon with raisins and infused lavender sauce, the
dish is sublime in every bite. The quail is super tender and moist and the
stuffing of mushrooms gave the quail an earthy note. The quail egg with its
molten egg yolk added more luxurious note to the quail. This is one of our many
favorite dishes that evening.
Oyster
lovers will swoon at the Oyster Veloute.
A dish of aphrodisiac molluscs, it was pure oyster heaven. French oyster
velouté was gorgeously velvety with every spoonful evoking luscious briny
flavor that will send your neurons into a delicious frenzy.
Served with a deep
fried panko breadcrumb oyster, golden crispy egg mollet and crowned with
caviar, it’s so good that I nearly wanted to tell the chef I needed more than
just one fried oyster. Just for a bit of fun, a smoked Salmon Rillette sandwich
was served on the side although I didn’t think it needed that.
Element of the Sea paid tribute to sea. The long platter
of appetizers is worth an order as there are four hot and cold bites of seafood.
Starting
with Hamachi Sashimi, fresh
yellowtail topped with brunoised of vegetables proved that the simplest and
freshest ingredients are just as good as it is. A squeeze of calamansi lime
woke up the natural sweet and creamy flavor of the fish. Moving on to a twirl
of cold Inaniwa Udon paired with tiny cubes of yuzu jelly and
salty smoked Spanish black caviar had oodles of flavor. The chilled udon has
such a good bite and contrasted so well with the crunch of the briny caviar.
Then
there’s unique Saba Ballotine
stuffed with Spanish piquillo peppers served with Ambarella fruit emulsion. The
rich flavored fish is stuffed with sweet and soft peppers, lending just the
right balance of savory with sweet. A fruity tartness of the emulsion lighten
the richness of the fish. Ending with a crispy Relish King Crab bundle of seaweed enveloping a layer of bean curd
with a filling of king crab. What a plate of flavors and textures!
The
next dish of Diver Sea Scallop has a
large plump hazelnut crusted scallop paired with butternut coulis, gazpacho
saffron vegetable, salmon rillettes club sandwich and finished with fennel
emulsion. Sounds complicated but they do worked well together in flavors. The
scallop was cooked just right and I enjoyed the nutty crumbs contrasted with
the scallop.
Another
dish with scallop is the Arborio Rice.
Reading off the menu, the dish has grilled squid, diver sea scallop, sauté
Girolles mushrooms and black truffle. The risotto rice was certainly the
highlight on the plate. Cooked to beautiful al dente, it was creamy, it was
flavorful, it was just right. I actually considered the seafood and mushrooms as
bonus on this plate as I would have been really happy just enjoying the
risotto. Love the dish!
We
moved to main course and the first on the line reads Milky Fish on the menu. Known as Bandeng or Bolu, the fish
hails from Indonesia. Although milkfish is known to have a lot of bones, this
one is bigger in size and has less bones.
The fillet is pan seared till crispy
skin and has a firm creamy flesh. When savored with the sidekicks of heart of
palm, cockles, prawn, Dubarry cream, ratatouille & turkey jus, the flavors
are alive and delicious. From the smoky charred heart of palm to the succulent
cockles, sweet and firm king prawn to the velvety Dubarry or cauliflower cream,
piquant ratatouille and deep rich jus, the dish has all the elements of savory,
sweet, tangy and umami notes.
Sous Vide Lamb Loin was next and the presentation was
colorful and elegant. The lamb loin, having gone through the slow cooked
method, was beautifully pink with a bright crust of Iranian pistachios. Tender
and moist, the lamb didn’t have as much flavor as most lamb would have, maybe
it’s because it’s very lean. The saving grace for the lamb was the tasty
marjoram jus as well as the sides of Moroccan Bisteeya, vine yellow pearl
Chevre tomato cherry tart.
If
you enjoy steak, opt for the Grain Fed
Rib Eye, cooked to your liking. Mine was medium and you can definitely see
how succulent the rib eye was. A very tasty cut as it has a good ratio or lean
and fats, the steak is served with potato bacon terrine, roasted baby parsnip
and Charon sauce. Love the steak but the Charon sauce was mediocre for me as it
was a bernaise sauce with added tomato paste. I personally think the steak
alone was already delicious.
Who
would have thought that the Sakura
Chicken Ballotine would be so scrumptious! The Sakura chicken roulade is
stuffed with prawn mousse and seaweed before it’s slowly cooked. The roulade is
amazingly moist and tender with a good flavor. When eaten with the earthy
sautéed Chanterelle mushrooms and morel olive thyme jus, the chicken tasted
even better.
The
next two dishes are mains but from the Gourmet
Special Menu simply because of the premium ingredients. The first is Herb Crusted Cod, a fish much beloved
by many. The looks of the fish already told me the dish is going to be great.
The apple green herb crumb on the fish really enhanced the sweetness of the
cod. The cod itself was lush, creamy and wondrously gorgeous in flavor and
texture. Coupled with the butter poached tiger prawn, caviar and mashed Idaho
potato, the dish is really a rock star of the sea. The finishing touches of
asparagus and tomato buerre blanc sauce
sealed the deal.
The
last main from the Gourmet Special Menu is also one of the best dishes of the
evening, the Roasted Venison Loin.
Venison is such a lean meat and yet, this one is beautifully tender and
moreish. The red current jus is gorgeous and robust in deep rich fruitiness,
enhancing the venison so well. The venison is also served with braised red
cabbage, pumpkin puree, citrusy orange segments and raspberry as well as red
currants. A must-order!
Desserts
are up next. Choosing one is quite hard as there is a good selection of
desserts too. The Manjari 75% Semi
Freddo is simply marvelous and truly worthy of every calorie it carries. I
have never experience such utterly ravishing dark chocolatey semi freddo like
this before. The explosion of chilling sensation on the palate is simply
divine. The bittersweet dark chocolate is further enchanted by caramel popcorn
ice cream and crunchy popcorns. Must order for all chocolate and non-chocolate
lovers!!
White Chocolate Cremeux has a luscious and sweet thick
pudding piled with wild berry salad and passion fruit sauce, and served with
crispy yoghurt and beet foam. As white chocolate tends to be on the sweeter
side, I am enjoying the sharp citrusy tang of the berries and passion fruit on
this cremeux.
The
Citron Meringue looked rather
minimalist. The highlight of the dessert turned out to be the sublime tangy
yuzu sorbet with a beautiful citrusy aroma. It is served with some textures of
meringue, citrus confit and candied orange skin. Fresh and light ending for a
dessert.
Though
the Harum Manis Cheese Cake was a
solid and delicious cheesecake, the flavor didn’t live up to the earlier trio
of fabulous desserts. Nothing to fault but just a light and lovely cheesecake
served with a bouquet of berries and sugar tuile.
Urban is great if you want to take a loved
one for a romantic celebration or anyone you want to impress. The restaurant is
such a hidden gem and for a fine dining experience, the set dinner menu is very
affordably priced. Chef Sharusmizal and team has always been a creative them
and their menu changes constantly to showcase different seasonal produce and
creative inspirations of the culinary world.
3-Course
Set Dinner RM150 nett (Appetizer, Main Course, Dessert)
Gourmet
Set Dinner RM210 nett (Amuse Bouche, Appetizer, Gourmet Special Main Course, Dessert)
7-Course
Degustation RM250 nett (Chef’s
Special Menu)
To know more information
about this promo, call 03 2141 9988 ext. 3691.
URBAN
Hotel Istana Kuala
Lumpur City Centre
Lobby Level, East Wing
73 Jalan Raja Chulan
50200 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-2141-9988
Business Hours:
Mondays-Fridays
Lunch 12:00noon to
2:30pm
Dinner 6:30pm to 10:30pm
On Saturdays, Urban is
open for dinner only
Closed on Sundays and
public holidays
