Samplings on the Fourteenth, Berjaya Times Square Hotel Kuala Lumpur: Sharing The Spirit of Festivity

A Christmas Eve Menu and More!

With Christmas around the corner and 2013 closes in and comes to an end, the festive holidays is just perfect for indulgence in every possible way. Berjaya Times Square Hotel, Kuala Lumpur is hosting various attractive offerings these holidays in the spirit of giving. Kick starting off the festive indulgence, Samplings on the Fourteenth is featuring a festive set menu on the eve of Christmas.

The restaurant’s Chef de Cuisine, Chef Val, has specially designed the four-course meal to ring in the festive mood. What better way to indulge than to head on over to the 14^th floor of Berjaya Times Square Hotel to enjoy a fine dining holiday meal with an amazing view of the cosmopolitan city at night!

Our preview of the Christmas Eve menu was all dressed up in festive cheer and romance. Christmas tree and ornaments certainly made that evening unforgettable. As we waited for others to arrive, we even had some holiday drinks at the bar.

Aptly named Grinch and Rudolph Goes Green, our cocktail and mocktail are just perfect to render in the festive mood. Rudolph Goes Green was so good, I had two of the sassy mocktail!

Wine is not included in the set dinner but is available for order to be enjoyed with the festive set dinner.

The first course featured Smoked Salmon and Prawn Salad served with Tomato Tart and Lemon Chive Vinaigrette. Taking center stage together are the slices of smoked salmon and prawns dressed in lemon chive vinaigrette and some caviar. What I like is the mille feuille tomato tart that brings out the bold juicy and savory flavors of the salmon and prawn. Simple and light, this dish is a great way to start the meal.

The next course was a velvety Cream of Pumpkin Soup with a dollop of sour cream. To bring in warmness of Christmas, this pumpkin bisque is perfect with its sweet and warm flavors. Creamy and silky smooth, the light smokiness of the pumpkin is just right. A tinge of sour cream helps to layer more flavors to the bisque while a scoop of mashed pumpkin added more texture and depth to the flavors of the creamy pumpkin.

Our palate cleaner was a pretty pastel pink of Minted Watermelon Sorbet. I have always felt that watermelon is one of the best fruit to cleanse the palate as it is fresh and bursting with loads of juicy notes. This one did its job well with the added freshness of mint.

Main course features three options with a turkey, a lamb and a fish on the menu. I went for the cod since I have been craving for fish a lot these days.

Roast Christmas Turkey served with Bacon Wrapped Sage & Onion Stuffing is served with roasted potatoes, buttered Brussels sprouts and carrots and cranberry apple sauce. Chef Val has cleverly updated the traditional Christmas dish to individual portions. It was a turkey roulade roasted till just right before being served with all the trimmings to it with the addition of fried sage leaves.

The second option was a Slow Roasted Lamb Shank with Rosemary Jus, Parmesan Polenta and Grilled Baby Vegetables. For those who love hearty flavors of a good stew, the lamb shank is beautifully braised till tender. I would have loved to enjoy this since I am a huge fan of stews and creamy cheese polenta.

My choice of Pan Seared Cod with Potato and Leek Mash, Wild Mushrooms Cured Cherry Tomato and Olive Tart and Saffron Nage was a great one. I was really pleased with the sweet thick cut of cod cooked perfectly. The juicy cod was topped with a luscious mash of potato and leek. Surrounding the fish was baby carrots, tomatoes, zucchini, snow pea and other vegetables in a pool of creamy saffron nage. I also enjoyed the tartness of the cherry tomato and olive tart a lot as it has great flavors and textures. It’s a great balance of flavors and textures executed with finesse!

Our sweet ending of the meal was Chestnut Mille Feuille served with Orange flavored Christmas Pudding and Cinnamon Ice Cream. Chestnuts are a treat during this festive and most of it is usually featured in the turkey. I am glad I had a dessert from chestnuts as I have always liked the creamy and nutty notes of the chestnut in a sweet way. Here it is sandwiched with puff pastry and stacked up partnering with sweet fruity Christmas pudding and a silky cinnamon ice cream. The dessert shouts Christmas from all its ingredients and oozes with much holiday sweet note.

We finished with Petit Fours and Coffee or Tea…

A holiday set menu that is value for money and let’s not forget the enchanting city night view it comes with!

Samplings on the Fourteenth’s Christmas Eve four-course meal is priced at RM158++ per adult.

Other holiday promotions:

·         Christmas Roast Turkey available with an advance order of only two days for takeaway at RM298++ per turkey of 3-4 kilograms with chestnut stuffing, cranberry sauce and black pepper or giblet gravy

·         Christmas Eve Buffet Dinner at Big Apple Restaurant at RM108++ per adult and RM58++ per child

·         Christmas Day Brunch priced at RM75++ per adult and RM38++ per child

·         New Year’s Eve Buffet Dinner at Big Apple Restaurant at RM108++ per adult and RM58++ per child

For more information, please call +603 2117 8000 ext. 8131 (Samplings on the Fourteeth), ext. 8133 (Big Apple Restaurant) and ext. 8127 (Broadway Lounge)

 SAMPLINGS ON THE FOURTEENTH

BERJAYA University College of Hospitality
14th Floor, East
Berjaya Times Square,
No. 1 Jalan Imbi,
55100 Kuala Lumpur,Malaysia

Facebook: www.facebook.com/BTHKL

Website: www.berjayahotel.com/kualalumpur

Have Yourselves A Merry Little Christmas!

Dearest Everyone,

Tis the Season to Give and to Spend Precious Moments with Your Loved Ones...

Here's Wishing Everyone a Blessed Merry Christmas!

Warmest Wishes,

Chasing Food Dreams & Family

Eastin Hotel Petaling Jaya: Experience the Magic of Christmas & Enjoy the New Year’s Eve Carnival!

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas….

The festival holidays are just around the corner! While it’s time for much preparation for the holidays, why not let Eastin Hotel Petaling Jaya take you on a merry gastronomic journey where their master chefs present an array of irresistible yuletide indulgence. Be dazzled in every cuisine from Eastin Hotel Petaling Jaya’s Swez Brasserie sumptuous traditional Christmas Buffet Dinner or Brunch, Eyuzu Japanese Cuisine’s Christmas Eve Dinner, Ee Chinese Cuisine’s Christmas Eve Set Dinner to New Year’s Eve Carnival and New Year’s Day Brunch!

Let’s peek into Christmas Eve Buffet Dinner and Christmas Day Buffet Brunch @ Swez Brasserie!

Crowning the Christmas Affair is a golden Honey Roasted Turkey stuffed with bread, chestnut and raisings served with Giblet Gravy, Cranberry Orange Compote, Beet Chutney and Cranberry Mustard Relish. Beautifully roasted with a golden tan, the turkey has so much more to offer with plenty of sidekicks to accompany it!

Sidekicks are just as crucial as the big bird! Here at Swez Brasserie, one is definitely spoilt for choice with Bread Stuffings with Dried Fruits, Bread Stuffing with Beef Bacon, Apple, Sage & Sweet Onions, Cornbread Stuffing, Orange Mashed Sweet Potato and more. A little sweet and a little savory, the sides are delectable especially the simple Streusel Mashed Sweet Potato and the Bread Stuffing with Beef Bacon.

Not into turkey? Sink your teeth into succulently Braised Beef Brisket with Mushroom Aioli & Peppercorn Sauce, Roasted Lamb with Braised Red Cabbage & Balsamic Raisin Sauce, Scandinavian Fish Pie, Sticky Lemon Chicken with Dried Fruits and Wild Berry Pilaf with Beef Meatballs. Though the meats may be tempting, the Sticky Lemon Chicken is simply marvelous. Sweet sticky sauce coated tender grilled chicken imparting a gorgeous fruity sauce. The Scandinavian Fish Pie had some of us intoxicated with its buttery aroma while the Beef Meatballs have a nice fruity twist.

Hit the appetizer bar for sumptuous Smoked Salmon, Traditional Gradvalax, Beef Carpaccio, Tea Smoked Grouper, Poached Salmon, Lamb Dip and Seafood on Ice. For the ‘love of shuck’, freshly shucked Oysters with Cucumber Jelly, Tomato Shooters and Apple, Grapes & Celery Salad are also part of the buffet. Make sure to savor creamy hot Pumpkin Bisque to enjoy the warmth of the holiday season!

Desserts are simply a Must! Feel the magic of Christmas with a heavenly delectable spread of Christmas goodies like Christmas Yule Log, Dresdner Stolen, Christmas Fruit Cake, Cinnamon Poached Pears, Berry Pavlova, Panettone, Macarons and more. Psst… Santa will also make an appearance to spread the Joy of Christmas!

Christmas Eve Buffet Dinner

RM99++ per adult and RM49++ per child – 6.30pm to 10.30pm

Christmas Day Buffet Brunch

RM68++ per adult and RM34++ per child – 12 noon to 4pm

*Have your kids join the Kids Xmas Decorating contest with fabulous prizes!

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Christmas Eve Dinner @ Eyuzu Japanese Cuisine

Japanese cuisine lovers will not be left out this Christmas as we serve the Christmas Eve Buffet Dinner Japannese Style! Enjoy an array of Japanese delicacies featuring fresh and succulent Lobster salad, sushi and sashimi counter, tempura counter, fresh oysters, prawns and white tuna as well as the finger licking good Okonomiyaki. Golden Honey Roasted Turkey and Christmas desserts will also be served at Eyuzu. This culinary adventure is priced at RM99++ per person.

Christmas Eve Set Dinner @ Ee Chinese Cuisine

For those of you who think buffet is too much, enjoy Ee Chinese Cuisine delectable 6-course Christmas Eve Set Dinner featuring Pan Fried Scallops and Prawns in Lemongrass in Mongolian Sauce, Doubled Boiled Shark’s Bone Soup with Fish Maw and Superior Shark’s Fin and more. Set dinner is available at RM118++ per person.

Relish Eastin’s Christmas Goodies @ Home

Bring home some of Eastin’s holiday season favorites like Traditional Roasted Turkey with Chestnut Stuffing & Cranberry Sauce, Roasted Chicken, Duck, Leg of Lamb and Beef Ribeye. Finished the holiday meal with Ginger Bread Butter Puddings, Christmas Cookies, Christmas Yule Logs and assortments of home-made Pralines for a sweet ending!

New Year’s Eve Carnival

Usher in the New Year at Carnival @ Eastin. The thrilling countdown to 2013 will be stepped up with a ring master, face painting, games, magicians, live band and a DJ to set the mood for the night. Stand a chance to win 15 lucky prizes in conjunction with Eastin Hotel Petaling Jaya’s 15^th Year Anniversary Celebration in 2013. Tickets to the show includes sumptuous buffer dinner, a glass of wine, party packs, fun & games for RM116++ per adult and RM59++ per child.

New Year’s Day Brunch

Start the New Year with new beginings at the Swez Brasseri with a special New Year’s Day Brunch. Be entertained with clowns, funs & games. Bring family and friends together and be mesmerized with a multitude of flavors symbolizing good food with good company at RM68++ per adult and RM34++ per child.

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EASTIN HOTEL PETALING JAYA

13, Jalan 16/11,

Pusat Dagang Seksyen 16,

46350 Petaling Jaya

Selangor, Malaysia.

Tel: +603 7665 1111

Fax: +603 7665 9999

Email: info.pj@eastin.com

Website: www.eastin.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/#!/eastinhotelpj

**More pictures at my Facebook @ChasingFoodDreams

To All The Moms In The World!

Have a Fabulous Mother's Day!

* I ll be away for a few days to chase the world outside. See you soon!

ChasingFoodDreams

GUINNESS® St. Patrick’s Day 2012 Celebration: The Biggest Green Party in Asia at Changkat Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur!!

Talk about the Party of the Year… if there is someone who knows how to throw a party in style, it has to be GUINNESS^®!

Thousands of revelers turned Changkat Bukit Bintang into a sea of St Paddy’s Hats on Saturday evening to celebrate Malaysia’s and Asia’s largest GUINNESS^® St. Patrick’s Celebration this year. The sixth installation of the GUINNESS^® St. Patrick’s festival in Malaysia saw over 10,000 visitors, tourists and party goers alike celebrate the global festivity together with thousands of people around the world on the official St. Patrick’s Day on 17th March.

The Festival is the main event of the month long celebrations that saw thousands of Malaysians coming together and sharing ‘the laughter side of life’, the theme of the celebrations this year.  The nationwide celebrations also spread fun and laughter to major cities around Malaysia including Penang, Johor Bharu, Kota Kinabalu, Kuantan, Ipoh, Melaka, Kuching and Miri with over 20 parties throughout March.

Needless to say, I was a part of the crowd that night to join in the greenest party on earth hosted by GUINNESS^®. I landed there around 7pm in the evening and the crowd has already begun to trickle in slowly. We walked around for some photos and some fun sights as the party-goers were already having a fabulous time with their pint of GUINNESS^®!

After sometime, we headed over to the Arthur’s Lounge for ‘The GUINNESS^®‘s Experience!’

In the Arthur’s Lounge, I get to pour the perfect pint of GUINNESS^®! I managed to take a picture of Sid doing his perfect pour… it was indeed a cool experience as there is a specific way to ensure one gets the Perfect Pint of GUINNESS^®!

From pouring the black gold liquid, we headed to the next lounge where we get our names inscribed into the infamous GUINNESS^® glass! Check out the GUINNESS^® Elves at work. So busy they are till they did not even look up for one moment for pictures… J

This is where it all started as we learnt about the GUINNESS^® Timeline!

While our glasses were being worked on, we progressed to the next lounge to enjoy our pint of GUINNESS^® and to savor some GUINNESS^® infused canapés. Once our glass was ready, we collected it and headed out to enjoy the party outside. Truly a luxury experience!

While waiting for the party parade to begin, we munched on Mexican appetizers at Loco with other bloggers and media.

The parade marked the beginning of a night that would resound with the sounds of laughter. Immediately after the parade ended, the emcees took over, getting the crowd to call for “ol, ceol, craic”, which means “a great pint, good music and wonderful fun”. With plenty of GUINNESS^® pints, Irish music, dances and roaming buskers and performances, these three things were not in short supply at the party.

The uproarious Irish celebration saw a crowd of hat-totting revelers celebrating in the true spirit of St. Patrick’s with hilarious stand-up comedians, live music performances, Irish dancers, street artists, funny green friends, and a carnival of fun games and activities. Also making their return were the GUINNESS^® bikers who roared in at the head of the St. Patrick’s parade whipping the celebratory mood into frenzy. They were followed closely by colorful performers and numerous GUINNESS^® St Patrick entertainers who wowed the crowds with their fancy movements and rhythmic beats.

“We are proud to have been able to reach another milestone with this year’s GUINNESS^® St Patrick’s celebrations. The celebration has also proven to have a positive impact on our nation’s tourism with an influx of visitors from all over the region coming into the country for the biggest St Patrick’s celebration in Asia”, said Yap Swee Leng, Marketing Director of Guinness Anchor Berhad.

“It is incredible to see how the St. Patrick’s Day celebration in Malaysia receives such tremendous support from the local and international community here. GUINNESS® has done a great job in bringing two of Ireland’s most popular exports together and keeping true to the spirit of the celebration. We are looking forward to what they have in store for us this year”, said His Excellency Declan Kelly, Irish Ambassador to Malaysia.

Glorious fireworks followed while more entertainment followed through the night!

As the party continues into the late night, GUINNESS^® is always there to remind everyone to ‘Be Smart & Drink Sensibly!’

A Green Night to Remember… Happy St. Patrick’s Day!! J

But it doesn’t end there! The GUINNESS^® St. Patrick’s celebration will continue until the end of the month. Make sure that you make a date with your friends and head on over to:-

1. The Social, Bangsar                                          22^nd March 2012

2. Mount Austin, Johor Bharu                                 23^rd March 2012

3. Ipoh Garden East, Ipoh                                     24^th March 2012

4. Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman, Kuching                    24^th March 2012

5. SOULed OUT, Sri Hartamas                                22^nd & 29^th March 2012

6. Backyard, Sri Hartamas                                     29^th March 2012

7. Jonker Street, Melaka                                       31^st March 2012

8. Pelita Commercial Center, Miri                           31^st March 2012

So, be sure to gather your friends and loved ones, and drop by your favorite hang out spot for the rest of March. Look out for the iconic black, white and green decorations to enjoy pints of creamy GUINNESS^® on special promotions. For more information about the GUINNESS^® St Patrick’s 2012 celebrations and where to have so ‘March’ fun, be sure to connect with us at facebook.com/guinnessmalaysia or long on to www.stpatricks.com.my.

*Pictures without watermark are courtesy of GUINNESS^®