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.

YG Republique - Samgeori Butcher Korean BBQ @ TREC KL

K-Seoul Food!

With so many Korean restaurants on our shore, Malaysians are indeed blessed with these additions to our melting pot of available cuisines. Adding to the list, YG Republique is one Korean restaurant not to be missed. Under the umbrella of YG Foods, K-food and lifestyle celebrity Noh Hee Young heads the establishment of YG Republique that integrates Korean cuisine and entertainment at its best.

Located at TREC KL, Korean enthusiasts are treated to a modern Korean experience at YG Republique with an option of dining at Samgeori Butcher’s 삼거리 푸주간 or K-Pub. Featuring the finest premium cuts of pork & beef, Samgeori Butcher’s satiates foodies with classic Korean barbeque completed with other classic dishes while K-Pub aim to please those who wishes to unwind at a watering hole with Korean pub grub food.

With Korean entertainment of K-Pop celebrities thrown in for good measure, YG Republique certainly elevates the whole dining experience with Korean culture and lifestyle. Samgeori Butcher’s dining room, designed with modern urban industrial ambiance, features traces of famous K-Pop celebrities and their entourage who have visited this pork charcuterie. Spacious and colorful, the restaurant is modern and pleasantly comfortable with good ventilation.

At Samgeori Butcher’s, one can even catch a glimpse of their meat aging room where all their premium cuts of Spanish Black Iberico pork are cured in Cypress pine boxes. Their menu offers classic Korean BBQ as well as other ala carte dishes like, Jjigaes, stews, rice and noodles. The K-Pub has its own bar food menu which features Korean Fried Chicken, Tteokbokki, Korean Pancakes and other Korean snacks to go with drinks. Diners can also order from either menu at both outlets.

While waiting for our orders to arrive, the obligatory Banchan makes its appearance. These side dishes vary in all Korean restaurants and often makes a pulling factor for Korean foodies.

Samgeori’s banchan is rather generous as we enjoyed about ten types of side dishes such as Kimchi, White Kimchi, Pickled Radish, Mu Saengchae, Ueong Jorim, Korean Lettuce Salad and more. The White Kimchi is unusual and deliciously refreshing and addictive.

If you’re as fickle as me or rather as adventurous, go for the Butcher’s Sampler (420g – for 2 pax at RM170 | 600gm – for 3 to 4 pax at RM210). We had the smaller portion since we wanted to try other dishes as well.

The Butcher’s Sampler comes wrapped and served on a board. Featuring Spanish Iberico Pork of all 3 cuts of pork neck, pork belly & jaw.

As the acoustic of sizzling comes to sound, the air is also filled with luscious aroma of the pork being barbequed at sight. The meat is grlled without any seasoning so one taste the natural flavours of the Iberico pig. There’s plenty of dishes with bold and robust flavours to accompany these tender and juicy pieces of pork. Samgeori also has its own special sauces, garlic mustard and chili in soy sauce with onions, to accentuate the flavours of the swine.

Besides the delectable Korean bbq, we tucked into YG Special – Budae Jjigae (RM60). Also known as Army Stew, it’s a hodgepodge of ingredients that may sound odd but is delicious and piquant. This Korean famous army stew comes with with pork, ham, sausage, kimchi, ramen, rice cakes, vegetables and cheese in a savory and spicy broth. Utter comfort food with humble ingredients perfect, especially on cool nights, for those who enjoy soupy food with a spicy kick.

As we waited for our Budae Jjigae to cooked on the portable stove, we tucked into Spicy Squid and Pork Belly Bulgogi (RM35). Power packed with moreish and piquant flavours, the squid, pork and cabbage combo goes so well with steamed rice.

Besides Samgeori Butcher’s menu, we also sampled a few dishes from K-Pub’s menu. ‘Chimaek’ seemed to be the wave now and K-Pub’s Garlic Sauce Fried Chicken RM52 (M size) is pretty lip-smacking yum. Crispy, juicy and nicely seasoned, the fried chicken is also topped with bits of chili and aromatics. Now hand me a beer please…

The Assorted Dried Snacks (RM60) is pretty interesting and had my curiosity peaked. It consisted of various snacks imported from Korea that makes great drink pairing. There’s some shredded Dried Squid, Smoked Fish and Dried Fish and Rice Cracker balls served with a side of what seemed to be mayo in soy sauce. The snacks are salty enough without the sauce. I can see why this dish would be great to be chase down with some cold beer, soju or makgeolli.

Reasons to visit YG Republique? Good classic Korean food with a hip ambiance and a watering hole to unwind… oh and who knows which famous K-Pop celebrity you might just see there…

YG REPUBLIQUE – SAMGEORI BUTCHER

HG-01 & HG-02 Hive, TREC,

438, Jalan Tun Razak,

Kuala Lumpur.

opening hours | Lunch 12pm – 3pm; dinner 6pm – 2am

Tel: 03-2110 4104

Website: www.ygrepublique.com.my

Facebook: www.facebook.com/YGREPUBLIQUEKL/

Business Hours:

SamGeori Butcher: 12 pm – 3 pm (Lunch)
 6 pm – 2 am (Dinner)

K-Pub: 6 pm – 3 am

Spanish Wine and Dine Dinner @ Oversea Restaurant PJ

Viaje del Gusto, El Amor de España

Talk about luxury in the food and wine world, an exclusive invite to the elite world of wines, Spanish wines to be exact, was held at Oversea Restaurant a few weeks back. Thanks to Cheng Yi aka FatBoyBakes, this exclusive Spanish Wine and Dine dinner was themed Viaje del Gusto or Taste Tour of Spanish Wines.

Priced at RM398 per pax, the Spanish Wine and Dine dinner was the epitome of showcasing gorgeous Spanish wines paired with Chinese cuisine with some Spanish ingredient such as Iberico and Truffle.

Stepping into the famous Chinese restaurant that has been serving fine Chinese cuisine on our shores, we were immediately greeted by sights of bold red splashed everywhere. Themed in red and black to show the passionate spirits of the Spanish, diners were immediately ushered to their tables as well as to the area for Cava and appetizers.

Long tables laden with some of the finest spread of cheese, salami, jamon, spicy chicken cubes, grapes and of course, premium pan fried Iberico pork to tempt diners. Paired with Spanish White Wine Noche Y Dia Cava Yellow Label, the cocktail hour was too short and sweet.

Needless to say, those delectable iberico pork went flying off the table even before the cocktail hour ended! Superb…

Our anticipation was built further with the rows of Spanish wines for the evening!

The Spanish White Wine Noche Y Dia Cava Yellow Label was exceptionally wonderful with freshness and crisp notes. The sparkling wine and bubbly had fresh fruity aromas with a smooth and pleasant finish. Goes extremely well with all the tapas, especially the cheese and iberico pork…

We were also serenaded by live Spanish music and flamenco dances…

*pic credit to Cheng Yi

The evening took off with famous emcee Chui Ling, Hong Kong-born Malaysia-based TV and radio personality, who took us through the delicious journey with wine sommelier Jonathan. The crowd went wild when Chui Ling proceeded to initiate games of guessing the flavor and diners walked away with lavish bottles of wines!

Dinner commence and diners are certainly in for a luxurious treat with four types of Spanish wines paired with 7-courses of exquisite Chinese cuisine injected with hints of Spanish ingredients.

First wine up, Costers Del Priorat Elios 2014, from region of Priorat in Catalonia, Spain. Solid and bold tannin with a hint of peppery finish, there’s also rich and dark plum notes that made this red goes well with heavy flavoured dishes.

The first plate up was a Black Truffle Combo. Featuring a trio of appetizers, there was Steamed Fresh Shrimp Dumpling, Crispy Yam Roll and Stir-Fried Assorted Mixed Veg with Pine Nuts. It was dim sum on a plate. Morsels of delectable bouncy shrimp dumpling, crispy and creamy yam with meat filling and lettuce cup filled lots of veggie textures and nuts makes great starters for the evening.

The next course was Braised Fish Maw Soup with Crab Meat, a must-have soup course in any Chinese meal. Chockful of fresh sweet picked crab meat, fish maw and other seafood goodies, the thick bisque was comforting and delicious. The bisque went really well with the Elios red wine, balancing up the bold tannin with much easement.

The next wine was also a red one, featuring Montalvo Wilmot Finca Los Cerrillos Tempranillo-Cabernet Roble from Catalunya, Spain. The red has notes of cherries and ripened red fruits with very subtle hints of chocolate. It also has softer tannin than the first red and has a dry finish. I enjoyed this one very much together with the Iberico meat course.

For the Iberico Loin Combo, we were treated to a heavenly plate of Braised Iberico Loin in Chinese Red Bean Paste and Roasted Iberico Loin with Charcoal. Oversea Restaurant has always been famous for their signature roast meats and Char Siew especially. 

The Char Siew version here uses prime Iberico pork, making it even more delectable and luscious with its caramelized and crystal fatty bits and layers of tender meat. The braised Iberico loin was porcine goodness. Each bite of sumptuous layers of pork was unctuously tasty and moreish. So good that I would have love steamed rice with it…

The third wine, Bodegas Maurodos Prima Toro 2014 hails from Toro, Spain. It has full body and solid tannin with notes of rich dark fruits like cherry. Great wine structure and goes well with the heavy flavored seafood dishes that was up next.

It’s hard to resist a plate that showcase Tiger Prawn Combo. Another thrilling trio showcasing prawns, there is Deep Fried Tiger Prawn with Almond Flakes, Pan Fried Tiger Prawn with Salted Egg & Oat Flakes and Stir Fried Tiger Prawn in Chinese Chili Gravy. Don’t ask me to choose a favorite because all three were delicious on their own merits. It was a well-executed dish with all the prawns cooked just right.

Our savory course ended with Smoked Sliced Duck with Chinese La Mien. Not that we need the carb after all that awesome courses but I guess this dish is for those who must have their crab course for fillers. Love the smoked duck but the chilled wasabi infused noodles were a tad too soggy for my liking.

For desserts, there were Double Boiled Peach Resin in Coconut Bowl and Cold Osmathus with Wolfberry Dessert. I adored the lightness and chill osmathus jelly with wolfberry.

There’s something really lovley about the aroma of osmanthus that makes me feel so jolly and satisfying. The hot sweet double boiled peach resin is decent too, soothing our palates after the whole plush journey of the food and wines.

Indeed an amazing gastro journey of the evening with an eye opening experience of Spanish wine pairing so well with Chinese cuisine. Watch out for the next wine and food pairing soon and I heard it’s going to be an Italian affair…

OVERSEA RESTAURANT

Lot 28-Ground Floor, Lorong Utara C,

46200, Petaling Jaya

Tel: 03-7956 1029

Website: www.oversea.com.my

Facebook: www.facebook.com/Oversea.Armada