Sundowners Tapas @ Palm Court, E&O Hotel Penang

Unwind Your Day with Wine and Tapas

There’s always time to toast in a moment of serenity on the Pearl of the Orient. Tuck into an array of delicious tapas and sip on a selection of wine, Prosecco or Champagne of your choice with Eastern & Oriental Hotel Sundowners Tapas promotion.

Palm Court is the hotel all-day dining that serves a melting pot of local and international fare. Renowned for their three-tiered English afternoon tea for the quintessential E&O experience, Palm Court is set with that classic English ambiance filled with a beautiful bar flanked by the English set leather sofas and wood-based furniture and chandeliers.

Available daily from 4pm to 7pm, make your way to Palm Court which is located on the lobby level of the Heritage Wing of E&O Hotel for this promotion. Choose from a selection of red or white wines, Prosecco or Taittinger Brut Reserve champagne to go with the tapas to unwind for the day.

Four tapas is served and the list consist of Peranakan Slides, Potato & Caviar, Olive & Cheese and Gruyere Cheese Sandwich.

SPG by Bijan @ Jalan Ceylon

Modern Malaysian Cuisine

Sarong Party Grill, SPG by Bijan is the latest new hotspot to dine and party on the block. An offspring by the acclaimed Bijan, SPG by Bijan aims to take diners on new heights of Modern Malaysian cuisine while letting it loose with lots of fun thrown in for good measure.

The restaurant is located next to Bijan and is barely a few weeks old. Designed with an adjoining doorway with Bijan, SPG by Bijan allows diners to experience the best of both worlds. With a creative menu filled with delectable bites and fanatical cocktails, SPG by Bijan aims to take their name inspired interpretation of ‘Sarong Party Girl’ to a whole new level of fun in the city.

The new space is beautifully decked out. From the bold renditions of colourful shades of fuchsia, blue and green through large floral batik prints on the wall to the jewel tones of furniture and lush greenery foliage, the ambiance has a wonderful laid-back retro chic vibe.

Goa by Sapna Anand @ The Ascott Kuala Lumpur

Fabulous Goan Flavours

A self-taught chef who jokes that all she could remember during her school years was what the nuns were cooking in the school kitchen next to her classroom! No stranger to our shores, this pretty renowned chef and TV host, Sapna Anand, is out to introduce Goan cuisine to our fellow foodies with the Soul Society Group.

Goan cuisine is still fairly vague in our culinary industry but Sapna is taking matters into her own hands to tempt our palates on the flavours of the cuisine.

It was simply meant to be when Sapna met with successful owners of Soul Society Group’s Fred Choo and Michele Kwok. The result was Goa by Sapna Anand where a one-off project led to now a sumptuous list of more than 20 Goan dishes and more coming in the menu at this restaurant. Located at The Ascott in Kuala Lumpur, Goa by Sapna Anand shares the same location as Tujo but occupies the top level at the eatery.

Both ladies were present at the recent event to introduce Goa by Sapna Anand along with Sapna’s cookbook New Indian Kitchen signing session one evening. The top level of the restaurant was the perfect ambiance for enthusiast diners to enjoy a leisure dining experience coupled with live music all set in a warm and cozy ambiance.

Souliquid Restaurant & Bar @ Puchong

Soul-food Goodness with Live Soul-jazz Music

From German to Mediterranean, there’s much sumptuousness going on in Souliquid! A hidden gem of restaurant cum bar, Souliquid is tucked away in Puchong Financial Corporate Centre (PFCC). Despite there is no signboard, fans know how to track down this place for some awesome good bites and beer!

The restaurant cum bar may not be as big as some others but is well designed with much comfort in terms of space and interior outlook. At the end of the room is where the bar and there is even a stage for live music.

The evenings at Soulquid are filled with much live music from bands belting out classic Chinese jazz and oldies. As one unwinds at minimalist ambiance filled with dark table settings among velvet-covered violet sofas set in dim lightings, one can tuck into Souliquid’s European food menu and a solid beverage list.

We kicked off with Chilli Chilli Bang Bang (RM18), a comfort classic of spiced and meaty Bolognaise sauce with melted cheese and crispy triangles of fried tortilla chips. Sufficiently tasty, the presentation of the appetizer is also very pleasing on the eye as well as the palate.

A Tapas classic, the Gambas Al Pilpil (RM28) may not look super enticing but the flavours and aroma was spot on. Garlicky with a little heat and aromatic from plenty of rosemary infused into the olive oil, the prawns and oil go wonderfully well with the toast.

Large prawns wrapped with bacon and fried summed up Brochette (RM38). Needless to say, the dish was polished off within minutes of it arriving on the table. Bacon and prawn is quite the match made in heaven and bacon does make everything taste better!

Souiliquid Meat Balls (RM20) was pretty much decent with moist and plump meatballs on a bed of lightly chunky tomato sauce. It’s familiar in taste with the tangy and moreish spiced tomato sauce and meatball but pale in comparison to the earlier appetizers.

The Shrimp Pizza (RM35) had all the markings of a yummy pizza. Medium thick pizza base, there’s plenty of toppings like prawns, bacon and cheese to make any pizza lover a happy camper…

Perhaps the surprising dish in the menu is the Nyonya Pasta (RM28). A fusion twist, this one is well studded with large mussels and generous shredded lettuce. The luscious kaffir leaf aroma in the sauce heightened the dish among the rich spices. Creamy, piquantly spicy and lightly tangy, the Nyonya inspired sauce made the dish unique and delectable.

Moving on to meat haven, the Chicken Cordon Bleu (RM33) scored brownie points for its generous portion of juicy chicken filled with ham and lots of oozing cheese. The juiciness of the chicken is very commendable, and the sides of roasted vegetables and sauce completed the dish well.

Grilled Lamb Rack (RM58) looked beautifully ravishing with light pink of doneness at sight. Cooked well, the French-trimmed lamb racks were tender and succulent. A lightly fruity sauce with some mustardy zing compliments the meat and roasted vegetables well.

The Guinness Braised Lamb Shank (RM48) is drool-worthy with a large lamb shank, beautifully glazed in a lusciously dark and rich Guinness sauce, on a bed of mashed potatoes and steamed broccoli. Fork tender, the lamb shank was well-braised, enough to be deliciously flavourful from the wonderful moreish sauce. The sides were the classic perfect accompaniments to that lamb.

Swine lovers will swoon at sight of the Pork Lover Platter (RM148). A smorgasbord of porky fare, this sharing platter has crispy roast pork knuckle along with sublime housemade crispy strips of luncheon meat, three sausages of smoked Hungarian, Nuernberger and Baconwurst, roasted potato, crispy golden potato spirals, corn on the cob, sauerkraut, garden salad and sauce.

Talked about mouthful, this platter is surely enough to feed three ravenous meat foodies and can even stretch to four or five small eaters.

The Roast Pork Knuckle was sublime comfort food. Crispy and crunchy pork skin, moist and tender meat with fatty bits pretty much is soul food to many, especially in times of much needed comfort and satisfaction. Hand me my beer please…

A very commendable house made Luncheon Meat batons to the chef! Salty and moreish addictiveness that pulls one to keep going back for more.

Sausages, all three types, are yummy and nicely grilled with a smoky heat of sweetness from Hungarian, cheesy from Nuernberger and pleasurable bacon-makes-the-world-better in Baconwurst!

Fear not if your dining party is not big enough to take on the Pork Lover Platter, instead go for the Garlic Herbed Roast Pork Knuckle (RM79). Equally satisfying in all swine aspect, the pork knuckle is just as pleasing as the earlier platter.

For a savory ending, the Cheese Platter Set (RM199) with Marqués de Càrceres works out to be a good deal. A lovely selection of cheeses and cold cuts might even be a good starter. From hard cheeses of aged Cheddar to soft Brie and Blue cheese, these certainly goes well with the salty Salami and Ham with the Spanish red wine that tasted of dark plums and cherries with a lingering spicy finish.

Souliquid has got the potential to make your evenings better. Comfort soul food to solid list of drinks and live music, it’s pretty much a hangout place that warrants plenty of visits for good times and lots of satisfying moments!

         

SOULIQUID RESTAURANT & BAR

Lot 1, Ground Floor, PFCC Tower 3

Jalan Puteri 1/2, Bandar Puteri Puchong

Selangor, Malaysia

Tel: 603-8066 8883

Business Hours:

Daily: 12 Noon to 1.00am

Night live music

Sunday to Thursday: 9.00pm to 11.30pm

Friday-Saturday: 9.30pm to midnight

Website: www.souliquid.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/souljazzbar/

Tiki Taka @ Medan Damansara

New Menu with Big Flavours!

Talk about going all out, Chef Carrie Scully has whipped up a new tapas menu as well as a little extra at Tiki Taka! It’s certainly one of our friendly neighborhood restaurant that taking various classic favorites and amping it up with a Carrie twist.

Tiki Taka, located in the housing neighborhood of Medan Damansara, has been serving lots of scrumptious East meets West inspired tapas bites. Coupled with their full bar service, it is one of the better place to hang out in that area for good food and drinks.

This round, the new menu is bolder and definitely better. Filled with lots of porky fare, there’s plenty of small bites as well as mains and a sweet ending. We visited once evening for a sneak peek and was pretty stoke about the luscious menu coupled with a few giggle juices.

No hour is happy hour without cocktails! Quite a few new ones on the list but we opted for Shoreditch (RM29) and Californication (RM29). Shoreditch was gin based perked up with freshness through cucumber, lemon and apple while Californication was vodka with tropical juice. I was particularly fond of Shoreditch with its freshness.

Our new pintxos journey began with a pretty looking Mini Pork Burger (RM11). So while our shore is no longer surprise with black tainted hamburger buns, this new pink brioche mini bun was a nice element from Chef Carrie. Using natural beetroot to make the brioche bun, it is deliciously sandwiched with a juicy pork patty, house made strawberry pink peppercorn ketchup, mozzarella and cucumber.

The Mini Pork Burger is simply sublime. Talk about juiciness and flavours, this one has it all despite its mini version. What stood out in flavour was that amazing fruity strawberry pink peppercorn ketchup. It’s got fruitiness and a subtle heat that elevated this porky burger. One of the best condiment that I have tasted on burgers.

The Pork Belly Mantou (RM8) was another winner in my books. Taking the classic Chinese burger and putting on her own recipe, this one is absolutely drool worthy too. Pieces of pork belly braised and glazed in syrupy thick sweet and sticky Gula Melaka chili sauce was practically stacked to max in the fluffy mantou bun. The twist… a slice of pickled starfruit to give this one a fruity tang and texture. A little tricky to eat but who cares, I am all for messiness if it taste as good as this!

The next tapas was an attractive one too with pretty colors at sight. Miso Scallop (RM28), four pieces on the shell, is baked with a miso mushroom cheese sauce, drizzled with hot sauce, crowned with salmon roes and finished with parsley and edible flowers. The flavours were moreish and the scallops were cooked well, a solid tapas for those who loves their scallops.

I would never expect the next tapas to be served here. Not that I am complaining about it but Chef Carrie’s version of XO Lo Bak Go (RM25) was very much well supported by many once they have tried it. XO sauce, house made recipe definitely boosted the flavours of this much beloved Chinese dim sum. Pan fried to give the radish cake a crispy edge, it was a tad firm than the norm. Studded with lots of bits of Chinese sausage in it and Chef Carrie even managed to sneaked in a little heat from the XO sauce. My only little gripe was it was a tad too salty for me but the others at our table was ok with it.

Just when we thought it couldn’t get any better, Tiki Taka’s Nasi Lemak Babi (RM23) showed up. At sight, my first thought was that this was the ultimate porky nasi lemak. How can one not stare in awe of this amazing platter of coconut rice served with deep fried pork ribs, caramelized Gula Melaka pork belly, sambal, fried anchovies, peanuts, cucumber and a pretty pink pickled quail egg.

It’s definitely created with much thought of a foodie’s ultimate nasi lemak in mind and a porky one too. Everything is delicious on this plate. Robust flavours from all the pork and condiments, its one nasi lemak to indulge in, especially after a long and exhausting day. I absolutely adored the beetroot pickled quail egg, wishing for more than one and that sambal was so yummy. It’s going to be hard to look at another nasi lemak without thinking about this one…

Pizza is made lavish with addition of tiger prawns and mini lobster in Ultimate Lobster Pizza (RM42). From the looks of it, it’s definitely got a lot of ingredients on it, all bound together with generous hot melted cheese. The pizza is crispy and jam packed with familiar robust tomatoey flavours.

By this time, our bellies were pretty satiated and full but when Summer Baby (RM19) came, we told ourselves that we have to try this pretty dessert. It’s a like a colourful beach scene with a sweet ending. House made luscious toasted coconut ice cream served along caramelized pineapples, mango gel, rose sponge, hibiscus preserve and passion fruit sauce, that’s a lot of effort in a dessert. The final element that convinced us to fall in love with the dessert was the cheesy mini umbrella!

Kudos to Chef Carrie for her passion and creativity in this new menu! This is one gutsy chef who came from non- professional culinary background. Head over to Tiki Taka if you’re up for an adventure of flavours!

TIKI TAKA

138, Jalan Kasah,

Medan Damansara

50490 Kuala Lumpur

Tel: 016-328 7438

Facebook: www.facebook.com/tikitakamy

Business Hours:

Mon-Fri              4pm-1am

Sat-Sun                9am-1am