Despite working at KLCC (a stone’s throw away from Ascott) and having heard good things about SevenAteNine, I have never been to the place until this. I invited Michelle to join me for dinner. Michelle is actually one of the first persons I got to know through this blog from more than three years ago, and it had been quite a while since we last play catch up over a meal.

very posh interior, Guinness-infused menu

As with Cafe Chulo at Jaya One, Ronnie Q at Bangsar, and Gypsy WIne & Bar at Changkat Bukit Bintang I reviewed recently, SevenAteNine is running the Guinness-infused Christmas main course promotion until the end of the year. It works like this (just in case you missed the previous entries):

• order a Guinness-infused Christmas main course
• fill up a voucher with your details
• tear it in half and give the side with your details to the restaurant to redeem a small pint of Guinness Draught
• keep the other half of the voucher to get RM12 off 3 pint of Guinness Draught on next visit

KY, Guinness, and Michelle

SevenAteNine is a rather posh restaurant with very tastefully decorated interior, there are proper dining tables as well as sofas (more for drinking) arranged in fully indoor or semi alfresco settings. We picked a quiet corner upstairs and started browsing the menu.

Curiously, a plate of papadem with chili sauce instead of chips and salsa as tidbits, a little closer to home I suppose.

papedem and warm salad with foie gras

We ordered a serving of warm salad with foie gras as appetizer, lamb cutlet and Guinness-infused beef ribs as main, and a creme brulee as dessert to share.

I have been ordering foie gras whenever I have a chance since I first tasted the delicacy at Zipangu. The simplistic appetizer came with 2 slabs of fattened goose liver, salad, balsamic vinegar, and a few slices of strawberry. The foie gras was pretty good, though it could be served slightly less cooked, but still it did not disappoint and went well with the salad and balsamic vinegar. The bitter after taste of Guinness Draught complements the rich and creamy taste of foie gras perfectly.

lamb cutlet and Guinness-infused beef ribs

The lamb cutlet is prepared with a choice of medium or well done and served with potato, bell pepper, long beans, and some herbs. The taste was certainly pretty good and at least on par with those I had at Gaucho Grill. Juicy and full of flavor.

The Guinness-infused beef ribs, however, is another animal altogether (I apologize for the pun). A rather generous slab of ribs served cooked with a good deal of influence from Guinness Draught served with beetroot, coriander, and balsamic vinegar. Certainly a signature of the Chef in Black with its more complex and sophisticated taste. I like it.

the excellent creme brulee

The dessert picked by Michelle made a perfect conclusion to the excellent meal. A generous amount of some sweet liquid that smells of alcohol is poured onto the dish and set alight just prior to serving. The creme brulee came in three flavors, sweet, creamy, chocolaty, with a pretty strong taste of alcohol. It was very, very good, a must order if you are there.

SevenAteNine is located at Ascott KL

SevenAteNine is a proper fine dining restaurant, and thus with the good food and nice ambiance come the slightly upper class pricing. The two main dishes were priced RM 49.70 each, warm salad foie gras at 39.70 (pretty decent price for the ingredients), and creme brulee RM 19.70. With other drinks (Guinness comes free with the meal), service charges and taxes, the bill came to just under RM 230.

Address:
No. 9, Jalan Pinang
50450 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
GPS: 3.154967, 101.710589
Tel: 03-2161 7789

Tags:  creme brulee,  foie-gras,  guinness,  lamb,  michelle

Posted by KY | 45 Comments »

I was invited to an exclusive Guinness St. Patrick’s day Food Creation event at Nikko Hotel last Thursday thanks to Celine. All I knew about this event was that I get to sample a Guinness infused food, I was quite intrigued, as the only type of Guinness infused food I’ve ever had was Guinness pork ribs served by many Chinese tai chau places.

Guinness infused Lamb Shank

For the uninitiated, St. Patrick’s Day is an annual feast day which celebrate the patron saint of Ireland. It is traditionally observed on the 17th of March every year. Since this is a celebration of food and drinks, and Guinness is from Ireland, they came up with this Guinness infused Food Creation contest that runs until the end of the month. There are 9 outlets participating in this contest judged by celebrity Chef Emmanuel Stroobant of Chef in Black. The results will be out on the 25th of March.

chatting up with Chef Halil

This particular food tasting event was held at Bentley’s pub on first floor, a very cozy English pub setting with classy deco that seems so fitting for this occasion. I was greeted by Azira, the communication person at Nikko (who incidentally worked at the same place I am working now), the resident manager Ron Brooks, and of course, the very friendly Chef Halil. Besides all sorts of drinks (alcoholic or otherwise), they serve dishes such as fish and chips, steak, shepherd’s pie and so forth. However, until the 30th of March, the special addition to the menu is the Guinness Braised Lamb Shank on Sauteed Arrow Root Chips with Onion Jam, the very dish that is the competition. Best thing is, I get to eat it!

Christian from KL Lifestyle and Celine enjoying their lamb shank

As we were waiting for the lamb shank, chef Halil explained to me how the dish is cooked. First marinated with salt and pepper, the lamb shank is browned with vegetable oil on a flat pan. Then came the celery, carrots and onion, and then garlic cloves, tomato paste, then a whole bottle of Guinness stout. After that there’s the brown sauce and so forth. 1 hour and 15 minutes later, the dish is done. (I actually have the recipe from this friendly chef, but I guess I am in not hurry to try this myself just yet).

The lamb shank was very tasty and very tender, with a very subtle hint of bitterness from the stout but masterfully balanced with the sweetness of onion jam. The use of arrow root (ngaku) and other vegetables compliments the texture and taste of the lamb. It was very gastronomically satisfying, I think it’s a winner! Naturally, I had the lamb with a glass of Guinness Draught.

I just had to have a glass of this!

To try this dish, you have until the end of this month. It is available at RM 30++ at Bentley’s pub, Nikko Hotel (just right next to Citybank at Ampang Park).

GPS: 3.159767, 101.718045

Tags:  dining,  draught,  eats,  guinness,  lamb,  pub,  st. patrick,  Western

Posted by KY | 24 Comments »

I was informed of 6 to 10 grill & nasi lemak by one of my housemates who read it on the Chinese daily Sin Chew Jit Poh. Since the restaurant is conviniently located at Petaling Jaya and we haven’t had “western food” for a while, I figured, why not? Surely Sin Chew didn’t review this place just because they want to save on transportation claims by the reporter.

typical decent kopitiam set up

6 to 10 Grill & Nasi Lemak has quite a selection of western food items on the menu, and of course, the nasi lemak. I ordered their claim of fame, the red wine lamb special, and the other noobs had grilled salmon and chicken chop. We didn’t bother to try the nasi lemak, I’ve read it was nothing special anyway.

mouth watering western food, look at the lamb, yum

The red wine lamb certainly took quite a while for them to serve, but when it came, it was a generous portion with 4 pieces of decent size lamb shoulder marinated to perfection. On it’s own they tasted pretty good, but to get the best taste, you will have to add the mint sauce that came with it. The tender texture with the hint of red wine, mixed with the lamb’s original taste and the extra dimension the mint sauce brought in, YUM!

I stole a taste of the grilled salmon, it was really good. The sauce was rich but not too overpowering, and the filet wasn’t overly grilled either. The chicken chop with black pepper sauce was pretty decent as well. But as chicken chop goes, there isn’t alot of things you can do to make it better.

the mint sauce does the trick, only bones left

The garnish and sides that came with the dishes weren’t exactly spectacular, only the usual “salad”, cucumber, lettuce, tomato, and fries. Next time I’m there, I’m gonna order the mixed grill, the pictures hanging on the wall looks great, with at least 3-4 types of meat and shrimps.. *drools*

a rather hidden place, but thanks to this map, you’ll know how to get there

6 to 10 Grill & Nasi Lemak opens for lunch and dinner, not exactly just 6pm to 10pm. They are closed every Monday and Tuesday (yah, only 5-day work week for these folks)

Address:
6 to 10 Grill & Nasi Lemak
BG-1, Block B,
Happy Mansion
Jalan 17/13, PJ
GPS: 3.123268, 101.634489
Tel: 03 7955 4993

masak masak wrote about it, so did dDoinkster.

Tags:  chicken-chop,  grill,  ky,  lamb,  PJ,  salmon,  seksyen-17,  val,  western-food

Posted by KY | 25 Comments »