Ramadan Santapan at the Living Room, the Westin, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

I always enjoy walking into the Living Room at The
Westin.  It has a warm, welcoming
atmosphere, which is heightened this Ramadan by the addition of a group of
musicians.  Wearing traditional
Malay dress, and focusing on traditional Malay music and songs, they add an
extra soupçon of ambiance to the restaurant.  I was wondering what intriguing delights The Westin had in store
for this special buka puasa feast, and 
I was immediately aware that there was more hustle and bustle than usual
in the restaurant.  This buffet is
HUGE!  I’ve never seen so many
chefs and cooking stations.  It was
a little bewildering at first, but before eating, photographer Cheryl Hoffmann and I had a wander round and
discovered so many fantastic food options we were completely spoiled for choice.

You will find a lovely display of Zam-Zam Water, holy
mineral water from Mecca, and a selection of dried fruit. Could there be a more
perfect way to break fast?

I’m always tempted by
seafood, and there were more than enough choices throughout this buffet,
especially on the salad table. I
made a beeline for the Seafood on Ice with the freshest selection of Oysters,
Crab, Mussels, and Prawns.  

I added sushi and sashimi
and sampled one or two of the numerous varieties of Kerabu – Keli Leleh Sungai
Pahang (Smoked Cat Fish with Spiced Coconut Sauce) and Kerabu Pelam Daging Bakar (Spiced Mango with Grilled Beef Salad). Really, there were too many to mention. There were Western salad choices too and I enjoyed the
Caesar Salad with shrimp…I’ve never eaten this combination but it’s something
I’d like to try at home… and the poached salmon salad was especially delicious. There were also salads from Indonesia
and Thailand, truly something for every palate.

Moving on to hot food,
there were seven varieties of rice including Westin Lamb Biryani, Pulut Rendang
Udang (sticky rice to accompany coconut shrimp curry), Nasi Lemak “Cimput”
(steamed coconut rice with condiments) and Nasi Ayam, Hainan Chicken Rice, much
of it beautifully presented in gigantic bamboo steamers.  

The most important Malay dishes were bubbling away in
massive woks, so reminiscent of cooking for special events in the Kampung.  There was Gulai Tunjang (braised beef
tendon with candle nuts, turmeric and local bay leaf), Ayam Kampong Gulai Nangka
(chicken and young jack fruit curry), Tulang Rawan Asam, (braised spiced beef
ribs with hot and sour ginger-flower gravy,) Gulai Nenas Ikan Masin (pineapple
with salted fish braised in turmeric and coconut) and Rendang Paru (beef lungs
braised in lemon, galangal  and
coconut paste).  I tasted each of
these (yes, you can be proud of me, I even had a tiny bit of lung), and even to
my relatively inexperienced palate they were all fabulous. 

The desserts were in the bakery area at the back of
the restaurant, which I didn’t visit until the end of my meal, not realising
there were two more savoury options amongst the sweet treats.  Taco Mania offers Beef, Chicken,
Seafood, Cheese or Sweet Tacos, and there’s “Reinvented” Roti Jala, lacy
pancakes served with Curry, Mango Chutney and Chicken Floss.  How I wished I had room to try them,
but I knew I could barely squeeze in a dessert or two, and as you are probably aware, I couldn’t possibly pass on dessert. 

Oh, the variety. Everything looked tremendous: Cendol Coconut Pudding, Fudgy Cashew
Nut Brownie, Cherry Cheesecake and Chocolate Ganache Cake to name only a
few. I was tempted by the Kopi
Cream Puff with Milk Chocolate, a delectable choux pastry concoction that
disappeared in one bite, the syrupy Baklava and the Mixed Fruit Almond
Frangipani Tart, topped with mixed berries, kiwi and mango. There was a wide selection of Fresh
Fruit, a Chocolate Fountain, several Indian desserts such as Gulab Jamun and of
course all the traditional Malay Kueh. The Westin always has irresistible home-made ice cream, and I can vouch
for the Durian flavour and the Red Bean Potong, which were both yummy.

My biggest disappointment was
that I was unable to try ALL the food…not even close to everything in fact.  Here is just a part of what I missed;  I haven’t mentioned the large area for Chinese food, the
Indian section, the pasta station, the roast lamb and super scrumptious
scalloped potatoes, the soups, every conceivable type of Keropok, and on and
on…   I believe it will be
necessary to visit this buffet at least five times in order to try every
dish.  My congratulations to Malay
Chef Hamdan and his staff for creating a dining experience par excellence.
Reason to visit: 
To marvel at the incredible variety of food, to sample all your favourites
and to try something new like the Shrimp Caesar Salad.

The buffet is priced at RM108++ for adults and RM54++
for children aged 4 to 12. 
Santapan Ramadan will be open from 7pm until 10:30pm and will run until
August 18, 2012.  There will be a
20% discount for bookings made 2 weeks or more in advance, and a 10% discount
for bookings made one week in advance. 
There is also a group discount: for every 10 paying guests, one person
dines for free.  The hotel offers
two special Ramadan Event packages catering to groups of 20 or more.   Reservations are highly
recommended.

The Westin Kuala Lumpur
199 Jalan Bukit BIntang,
55100 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-2731-8338

14 Comments

  1. Hi,

    I heard they offer one of the best Ramadhan buffet this year. It looks like one definitely!

    Wilson

  2. looks really good…

  3. Nice! Got traditional band! The one I went to long ago – they played a non-stop recording of somebody reciting verse from the Holy Book…the whole night through!

    • The prayers were quite short. The band really added to the ambience and they played a wide selection of music later in the evening.

  4. Lovely write up! I enjoy dining there too! The Lving Room indeed offers a wide varieties of foods!!! Yummzz!

  5. i love how with ramadan buffets, customers can not only feast on malay food that's not so easily available the other 11 months of the year, but they can still enjoy everything that's great from the regular buffet spreads, like oysters and fresh seafood. double the pleasure! 😀

  6. Woah, that is a serious buffet choice. Somewhat stressful for the indecisive! They must be the only place that has holy water from Mecca..wow that is committment to the cause.

  7. Guess u'll have a lot of food tasting this month. So much to eat & enjoy!

  8. Wow, Wow Wow! This buffet looks out of this world! I am now very hungry and craving this food. Loved this post!!!

  9. I would go there already for the seafood. I am surprised of the quality I see in these Malaysian hotels.

    Greetings,
    Filip

  10. Yes, yes, Seafood Sentral! The Westin always comes through with lovely fresh offerings from the sea.

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