Ramadhan Buffet, Chatz Brasserie, Parkroyal Hotel, Jalan Sultan Ismail, Kuala Lumpur

It’s a long time since I’ve eaten my mum’s cooking,
so I was looking forward to Masakan Mama, good honest home cooking, at the Parkroyal’s Ramadhan Buffet preview.  I
wasn’t disappointed either.  Most
of the dishes I sampled were definitely not made from ordinary recipes, but
instead were concocted with an inspired blend of aromatic spices and skilfully
rendered to produce delicious creations, several of which I felt were absolutely
wonderful.

Kerabu Tempe dan Sotong
Kerabu Ayam

Nasi Kerabu
We began with an interesting range of Malay salads: Nasi Kerabu, a spiced rice salad, Kerabu Ayam Daun Kesom, small pieces of delicately seasoned chicken breast, Kerabu Sotong Berserai, tender squid in lemongrass and Kerabu Ikan Bilis, a lovely combination of fried tofu, tempe, peanuts and anchovies. 
Ikan Duri Masak Berlada
Ketam Borlado Nogeri

Some of the main dishes
looked similar, but each had a unique flavour.  I enjoyed the spicy Ikan Duri Masak Berlada, fish in mixed
chillies and the Ketam Borlado Nogeri, chilli crab. 

Daging Bahmia
Otak-Otak Rambo

The chicken in the Ayam
Kapitan Nyonya was not at all tough, and it was interesting to be served
Otak-Otak Rambo, a well-seasoned fish paste, from a casserole rather than from
the grill.  Other tasty dishes
included Kerutub Itik, stewed duck, and Daging Bahmia, beef cooked in cumin,
coriander and tomato paste.

Puncuk Paku
Sayur Manis Masak Lemak Putih Keledek

There were unusual vegetables too, a delicious Sayur
Manis Masak Lemak Putih Keledek, young sweet potato leaves and cubed yam cooked
in coconut milk, and Puncuk Paku, fern fronds with shallots, lime, chilli and
belacan. Interestingly, Puncuk Paku translates as “Shoot nails”!  “Nail shoots” really I suppose – not very appetizing but very tasty in reality.
Rendang Hati
But there was one creation that almost made me swoon,
and was as close to food perfection as I could wish.  Rendang Hati or slow-cooked liver, might not sound at all
inspiring to many readers, but the fork-tender ox liver infused with
caramelized coconut, coconut milk and the ideal blend of spices was like a taste of
heaven.  If you’ve always hated
liver, force yourself to try just a tiny morsel, and I’m sure you’ll be
hooked.  Without a doubt, this was
the best Rendang I’ve ever eaten, and my dining companions were also very
impressed. Apparently, CNN conducted a poll to find the world’s favourite foods,
and Rendang was in the top 50. 
It’s easy to understand why, since when Rendang is well-executed it’s always
popular.
Patin Gulai Tempoyak
Another dish that captured our attention was the
Patin Gulai Tempoyak, catfish stewed in fermented durian.  I’ve tried this combination a few
times, but the Parkroyal’s version was the best I’ve tasted, perhaps because the durian was not
overly fermented, and the spices complemented the fish perfectly.
Bubur Pulut Hitam
For dessert, we were served Bubur Pulut Hitam, glutinous
black rice cooked in coconut milk. 
It was another success for the chefs at the Parkroyal.  This combination is often
teeth-achingly sweet, but the judicious use of sugar produced a comforting rice
porridge, which I’m sure will remind diners of their mum’s home cooking.
Reason to
visit:
  because this restaurant is serving a
number of less common Ramadhan specialties, and more importantly, to savour the
Rendang Hati!
There will be many more dishes at the buffet, which
runs from July 21 to August 18 and is available from 7pm to 10:30pm daily.  The buffet is priced at RM95++ for
adults and RM47.50++ for children aged 4 to 11.  Guests staying at the Parkroyal are entitled to a 20%
discount on the buffet, while senior citizens above the age of 55 will enjoy a
50% discount.  UOB, Standard
Chartered and CIMB card-members are offered special prices, while even greater
discounts will be offered to those with UOB cards for reservations made between
July 21 and 27.
For reservations, please call (603) 2147-0088 or email
[email protected]
Private “berbuka puasa” banquets can also be arranged
for a minimum of 50 guests, at a cost of RM75++ per person.  For reservations and enquiries, please
call (603) 2782-8447 or email [email protected]

10 Comments

  1. The presentation of the food is very nice. Congratulations to the chef.

    Greetings,
    Filip

  2. The nasi kerabu certainly does not look like the real thing…and aiyor…the paku, black already lor!!! Should just throw away – sure at those prices, they can afford to do that. Parkroyal? Years ago, they had the best desserts – fruit tarts, cream puffs and all… None in the buffet spread?

    • I've never eaten Nasi Kerabu before, so I can't comment. I've eaten lots of Paku though, and I know that the fern was quite fresh, and not spoiled. Maybe my image is just too dark. For the preview the chef's prepared only a few samples from the Ramadhan Buffet, so I was only offered one dessert. 🙁 I would have loved cream puffs and fruit tarts!

  3. Great write up Polly! Another one I'm sorry I missed. 🙂

  4. I can't believe Ramadhan is here again..the days are passing too fast!

  5. wow, there's definitely quite a lot of uniqueness in this buffet! i'm a fan of liver, but i've never seen it available at a hotel buffet before! the liver rendang recipe here sounds absolutely divine 😀

    • I'm still drooling when I think of the Liver Rendang, Sean, and I do think of it quite often! We were only given a few samples from the buffet, so I'm not altogether sure of the full menu, but I believe that they'll be serving quail, which is also unusual.

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