Lunch At The Sage With The Thamby

I've defined sage before in an earlier post.
Sage [noun] - SAYJ - Skinny Indian Guru in loincloth that sits on mountain top dispensing advise to the needy.

Anyway, when I heard that we were throwing the Queen of the DSLR a surprise lunch at Sage, immediately I clutched at my heart, thinking of the severe damage to the wallet. However, I was assuaged by the fact that the set lunch is RM100 net, and it was unlikely that this particular lunch crowd would imbibe bottles of Chateaux Margaux during lunchtime, so with my discount card, press press calculator, I decided, yeah, I can probably afford it, even in these dark and troubled times. Have discount card will travel! In fact, my discount card kinda paid for my share and wife's share the last time the food bloggers ate there and conveniently decided to celebrate my birthday as well, last year. Not that I wasnt grateful.

So yeah, with a recent spate of broken leaky pots, and a certain lady with a penchant of letting more pussies out of the bag than the city hall stray cat pound, we plotted and planned. I even bought The Queen a decoy lunch (last year we ALSO had to do the same thing), at Rice Cafe, the day before the surprise. The day of the surprise lunch dawned, and everything seemed to be going without a hitch, when suddenly on MSN, she asks, "Why are people wishing me Happy Birthday?" (the lunch was a week before the real day). IMMEDIATELY, I thought of the Queen of Leaky Pots....but she had been warned that it was a surprise. However, she had mentioned to her daughter that she was going for the Queen DSLR's birthday lunch, and her daughter took the liberty of wishing QDSLR, "Happy Birthday Auntie Thamby".

Nevertheless, though suspicious, I think she probably didnt expect the scale of the celebration. I mean, these are all post blogging era friends...relatively new, all with the exception of one, made after food blogging changed her life.


The Calm Before the Storm


Very Fancy..... even the menu is in Gold Letters


You know fancy places when they serve breads with ladida things, like pesto etc, and not your usual run of the mill butter. I am a pleb. Give me butter, SALTED please.


The lady from that classy cake shop below comes bearing her gift for the birthday girl.


Shucks, MORE presents from generous friends. Me, I must have been Penang born in a previous life. Stingy to the bone. I reckon, if I am paying to BUY you a birthday lunch, I don't need to buy you a present. Chis. No one else shares my philosophy. I don't particularly enjoy receiving presents, nor giving them. Who started this gift giving thing anyway? Half the time, people buy what THEY like. Flowers for example. What the heck would one do with flowers? Make honey? It's fine if you are a Bee.


In a menu where too many things end with - OISE, but is not pronounced that way, is too taxing for my peasant brain. DAUPHINOISE.... (huh? not dolphin noise meh?) Choices choices.


We are in fine company. Perfectly manicured nails.


I opted for the foie gras, only coz I didnt know what the other thing meant. Allo, one foi grass please with the muscle salad. Hah? Mesclun? What that? Ohhh masculine salad. Yes yes. The fwah gras was divine. So was the accompanying quail. Whacked in two mouthsful.


The Vichyssoise, a lovely cold soup with a plump Hokkaido scallop. Creamy but not too jelak. So I was told. I managed to get a teaspoon full off a generous soul.

I opted for the foie gras, only coz I didnt know what the other thing meant. Allo, one foi grass please with the muscle salad. Hah? Mesclun? What that? Ohhh masculine salad. Yes yes. The fwah gras was divine. So was the accompanying quail. Whacked in two mouthsful.


Wagyu Beef Cheeks. Actually, it's quite a large portion, for lunch. I was kinda glad I didn't order that. It was rather good though, and not overly gelatinous as some beef cheeks can be. Someone apparently (not at the lunch) just found out that wagyu beef cheeks are actually from the cheeks of the face, not the butt.


Being ever the health conscious freak, I opted for the Seabass and Prawn. Actually it was very good, as was the gravy accompanying the dish. I shamelessly licked it down to the last drop. The fish was cooked perfectly, not over or under, and the prawn was sweet, not like some places where the prawns look good but taste plastic.


Earl Grey something something.... lovely wobbly texture it was. From the oohs and ahs, I assume it was lovely.


Cheese platter. Not much of a platter la. More like a mousetrap portion. But it was not bad. I love that fruitty thingie in the foreground.



Ironically, when we were talking about birthdays, Thamby was saying, "the least you could've done is brought me a pavlova to Rice Cafe for my birthday lunch". Well, she got her wish, unknowingly. A pav, made from the leftover meringue from an order from Monkey.



And the masterpiece, the gorgeous cupcakes by Su of Delectables. I finally got to sample those beautiful cupcakes that are just too pretty to eat.



Well, Happy Birthday (belated now) and wishing you many more.

Summary: My 2nd experience at the Sage was far more satisfying than the first one. At RM100 net, I thought it was very good value for money. The food was excellent, and really, no complaints at all.