Lemon Gardens's Festive Dinner Buffet - Specially For the Month of Ramadhan Only

Wishing all my Muslim friends a blessed Ramadhan.  I truly admire the faithful who can pull of a fast, for me, the food part is no problem, but the liquids part would be a great challenge.  I have tried it before, successfully, back when I was in the Fourth Form,.... when I was more malleable and flexible.

Capping off my Ramadhan buffet capers, (although as mentioned, due to some new ruling you cannot ostensibly use that term, hence all the creative names like "festive dinner" or selera kampung or warisan etc etc...but a rose by any other name.....so yeah, this should be my final invited fasting month buffet review for this season, and rightfully, the "finale" was at Lemon Garden Shangrila.

Cutting to the chase, The Festive Dinner Buffet is priced at RM 198 nett per person from Sunday to Thursday and The Festive Seafood Dinner Buffet is priced at RM 228 nett per person from Friday to Saturday.

Early Bird Offer is now available for dining period from 15 to 23 May at RM 175 nett per person and is only valid from Sunday to Thursday.

For more information or reservations call (03) 2074 3900 or email restaurantreservations.slkl@shangri-la.com or visit our site at www.shangri-la-specials.com.

Set up at the terrace area, a wide array of stalls, over and above the normal lavish Lemon Garden spread inside the main area, include Shish Tawouk (Charcoal Grilled Chicken Cubes), Iranian Kubbiedeh (Charcoal Grill Minced Lamb), Iranian Tikka Mastih (Charcoal Grilled Beef), Barbecued Chicken Wings, Fresh Water Prawns Siamese style, Grilled US Oysters and more.

Freshly carved Shawarma Kebabs.....

Served in pita pockets...actually it's a bit too filling so do proceed with caution.... you might not be able to enjoy the other offerings...

Freshly deep fried Tempura assortment...

The quintessential Malaysian Char Kueh Teow, a dish that transcends race and religion...

You know a buffet is of a different class when they serve Macadamia nuts in the buffet... (Macadamias are sooo expensive)..

A cacophony of curries.... In the usual buffet section, a wide array, which squeal for rice, so if you're on a carb free or keto diet, you might as well surrender.. A special mention is deserving for the Beef Cheek Rendang, melt in the mouth and so utterly good that it was the only thing I went back for seconds.  (not that the rest of the stuff are not good, it's just that with limited stomach space, I had to limit my intake but the beef cheek warranted extra space)

Rendang Pipi Lembu (Braised Beef Cheeks with Malay Herbs and Dried Coconut Paste)’,

My favourite of this season, Lemang...Black glutionous rice and the usual type...Pair this with the beef cheek rendang and you'll have shivers down your spine.

A kaleidoscope of Kerabu... Kerabu is a "salad" so to speak, in Malay.  The usual fare of Wild Fern, Mussel Kerabu, Kerabu Taugeh Ikan Masin, ...

The fresh seafood section also never fails to impress...Here's a tip, go early, and you can get crabs almost the size of a dainty girl's palm....

They were particularly proud of their Fishhead curry.  I really wonder if using a fish head as opposed to using any other part of the fish would make a difference to the taste, but fish head curry seems to be an in thing in Malaysia, and very expensive as well, considering the dish probably originated because people didn't know what to do with the fish head

The roast section has a sacrificial lamb with drippings onto a tray of biryani,...which is oh so delish...with racks of ribs and other meats as well..

I have always almost NEVER managed to get the black chicken ginseng soup from the Chinese section...I later discovered that it's made in limited numbers so the early worm gets the bird.

And to finish the job, DESSERT...

This fresh fruit counter (at the annex) was particularly popular, as fresh mangoes were skinned on the spot and served....

Zooming into these babies that look like a pangolin's err... something... the Buah Salak... an acquired taste, but I have been eating it for years and I love it..

Lots of Buburs and Pengats... (I won't even bother with the translation, but basically a dessert stew with a coconut base, and different fillings)

The usual dessert fare is available...

I was particularly delighted with this dessert offering, baklavas... those in the know would know how ridiculouly expensive these middle eastern delights are...layers of filo filled with nuts, usually pistachios, with the aromatics of rose water...

And a wide array of Date offerings, as is the tradition during the fasting month, as dates were the Prophet's favourite break fast food.

The troop of Chefs..

To RECAP

The Festive Dinner Buffet is priced at RM 198 nett per person from Sunday to Thursday and The Festive Seafood Dinner Buffet is priced at RM 228 nett per person from Friday to Saturday.

Early Bird Offer is now available for dining period from 15 to 23 May at RM 175 nett per person and is only valid from Sunday to Thursday.

For more information or reservations call (03) 2074 3900 or
email restaurantreservations.slkl@shangri-la.com
or visit
www.shangri-la-specials.com.

The Iconic Lemon Garden at Shangri-La Has Refurbished, Renovated, Reinnovated, Reinvigorated and Reopened!!!!

Every buffet lover would probably have at some point gone to the iconic Lemon Garden in Shangri-la KL, renowned for their lavish spread.  For our family, we spent many a Chinese New Year there, usually on the first day, and the place was always packed to the rafters.  For almost half a year though, it's been closed, and on weekends, the buffet was held at the Lobby Lounge, where we had a Christmas buffet circa December 2016, which was actually quite pleasant, because the Lobby Lounge has live singers and bands, so it does create a rather different feel.  But due to space constraints, the menu was also vastly limited, and there were no hot stations.

So, on the 27th Feb 2017, Lemon Garden was like a new bride, unveiled for the waiting public.  Actually the media were given a preview before the official opening, and what a fun night it was, of good company and great food.

I have always maintained I am not a buffet fan, and still maintain that I am not.  To me a buffet is like buying a CD Album, whereby in all probability you'll like maybe 20% of the contents, if you're lucky.  And to be honest, even in Lemon Garden, I can't say I like everything, which is just as well, because even eating the stuff I liked was already enough to send me into a food coma.

Anyway, the Facelift, designed by BOND DESIGN STUDIO from Japan, describes the interior as elegantly decked with modern and contemporary designs, that exude a warm and sophisticated ambience.  The flooring is made of gleaming off white and patterned tiles, and walls lined with framed glass and golden brown panels, while the ceiling features pendant lights and yellow light orbs.

As we were there for the media launch, we were privvy to the Seafood buffet, which usually available on weekends, (and more expensive that the weeknight one), which had King Crabs, mud crabs, oysters, yabbies, prawns, mussels, sashimi, etc...  Quite the gathering of Poseidon's kingdom.

My other favourite station was the Chinese Station, in particular the roasts (which looks like a chicken rice stall set up, but alas, there was no chicken rice), which has a lovely double boiled ginseng black chicken soup.

At the other end of the Chinese section, the noodle stall, which is my favourite as well, because of their fantastic curry noodles.  I usually embellish it with the other luxurious stuff, like this...

In the absence of Cockels for curry mee, I guess one cannot complain with these plump oysters....

Somewhere midway, they had the ribbon cutting ceremony to officially declare the reopening of Lemon Garden.

The Western Kitchen has a lovely Roast Beef, Glazed lamb ribs, cheeses, salads, pizzas and pastas....

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Then of course there's the Asian theatre, which has tandoori, satay, murtabak, chicken tikka, naan bread, roti canai, etc...

Some of the stuff off my plate, the King Crab Claw, the mud crabs, the lovely roast duck below...

Photo courtesy of Broughtuptoshare....muaks...

The Makan Fairy Godmother, Shang's Marcomm guy, Reza, and me....

And finally, who can resist that wonderful dessert spread, chocolate fountain, a wide array of cakes, including their signature Durian Cake, Jackfruit puffs, Ice Kacang, Waffles, crepes, and my personal favourite, their home made ice creams.

Lemon Garden opens daily from 6am - 11.30pm, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner.  Special buffets include the International Lunch Buffet from Monday to Saturdays, International Sunday Brunch, International Dinner Buffet from Sundays to Thursdays, and Seafood Dinner Buffets on Fridays and Saturdays.  AND a SUNDAY CHAMPAGNE BRUNCH, which I can't wait to try.

International Lunch Buffet
Monday – Friday (12noon – 2.30pm)
RM 128 nett (adult), RM 64 nett (child)

Saturday (12noon – 3pm)
RM 148 nett (adult), RM 74 nett (child)

International Sunday Brunch
Sunday (12noon – 3pm)
RM 168 nett (adult), RM 84 nett (child)

International Dinner Buffet
Sunday – Thursday (6.30pm – 10.30pm)
RM 158 nett (adult), RM 79 nett (child)

Seafood Dinner Buffet
Friday – Saturday (6.30pm – 10.30pm)
RM 208 nett (adult), RM104 nett (child)

Sunday Champagne Brunch (inclusive of 1 bottle of Veuve Cliquot per person)
Sunday (12noon – 3pm)
RM 488 nett (adult)

For reservations, call 03-20743900
Shangri-La Hotel, Kuala Lumpur
Main line : 03-2032 2388