Dim Sum Brunch at Celestial Court, Pork Free and Guaranteed Full!! (As In Tummy Full)

Celestial Court's (Sheraton Imperial) Dim Sum has always been in my top 3 favourite pork free dim sums.  But actually, for dim sum, I think pork free is not really an issue, I honestly can't tell much difference, except for pork ribs steamed in bean sauce, which of course, is non existent in a pork free menu.  I digress.

The Dim Sum Brunch, priced at RM138 nett, is available on weekends, and really has enough variety to confuse even the most focused of eaters.  There are three starter items that diners are entitled to only ONE serving of, but the rest of the stuff in the menu, knock yourself out man.

The first of the limited items is this Double Boiled Chicken Soup With Mini Whole Abalone and Mushroom

One aspect of Chinese cuisine, perhaps more Cantonese than anything else, that I really love, and need daily, is soup.  Doesn't matter if it's single, double or triple boiled, I just love that clear broth that precedes a meal.  Chinese soups are rarely the creamy heart clogging stuff like their western counterparts, and have always some kind of therapeutic or nutritious value to it.  In this case, the chicken for ...well, the soul, and ginseng for virility I guess.  And abalone I'm guessing for the sweetness and taste.

Seafood grouper dumpling with century egg, asparagus served with XO Sauce and Pumpkin Puree.  You'll be pleased to know that this dish is in the UNLIMITED section of the menu, meaning you can order more than one.

Signature mini abalone Siu Mai...well, if the abalone is the soup was mini, this is miniscule.  Note the size in relation to the finger nail.  Miniscule abalone aside, the siu mai is one of those items that is traditionally pork, but is replaced by chicken, without any loss of taste.  At least to me.

Shanghainese Dumpling (Xiu Long Bao) served in Tom Yam Broth. I honestly am a bit ambivalent about this dish, because sometimes I feel if it works, why change it.  I prefer ordinary xiu long bao to be honest, as the tom yam tends to overpower everything else.  And afterall, the joy of an XLB is having that clear superior broth flood your palate as it pops in your mouth.

Celestial Court Squid Ink Har Gao.

This lovely platter of Chilli Crab with Fried and Steamed Mantao, is the other dish that is limited to one portion per person.  This here is for 5 people.  The chilli sauce is absolutely yummy with the mantao.  The crabs, well, to be honest, blue swimmer crabs are not my favourite, give me mud crab anyday, but respecting religious sensitivities, Blue Swimmer Crabs are not amphibious and therefore are acceptable to all.

But seriously, that sauce and mantao, big thumbs up.

Their signature prawn and banana roll with wasabi mayonnaise has been a long time favourite of mine, and it takes a brave chef to think of such a combination.  It works wonderfully though, the heat of the wasabi, the subtle sweetness of the banana and the crunch of the prawn.

Bean curd rolls with Shrimp and Cheddar cheese.  Well, the cheddar was a subtle amount, which was good, as it didnt distract from the intended flavours.  I always love bean curd rolls, steamed, fried, whatever.

Yam Puff with duck liver and preserved olive filling.   Loved the yam, so creamy and rich, while crispy on the outside,  Very good woo kok.

Actually, in addition to just DIM SUM, there is a whole host of other stuff on the menu, and the roasts section, which surprisingly is not unlimited, boasts this roast duck which is very very good.  In fact, if you ask me, it's better than the limited offering of Peking Duck rolls.

Did I mention Peking Duck Rolls?  Yup, here they are, and these are the last of the three items where diners are allowed to order only one portion.  Which is more than enough.  Go for the roast duck, that is the bomb.

One of the bloggers/writers at the table mentioned that she is always on the quest for a good salted egg custard bun, and well, tah dah, whaddaya know...

I like to think of this as the chinese molten lava cake, as well, for starters, it's yellow, and secondly, that flowy lava-ry goodness does resemble lava more than chocolate does right?  I love this bao, if I wasn't so full I'd have attacked more.

Just having these few items was enough to send me into a food coma for the afternoon, so I dread to think what will happen if I came for the Weekend Brunch, paid RM138 and was working to get my money's worth.

The rest of the menu is really like an ala carte menu, with chicken, beef, seafood, rice and noodle dishes, so it really IS very very good value.

For more details or to make a reservation, please call 03-27179900, e-mail at restaurants.imperial@sheraton.com or visit www.sheratonimperialkualalumpur/celestialcourt

Four Seasons, Capsquare

I must be the last living KL Blogger who had never been to this place, ... well, to be honest, I wasn't really a diehard fan of the famed Bayswater outlet in Queensway. I preferred the other Chinese eateries along the same road, like Hung Toa, and Kam Tong. But since the sterling has soared to RM7 to the pound, and although it has dropped back to around RM5.5, I haven't been to visit the Queen since 2005, so one has no choice but to replicate one's anglophile needs here in colonial KL. Marks & Spencers, ......Harrods (I still haven't been to the KLCC outlet), ....Victoria Station, ....(kidding), and now, Four Seasons of Bayswater.

The Everybody Loves Raymond group hasn't met up in awhile, and when the list of possible to eat at places was sent out via email, there was a resounding aye to meet here.

For starters, I didn't even know this Capsquare place existed...I mean, I did know, but I didn't know it existed in its present form. It actually looks quite nice. Although it was very quiet at night, I quite liked the ambience of the entire area. Good dinner venue, easy parking, etc.






Surprisingly, we were one of the only tables there that Monday night. However, I am sure the place must fill up at lunch time.



Nothing warms the heart more than seeing a whole range of meats strung up, waiting to be eaten. Actually, yesterday, while lunching at a coffee shop in Lucky Gardens (Nam Chuan), I was counting the chickens (after they hatched) at the chicken rice shop. Wow, just running some quick numbers through my non-Chinese educated and math impedimented brain, I'd say the chicken rice man was into some serious money! He can probably send his kid to study in London and ask them to eat 4 Seasons Duck rice there every day. I digress.


The brinjal hotpot with mince meat is always a favourite, wherever and whenever. If you like brinjal that is. Brinjal. Somehow brinjal sounds so much less exotic than Aubergine or even Egg Plant. What's in a name right. Problem with these dishes, they were all screaming out for rice the way a damsel in distress screams for her prince charming to save her from an ivory tower.


Sweet & Sour Prawns. Truth be told, I have always thought sweet & sour was the "ngak gwai low" golden standard. Which true blooded Han chinese eats sweet and sour ?.... however, there are sometimes when a good sweet and sour dish really adds flavour to complete the entire range of tastes.....the prawns were fresh, and crunchy, and this was a pleasing dish.


I presume this was Hong Kong Choy Sum. Though why Hong Kong, of all places, should be deemed a paradise for growing vegetables, is beyond me. I'd have thought with so little land, growing choy sum wouldn't be high on their GDP earning list. Well, veg is veg. As long as its not too old, and chewy, it's fine by me. Actually I don't even mind old and chewy. I'm a simple person.


Can't remember what taufu dish this was, but I remember it was one of their signature ones, and it was good. Bits of fish paste I think it was. (that's the problem blogging more than a week after the event....these grey cells have been ravaged by alcohol and retain less memory than an outdated pentium)...


Does this dish need an introduction? The layers of fat, sandwiched between the lean, beckon like an old friend. Actually, someone commented it wasn't fat enough. True, but thankfully so. Again, another dish that just yells, RICE PLEASE.


Charsiu, one of the mandatory litmus tests of any roasts place. On a scale of 1-10, I'd give it an 8. Pretty good, and a good balance of lean and fat. A conversation ensued about how it's impossible to find fatty charsiu in Singapore.

Hairy Berry, is that true? (very deja vu, I think we've had this conversation before)



Red Velvet cake

My second attempt at a Red Velvet cake. I seem to have major problems with preventing my creams from melting. Maybe because this was put together in haste, and it was like building a house on shifting sands, and the blardy cake nearly collapsed. Fortunately we weren't there for the aesthetics and I think the cake tasted quite good. Well, I gave the remaining quarter to Thamby to try.

Ah, how could I forget their piece de resistance, the famed Roast Duck. Well, let's not compare with the ducks in UK I reckon. I actually find the UK ducks a bit TOO fat (gasp, is that possible!) for my liking, and this one here more suited to my palate. Although the ducks hang around greeting arriving guests in the front, they aren't just chopped up and served immediately. I think they are slowly roasted again slightly, so that its warm, and the skin almost cripsy. Very good. No complaints whatsoever.


Definitely worth a visit. In fact, I went again with my folks 6 days later. Didn't bring camera though. Do try out the see chiu ngau hor too.