Home Food Reviews The Ming Room @ Bangsar Shopping Centre

LB planned a wine pairing dinner at The Ming Room, and when he emailed me the list of wines to be paired with the dishes, I could not decline. Check out why!

Pre-dinner wine, Manu Sauvignon Blanc 2009.

 

This was fruity and crisp, with hints of passionfruit at the finish. I’m no wine expert, so don’t mind me – I’m learning.

Course#1

Duet of Baked Cheese Rock Oyster & Bacon-wrapped Scallops with Marks & Spencer Vin Mousseux Rose Brut NV.The oyster was luscious – juicy, slightly briny and tastefully seasoned. Scallops wrapped with crispy bacon reminded me of the bacon wrapped sausages in British pubs. I enjoyed this, but not as much as I enjoyed the oyster. The rose brut was light, sweet and easy to drink.

Course#2

Braised Abalone & Sea Cucumber Odyssey with Christian Moueix Merlot 2005. I liked this, but I wasn’t so sure of the choice of wine. Oaky, deep and earthy on the nose, it didn’t quite click with the dish as I thought the wine overpowered the flavours of the abalone. The merlot was nonetheless, very good on its own.

Course#3

Crispy Peking Duck with Popiah Skin with vertical tasting of St.Clair Omaka Reserve Pinot Noir 2004 and St.Clair Omaka Reserve Pinot Noir 2007. Something I learnt that night — vertical wine tasting is tasting one wine varietal from the same producer from several vintages.

When you taste the same varietal of wines from the same maker and the same vineyard, it allows you to see how dramatic or subtle a wine changes from year to year. Based on the tasting, the 2007 wine had a lot less tannin and a longer finish. The younger wine was more crisp and more acidic.

Course#4

Wantan Noodles with leftover Peking Duck paired with Bodegas J C Conde Neo Sentido Ribera del Duero Tempranillo 2006. A tad salty, but it was still decent. I liked how “QQ” the noodles were, and there were plenty of duck slices. I reckon there was more duck than noodles. The Spanish wine had a deep flavour and a lasting finish, which complemented the noodles well.


Course#5

Grilled Lamb Cutlet marinated in Red Wine. Tender, meaty and perfectly marinated, the lamb had little or no gamey smell or taste. The red wine gave the meat an earthy flavour, hearty texture and bold flavour. Very nice with the three Grand Crus that LB and LA brought along. If I remembered correctly, I liked the Ch. La Confession St.Emilion Grand Cru Classe 2001 best. It has a nicer, smoother finish.

From l-r: Ch. Prieure-Lichine Margaux Grand Cru Classe 2001,
Ch. La Confession St.Emilion Grand Cru Classe 2001,
Ch. Branaire Duluc-Ducru St.Julien Grand Cru CLasse 2001.
Course#6

Char-grilled Spanish Iberico Pork Ribs. Juicy, meaty and oh-so-tender, I wanted more than my fair share of 3 ribs, and they already gave me the biggest ribs on the plate. Greedy me.

Course#7

Foie Gras Fried Rice. Decadent stuff. Creamy, rich foie gras drizzles with a sweetish XO (I’m not exactly sure) sauce on fried rice. The fried rice was ordinary, but the foie gras was beautifully prepared and very good.


Course#8

Chef’s Special Sauce Stir-Fried Noodles. This tasted ordinary; they could have done better. Oh well, at least the noodles were nice and springy. It was duly rectified with some pickled green chilli, and more wine.

Course#9

Ma Lai Koh & Chilled Snow Pear with Grand Burge Moscato 2008. The snow pear was nothing to shout about, but the Ma Lai Koh was quite nice. I usually don’t like steamed cakes because I find most of them a bit plastic-tasting, but this one was fluffy and not overly sweet. Grand Burge Moscato 2008 was paired with desserts because LB knew this was my favourite wine. Thanks LB!

Although some dishes failed to shine, I really enjoyed dinner and the selection of good wines. The great company cheered me up from a crappy ordeal the day before. Thanks for organising dinner LB! Wine, dinner and great company made me feel much, much better. =)

Ambiance: 7.5/10
Food: 6.5/10 (non-halal)
Wine: 7.5/10
Verdict: The food was not bad, but there is still room for improvement. The wines were good stuff!

The Ming Room
T109 & 111A, 3rd Floor,
West Wing
Bangsar Shopping Centre
03 2284 8822

You may also like

5 comments

Sean May 27, 2010 - 10:05 am

this is pretty convenient for someone like me who's hopeless at pairing wines with chinese food! :D

Reply
Eric May 27, 2010 - 5:07 pm

wahhh really awesome food…

i used to go there once a week, until I discovered GRAND IMPERIAL! hehehe LOL

Reply
iamthewitch May 28, 2010 - 5:59 am

Interesting how Chinese dishes are starting to blend with wines now! I'm hopeless with wine… Still haven't found one that I like. But I am eying on that marvellous ribs though!

Reply
Dogma May 30, 2010 - 7:20 am

the french wine were listed in the opposite direction (viewers' angle):
On the right was Branaire Ducru.
On the left was Prieure Lichine

Good wine nonetheless.

Reply
Bangsar-bAbE June 9, 2010 - 6:55 am

Dogma – Thanks for the correction! :)

iamthewitch – I'm still hopeless with wines…learning everyday!

Eric – I've yet to try that.

Sean – You? Hopeless? I'm sure you know much more than I do!

Reply

Leave a Reply to Dogma Cancel Reply