Home Food Reviews Les Amis Wine Dinner, Mandarin Oriental Kuala Lumpur

“It isn’t about the friends you’ve known for the longest,
it’s about the ones that came in and never left your side.”

Friends can sometimes disappoint, but runny eggs won't.

My mother used to tell me that friends come and go, but true friends stay forever. Over the past 10 years, I’ve been losing friends more often than I lose my earrings. Some because we’ve grown apart and some because we’ve stepped on each other’s tail. But enough emo talk for now.

Freshly baked bread

Butter

Les Amis, which stands for “friends” in French, is the flagship French restaurant of the Les Amis Group in Singapore. rif and I were treated to an exclusive 6-course dinner at Mandarin Grill recently, where Galvin Lim (Group Executive Chef of the Les Amis Group of Restaurant) dished out a degustation of finest ingredients, flavours and textures.

Scottish razor clams

To start, we tucked into an amuse bouche of Scottish razor clams on a bed of squid ink salt. The clams were lightly chewy and tasted like the sea. I was told that the chef chose the Scottish variety over the pacific ones due to its sweeter flavour and firmer texture.

Eggplant caviar with Spanish octopus and fennel pollen aioli

Laurent Perrier Cuvee Bruit NV

Eggplant caviar with Spanish octopus and fennel pollen aioli comprised eggplant puree with a layer of minced octopus and with a decadent layer of caviar topping. The brininess of the caviar enlivened the smoky-sweet flavour of the eggplant, which I rather enjoyed. A glass of Laurent Perrier Cuvee Bruit NV was paired with this.

Ciabatta wrapped in crispy white asparagus with confit egg and morel mushrooms

Our second course – ciabatta wrapped in crispy white asparagus with confit egg and morel mushrooms – tasted as delicious as it looked. This was a lovely composition of flavours and textures.

Gooey goodness

William Fevre Chablis 2012

The asparagus (sourced from south of France) was cooked to perfect tenderness and complemented by the runny yolk and earthy mushrooms. The crisp and floral notes of William Fevre Chablis 2012 accompanied this nicely.

Slow cooked Danish halibut “sous vide style” with Australian black winter truffles, potato gnocchi and sakura ebi

Many on my table enjoyed the slow cooked Danish halibut “sous vide style” with Australian black winter truffles, potato gnocchi and sakura ebi. I appreciated the sweetness and overall smooth texture of the halibut and how the generous shavings of truffles gave it flavour.

Perrin Reserve Cotes du Rhone Blanc 2009

That said, the sakura ebi tasted rather similar to our local dried shrimp and I found it odd. Perrin Reserve Cotes du Rhone Blanc 2009 had an elegant nose, but I didn’t fancy the mouth feel of this wine. The others seemed to enjoy it much more.

Wagyu rib eye and cap of the rib eye

Char grilled wagyu rib eye cooked in hay

I’ve been lusting after the char grilled wagyu rib eye cooked in hay when I read the menu prior to dinner. We were given two cuts of meat – rib eye and the cap of the rib eye, also known as the spinalis dorsi. The latter is heavily marbled, as tender as a fillet mignon and boasts all the flavour of a rib eye. Such a treat! Good thing I ate the rib eye first, as this wouldn’t taste as good if I ate the cap before this.

M. Chapoutier Bila Haut, Cotes du Roussillon 2009

The accompanying wine M. Chapoutier Bila Haut, Cotes du Roussillon 2009 was plumy and deeply concentrated with a lively finish.

"Sunny side up”

Dessert was a “sunny side up” and a fancy lemon tart with thyme ice cream. The former looked like a fried egg, but tasted anything but. The ‘egg white’ comprised milk ice cream with chilli, while the ‘yolk’ was a pineapple sphere.

Fancy lemon tart with thyme ice cream

Chateau Tireculs Les Pin La Graviere Monbazillac 1997

I thought the lemon tart looked like a lemon meringue pie; I was later told it was a deconstructed version. This was sweet and dense with a tart aftertaste. I couldn’t get enough of the Chateau Tireculs Les Pin La Graviere Monbazillac 1997, a sweet dessert wine. Guess who had two glasses of this? :P

Petit fours

Petit fours comprised a gula melaka chocolate and royal dark chocolate, both tasty in their own right. Thank you Mandarin Oriental, for extending the invite to both rif and I. It was truly an eye opening and tummy warming experience. The 6-course wine dinner cost RM448++ per person.

Chef Galvin Lim

Dress: Peep Boutique
Accessories: The Aura
Heels: Bangkok

Like my Facebook page here.

Ambiance: 8/10
Price: RM448++ per person with wine pairing
Food: 7.5/10
Verdict: Dinner was a beautiful composition of the freshest and finest ingredients.

Mandarin Grill
Mandarin Oriental Hotel
Kuala Lumpur City Centre
Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03 2380 8888
Website: www.mandarinoriental.com/kualalumpur
Facebook: MandarinOrientalKualaLumpur

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8 comments

Sean June 27, 2012 - 4:11 pm

whoa, every course looks incredible! even the desserts, which usually don’t hold all that much allure for me. you’ve made my mood go from ‘bored’ to ‘sad’ this evening, cos i’m now mournfully thinking of this spectacular feast that i missed! :D

Reply
Bangsar Babe June 27, 2012 - 4:19 pm

Hahaha…so drama la you! :P But ya…presentation was beautiful. Too pretty to eat…some of the dishes!

Reply
Simple Person June 27, 2012 - 7:50 pm

I agree with your friends quote.. it’s about the ones that came in and never left your side
is that bubles besides the eggs? Y?

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Bangsar Babe June 27, 2012 - 10:42 pm

What bubble?

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Baby Sumo June 27, 2012 - 8:00 pm

I liked all the food that Chef Galvin and his team prepared. very nice being able to be taught how to do 3 of the courses too!

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Bangsar Babe June 27, 2012 - 10:43 pm

Now you can cook for me! Muahahaha :P

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ciki June 29, 2012 - 6:57 pm

awww.. we nearly would have had dinner together here, but I was still in Cairns! :( Food looks good. will have to go back one day soon:)

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Bangsar Babe June 29, 2012 - 10:20 pm

Yeah, it was good! You la…so busy traveling. :(

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