The Speakeasy Restaurant and Bar, Ming Annexe KL: Christmas and New Year’s Festive Menu!

The Restaurant that You didn’t know about… until NOW! J

Their tagline certainly had me agreeing as I was surprise to find this little hidden gem recently through an invitation from our dear foodie Merryn! I actually worked in the same area for 3 whole years and didn’t even know about this place… J

My curiosity had me asking the owners what’s up with the name. The Speakeasy was inspired by the establishments that illegally sell alcoholic beverages in United States during the period known as Prohibition (1920 – 1933).  Of course, The Speakeasy Restaurant and Bar here is legally licensed to sell alchohol and has been doing so since 2005!

The Restaurant has a very classic early 20^th century and almost jazzy ambience and I loved the posters of Charlie Chaplin around the place. The owners will be having a revamp of the décor soon so I am very excited to see what’s coming by next year! At the moment, The Speakeasy serves classic Western & Asian food. Moving forward, after the renovation in February 2012, they will be serving modern European & classic Malaysian food.

Helmed by Chef Rajesh (a humble but thoroughly skilled chef), who has 18 years of experience in opening & running restaurant in Malaysia & Jordan, is the chef responsible for the amazing Christmas and New Year’s Menu at the restaurant. His repertoire of previous restaurants includes Frangipani, The C. Club Restaurant, Bijou & Lenorte Paris (Amman, Jordan). Chef Rajesh current task at Speakeasy is to revamp the existing classic Western & Asian menu to a modern European & classic Malaysian menu.

We were lucky to sample their Christmas Eve Set Dinner Menu and be ready to drool over a gastronomic feast with an artistic flair…

Roasted Butternut and Shellfish Broth was served with curried glazed prawns, confit fennel, scallop chips and an indulgence of cognac. Brightly bold in orange hues, the broth was creamy and thick with beautiful flavors of the sea and butternut squash. The dish reminds me of warmth and comforting food when I stayed during the winter cold days in United States… J

Paired with a lovely white Moore’s Creek Semillon Sauvignon Blanc that went so well with the soup!

The next course was my favorite course! Deconstructed Caesar Salad was my virgin experience and I am very glad the first time was a fabulous one! (wink wink!!) There are basically three parts to the salad and I thoroughly enjoyed every part of this…

Garlic Truffle Butter Mushroom Crostini was a cheesy goodness of a medley of sauté mushrooms in garlic truffle butter and baked with creamy cheese for a luscious finish.

What’s a Caesar without romaine? Baby Romaine with Saffron Caesar Aioli showcased crisp bundled of romaine drizzled with a creamy and rich Caesar aioli tinted with saffron. Decent and well dressed!

Here comes the best part of the dish… Par Boiled Egg on Home Smoked Salmon Rillets! I carefully cut into my soft boiled egg to let the yolk oozed out to the salmon rillets to coat it into a richness beyond oblivion. Salty smoked salmon was balanced out with the light egg flavors and heighten with its golden rich yolk sauce lovingly. Simply lovely!!

The salad was paired with another lovely white of Tyrell’s Moore’s Creek Chardonnay 2009 which truly enhanced the creamy and rich salad.  

There are two options for main course for those who may prefer fish over meat. I was told that Chef Rajesh had put a lot of effort to the overall dishes as they had to be prepared few days in advance. The mains go through the French technique of marination in milk and smoking in hickory wood chips to ensure the flavors and texture are perfectly executed.

I chose the Hickory Smoked Tenderloin served with a delectable Portabello Bread & Butter Pudding, Brussels Sprouts, Baby Carrots and Squash, drizzled with a Giblet Port Wine Gravy. A mouthful it may seem but the components of the dish really complement each other very well. My meat was pink just the way I like it. Do ask for more gravy as it’s very tasty.

I managed to try the second option of Rosemary Infused Cod Brandade served on a bed of Miso Infused Trio Bean Stew with Crab Meat and Duo Capsicum Relish. Now I regret not ordering this as it was simply magnificent! The cod was silky smooth and firm with a lovely sweetness of the sea while the bean stew was tender and fairly creamy. The medley of peppers gives the whole dish a hint of roasted sweetness. This was everyone’s favorite dish that night!

Our mains were paired with Tyrell’s Moore’s Creek Shiraz 2009, a red wine with stone fruit notes. Although lovely, I prefer the white wines over this one as lately, my taste bud have been gearing towards white wines!

Our sweet ending of the meal showed up as Yuletide Bread & Butter Pudding. The pudding was made with semolina, cranberries and infused with lavender. I loved the extra touch of spun sugar on the top as the crispy and slight bitter sweet gave the whole creamy and rich pudding a lovely twist. I like this rendition as it had a good combination of sweet and slightly sour flavors… J

Our dessert wine was a Portugal Cockburn’s Special Reserve Port. The port is sweet with hints of cherries to bring out the lovely cranberry flavors in the pudding.

The Speakeasy Restaurant and Bar Festive Menus

Christmas Menu (with wine pairing) @ RM 140 ++ per person

New Year Eve’s Menu (with 2 drinks) @ RM 150 ++ per person

Definitely a nice surprise as The Speakeasy Restaurant and Bar serves up a mean and gorgeous Western fair with a lovely modern touch! The set meal is worth its price considering there is wine pairing for each course and portions are decent. I personally think its value for money as I have tried other wine pairing set meals and most of them are above this price. Make sure to call ahead for reservations for both menus!

Location map

The Speakeasy Restaurant & Bar

9, Ming Annexe,

Jalan Ampang, Lebuh Ampang,

59000 Kuala Lumpur

Phone: +603 2078 8830

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/speakeasykl

Operation Hours:

10am to 10pm: Mondays to Fridays

Happy Hours:

5pm to 10pm: Mondays to Fridays

*Thanks to the Owners of The Speakeasy and Ramesh for the invite!