The Mix, Holiday Inn Kuala Lumpur Glenmarie: A New Gastronomic Menu Awaits You!

A Fusion Interpretation of Chef Francis’s Culinary Forte at The Mix!

Devised with a motive to take its diners around the world, The Mix, located at Holiday Inn Kuala Lumpur Glenmarie, is proud to present Chef Francis Lau’s fusion interpretation of a new eclectic menu! Carefully crafted and created by the enthusiastic chef, whose passion is obvious through the gleam in his eyes when talking about food, the menu comprises a list of fusion tapas, appetizers, soups, steaks, seafood to pasta and pizza.

Don’t expect regular dishes as every dish is injected with a personal touch by Chef Francis Lau through his creative juices in combining a touch of East meets West! Chef Francis, whose experience gained through his travels, is delighted to share his creations with such palatable energy as we were treated to an amazing glimpse of what the new menu showcased.

At The Mix, famous for its cocktails and mocktails concoctions, we gladly savored a list of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks that night. My Pina Colada was creamy and dreamy with the coconut, pineapple and rum concoction!

Don’t forget that Mojitos are one of their signatures! The Lychee Mojito was scented with loads of mint and zest up with lime while lychee sweetened up the cocktail.

We began our dinner dramatically with A Set of Six Fusion Tapas (RM45) featuring six types of tapas influenced from various regions from America to Mexico to China and India. The six tapas forms the list of Fusion Tapas and one can order them individually or in a set of three and six, all priced accordingly.

Clockwise from Left:

Paneer Makhani delights tasters with its creamy homemade cheese paneer, seasoned with a tinge of garam masala and served in a crispy cup topped with cashew. Quaker Oats Prawn represents the all American favorite of crispy prawns coated in oats and dressed in pomelo sacs and a spicy plum sauce. Mexican Chimichangas are fried crispy tortilla spring roll encasing spicy chicken chili con carne and lighten up with creamy avocado and sour cream.

Jalapeno Chicken, another Mexican fusion representation, showcased pickled green jalapeno chili rolled with chicken breast and served with salsa and sour cream for a zingy bite (my favorite). Balsamic Lamb Skewers deviates from the Italian on the use of balsamic vinegar in the marinade of the tender lamb skewers. Poached squid paste mixed with mushroom duxell and garlic chives sums up Ika Jiaozi.

Another appetizer that created a great artistic impression was the Apuzzo Crab Cakes (RM30)! Strategically skewered with gravity defying presentation, the lemon basil flavor crab patties were fried to a golden crisp and served with a seafood ragout. The taste fell a little short for this as the flavors seemed too complicated for my taste bud.

Out of the four soups in the menu, we savored a glorious Southern Crab Bisque (RM32). The thick seafood broth is very heavenly on the flavors featuring spicy, creamy and rich flavors of the ocean in a spoon. I like the luscious bisque so much that I had a whole bowl of this to myself…deliriously yummy! If seafood bisque is not your cup of tea, try the Wild Mushroom Soup, Portugese Soup or even the infamous version of Seafood Tom Yam.

Salads are no ordinary fare at The Mix but jazzed up with protein for an encouraging bite for non-salad eaters like me. A serious Yakuza BBQ Chicken (RM22) has a whole piece of chicken thigh char-grilled with teriyaki sauce sitting on a bed of Japanese coleslaw and accompanied by Tempura cheese. Flavors are sweet and savory from the chicken while sweet and sour slaw lightens up the rich and cheesy fried cheese. Love the tempura cheese a lot!! The Mix Caesar (RM25) is omega rich with the grilled salmon accompanying the romaine lettuce dressed in the garlicky and creamy Caesar dressing.

I must rave about the Brazilian Style Grilled Lamb (RM50)!! Salivate at tender and scrumptious pieces of lamb rack grilled to perfection. The juicy lamb portions are a lovely sight while flavors are scented with herbs and dressed in hint of spicy and sour dressing. Accompanying the red meat is Chimichurri laced potatoes and vegetables with Salsa Verde. A bold and inspiring dish with exotic flavors… definitely one of the must-have at The Mix!!

Madras Lamb Kofta (RM40) is skewers of minced lamb flavored with a Mediterranean twist and served with Greek Tzatziki, a creamy yoghurt sauce, and Garlic Tortilla.

Carnivores would be delighted at the beefy offerings in the new Menu! Check out the signature BBQ Short Beef Ribs (RM50) and its gargantuan portion from the bone to the meat. What’s not to love when one forks into tender rib meat that melts into an oblivion of a meat ecstasy in the rich dark savory gravy? Creamy garlic herb mashed potatoes and vegetables provided the required carbohydrates and vitamins for the meaty fare. I wanted to hold ransom the dish for my own consumption that night… winks!

A Mediterranean inspired dish, the Harissa Beef Tenderloin (RM55) comprises of a succulent thick piece of seared beef tenderloin seasoned up with a Tunisian spice paste called harissa and served with the same spice sauce. Read about harissa here. Presented with roasted potato wedges and vegetable fricassee, the tenderloin was very flavorful from the spices.

Not a meat lover? Fear not, poultry and seafood dishes are plenty on the list of the new menu. A very interesting chook named aptly Asam Asam Chicken (RM35) was inspired by Northern Sumatran ingredient called tamarind. Read about tamarind here. Expect sour and sweet flavors from the asam marinated chicken served with a zesty mango slaw. Other poultry dishes are Kelewele Chicken, Episode 02 Baby Chicken and Dukkah Crusted Chicken.

Seafood list showcase Salmo Salar, Baccala Mantecato, Sea Bass Black Wu Chiu, Horikiri Seafood Combo and Shirao and Abura-Bonzu Karaage. We tried the peppery Sea Bass Black Wu Chiu (RM40) where slices of pan fried sea bass are doused liberally with black pepper sauce. Quite a bold move since the pungent peppery sauce is more often paired with meat. The fish was very delicate so the peppery sauce overpowered the sweet flavors of the fish. Served with crispy matchsticks of yam and vegetables, the spicy fish was a daring creation from Chef Francis.

From its list of ten varieties of pizzas, we savored four in the form of Taj Mahal Naan Bread Pizza (RM28), Beijing Style Pizza (RM30), Neptune Pizza (RM32) and Hunter Valley Pizza (RM32).

An Indian inspiration, the Taj Mahal Naan Bread Pizza uses naan bread as a base while chunks of chicken tandoori and cabbage spiced with cumin is delicately covered with feta cheese and coriander. Beijing Style Pizza is my favorite of the three as the pizza is covered with chicken and black fungus sauced up with plum sauce. The pizza has a great combination factor of sweet and savory flavors while the crunchy black fungus adds an interesting touch to the bread.

Neptune Pizza is an oceanic fare of calamari, tuna and mussel all jazzed up with onions and capers while Hunter Valley Pizza has an unusual filling of tender sliced venison mixed with sweet apple for a truly unique flavor. The pizza was unusual but fairly smooth on taste and textures. High marks for creativity here on Hunter Valley.

Stuffed to the max with a few notches moved on the belt, I was surprised at myself for finishing a small sample portion of the Fusion Pasta (RM35). Unpretentious pasta cooked with chicken, chili and pesto, the spaghetti is superb as it is spicy, garlicky and robust in flavors. My mouth went up in flames with a bite but I kept going back for more as the thrill was quite intoxicating in the simple pasta dish. My kind of pasta with lots of oomph!!

Dessert, dessert… after all, what’s life without desserts? Highly recommended is Warm Chocolate Bread Pudding (RM30) featuring a luscious chocolate bread pudding laced with egg custard. Wobbly and quite sinful, I like this since I am a big fan of bread and pudding. A scoop of vanilla ice cream would have perfected this dessert. Rich dark and white chocolate sauce deepens the dessert like a dream!

Another no brainer combination was Tartès Bananas (RM25) where a big wedge of banana tart with almond cream is served with a big dollop of sweet blue berry compote. Banana lovers, this might be your dream dessert!

Ginger Crème Brulèe (RM25) faired mediocre in my books. I had high expectations for the creamy wobbly custard but this one was a wee bit too firm for me. Nevertheless, credit given for that lovely crusty golden crust on the brulèe and the delightful fruit skewers accompanying the brulèe.

Mango Chukana (RM25) sounds interesting as it consist of rolled crepes served with mango cubes and Butterscotch ice cream. A fruity one for the sweet tooth!

Met a new blogger, Monica and her hubby that night! She gave us a fabulous sensual and sexy salsa performance that had me wanting to sign up for salsa lessons that very minute!! J

Simply bold and vibrant, the new Menu at The Mix is truly a worldwide sight for the eyes! Chef Francis has outdone himself in creating the cornucopia dishes at The Mix. Diners can expect nothing but a wonderland of dishes fusion with East meets West concept while presentation is nothing short of spectacular. Prices are slightly above average but quality is present for its value. Do check out The Mix for an evening of some rest and relax or simply hang out after work to enjoy the food and drinks while listening to the live band featured!

THE MIX

Holiday Inn Kuala Lumpur Glenmarie
1 Jalan Usahawan U1/8, Seksyen U1,
40250 Shah Alam, Selangor D.E. Malaysia

Tel: +603 7803 1000 Extn: 7376
Email at themix@holidayinnkl.com.my

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/themix.hiklg

Website: http://eatanddrink.blog.com/

*Read about The Mix from my past visits here and here.