MIGF 2013: Nook @ Aloft Kuala Lumpur Sentral Featuring International & Asian

A Luxurious and Modern East Malaysia MIGF Menu!

It’s definitely modern, futuristic and funky… now it’s amped up with opulent! Nook at Aloft Kuala Lumpur Sentral is proud to showcase their MIGF 2013 menu with a modern twist on Asian cuisine. Dining at Nook is always fun. Besides the contemporary and funky interior, there is always a fun element in the dining experience.

Nook’s all-day-dining experience is set boldly in bright contemporary colors of apple green and white with additional elements of wood and glass. Enjoy dining at Nook at the spacious table settings or choose their sectioned cabin booths for privacy.

Lead by Executive Chef Steven Seow, Nook’s MIGF menu is inspired from East Malaysia and jazzed up Aloft style. “There isn’t much effort done to promote delicacies from East Malaysia and I felt that it is a waste as there are just so much hidden treasures in Sabah and Sarawak!” quotes Chef Steven. The executive chef has won many accolades from all his experience from working in 1 star Michelin restaurant in Paris and many different 5 and 4 stars in Malaysia.

As we settled down for out starter, our first wine was poured. A white one, Villa Maria Chardonnay from New Zealand, its fruity and crisp. A light bouquet, the chardonnay is really easy to enjoy and went well with seafood.

Smoked Scallop Umai Sushi, Duck Confit with Pomegranate & Yogurt Sphere

A conversation piece, this artistically decorated starter arrived in style! As soon as one lifts the glass, whiffs of smoke disintegrate into air. Umai is raw fish or seafood made popular in East coast. Enjoy the umai sushi first since the flavors are delicate and then followed by the duck confit.

Here, it is delicately balanced on pink tinged sushi rice and crowned with flying fish roe, radish and seaweed. A side dropper allows guests personalized their sushi with just the right amount of soya sauce. The scallop is sweet and fresh and goes nicely with the sushi rice followed by lightly crunchy textures from the fish roes.

Moving on to the quenelle of duck confit, it has pretty decent flavors of the slow cooked duck. Not too rich, it also has an earthy taste. My only gripe… I would love a little more of this! Did I mention that a little molecular gastronomy was also present? There is a little white sphere that burst in my mouth to fill it with tangy yoghurt while pomegranate coulis is served to balance the tangy sphere.

There are two options of main course to be selected. The 1^st choice of main course is paired with Leffe Blonde beer, a beautiful golden blonde colored beer that is smooth and finished with a hint of bitterness.

Sarawak Lobster and Abalone Laksa with Organic Soba Noodles

The star of the night, this was an awesome bowl of Sarawak laksa that was made luxurious with lobster and abalone. Talk about going luxurious, the highly prized lobster is grilled and served on the side while the slices of abalone are placed on the organic soba noodles.

The wait staff would then pour hot laksa gravy from a teapot to the soba. Indeed a bowl of scrumptious and well spiced up gravy, the laksa was perfect in my books. Not overly creamy but redolent of lots of perfumed spices, its spicy and addictive. So much so, I drank very drop of the gravy in my bowl. There is a side of chili sauce with some lime to be added for more oomph!

The 2^nd main course went finer and was paired with a red Shiraz from Australia, Madfish. It’s not too dry and has soft tannins. Quite rich and dark, it has nice cherry notes that seem to paired well with the spices in the beef.

Wagyu Beef Rendang, Farm Vegetables, Achar Jelatah, Tumeric Coconut Rice

A clever use of wagyu beef cheek, this one is braised till soft and melts-in-the-mouth. Rich in spices, the rendang is also very fragrant of coconut. The flavors are robust but not spicy. Served with a spicy and tangy pickled vegetable and aromatic turmeric tinged coconut rice with quail eggs, peanuts and crispy fried anchovies, this is one platter that is fit for royalty.

It is a hard decision to choice the above two main dishes as both shine equally in their own flavors and textures.

Eight Treasures Ais Kacang

A national classic, Chef Steven’s concoction of Eight Treasures Ais Kacang is playfully served with syringes. This version is just fresh as there are plenty of fruits like mango, blueberry, strawberry, peach, jackfruit, lychee, jelly balls, cincau and roasted pine nuts. All this is crowned with vanilla ice cream. Here comes the best part… having fun with flavoring the ice kacang with all the fruity syrups and milk.

It may be fairly simple but the combination is really good! Fresh, sweet, creamy, icy, lots of different textures… it’s a very sweet ending!

Coffee or tea is served.

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MIGF Full Menu & Wine Pairing

*Starter

Smoked Scallop Umai Sushi

Duck Confit with Pomegranate and Yogurt Sphere

Villa Maria Chardonnay, NZ

*Main

Sarawak Lobster and Abalone Laksa with Organic Soba Noodles

Beer: Leffe Blonde

OR

Wagyu Beef Rendang, Farm Vegetables, Achar Jelatah, Tumeric Coconut Rice

Madfish, Shiraz, Australia

*Dessert

Eight Treasures Ais Kacang

Coffee & Tea

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Full Festival Menu

RM280 ++ per person with wine & beer pairing

RM180 ++ per person without wine & beer pairing

*Light Festival Menu

(Light Menu not inclusive of Wagyu Beef Rendang)

RM160++ per person with wine

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Nook managed to impress again… this time with their MIGF menu. Chef Steven shows that East Malaysia cuisine can also be taken up to another level and he did it with finesse. Highlights are the sumptuous main courses that will make your mouth water. Make your reservations this whole month of October for a taste of Nook’s MIGF 2013 menu!

NOOK

Aloft Kuala Lumpur Sentral

No 5, Jalan Stesen Sentral,

50470 Kuala Lumpur,

Malaysia

Phone: +603 2723 1188

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

Business Hours:

6:30 AM - 10:30 AM; 12:00 PM - 2:30 PM; 6:30 PM - 10:30 PM