Editor’s Note – November 2018


[Editor’s Note]
New Chef at Hemisphere Restaurant & Bar Kuala Lumpur
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The outstanding view of the Kuala Lumpur skyline from Hemisphere Restaurant & Bar Kuala Lumpur
 
November is always a special month to me because yes… I was born in November! Kathy and I decided to head over to Hemisphere Restaurant & Bar in Kuala Lumpur to try out the new menu by their new chef Atanu Nath who is an European cuisine chef with more than 18 years of culinary experience with leading luxury hotel chains and restaurants.
Now Hemisphere Restaurant & Bar has been around for some years now and remains a popular venue for celebrations such as birthday, anniversaries, etc. etc. We even noticed a table of girls enjoying a girls’ night out, among the tables of couples there on their romantic dates. This is definitely due to the very panoramic view of the Kuala Lumpur city skyline from the restaurant. However, I’ve never actually heard anyone recommend the food there previous so I was curious to see what Chef Atanu had in store for us!
Chef Atanu has a strong background in Italian, French, British and Japanese Cuisine and started his culinary career at the Fairmont Bab Al Bahr, in Abu Dhabi, which houses the best fine dining steakhouse of the city – “Marco Pierre White’s Steakhouse and Grill” by celebrity Chef “Marco Pierre White”, as well as fine dining Italian restaurant “Frankies” by Chef Marco Pierre white and celebrity jockey, Frankie Dettori.
He then moved on to work at the Burj Al Arab in Dubai, and was trained by Michelin star chef Mansour Memarian, in one of the best seafood restaurants in the UAE – “The AL-Mahara” seafood restaurant which serves contemporary seafood with the most beautiful aquarium inside the restaurant.
Chef Atanu then took on the responsibilities as Senior Sous Chef at Wheeler’s of St. James by (3 Michelin Star) Marco Pierre White before becoming the Executive Chef of the Asia-Asia restaurant at Pier-7, Dubai. Asia-Asia is a restaurant based on the original concept of “Spice –market” by Michelin Star Chef Jean Georges, where the cooking techniques were influenced by classical French cooking utilising Asian ingredients.
A stint as Executive Chef at “Cavalli Club Restaurant and Lounge” and “Blasé”, Dubai followed before he returned to India for a two (2) year attachment as corporate chef, before finally making his was over to helm the kitchen as Executive Chef of Hemisphere Restaurant & Bar here in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
 
The interior of Hemisphere Restaurant and Bar is dim and cosy and it’s no wonder that this place is very popular among couples celebrating special occasions, as well as groups celebrating birthdays

Pan seared Foie Gras, raspberry jelly, pomme puree, aged Modena balsamic onion puree, truffle jus, crispy brioche , fresh berries and figs
 

Butter poached Boston lobster, A5 Japanese wagyu, sevruga caviar and black truffle paste. Nori julienne, shitake on steamed and blow-torched Bucatini with carbonara sauce, beef bacon powder. Hickory smoke.
 

French Pigeon, pomme puree, chicken mousse stuffed Morels, fresh autumn truffle, grass-fed Angus beef tortellini, Malbec and fresh truffle jus
 

Raspberry sorbet,vanilla crumble, fresh raspberries
Very Instaworthy presentation indeed! Tasted very refreshing too and totally reset the palate for the mains.
 

Halibut en papillote, black eyed bean mouselline, confit leeks, sautéed chanterelles and Petit pois, Sauvignon Blanc and fish fumet (stock) foam
 

Black sesame financier with sesame butter liquid center, orange syrup, raspberry gel, charcoal Meringue , bubble sugar, chocolate croquant (which means crisp in French), Matcha ice cream
A very decadent end to the meal. Couldn’t stop eating the matcha ice cream!
 
                        
  
Well what a pleasant surprise to have such a sophisticated and elevated meal by a truly skilful and talented chef! Chef Atanu brought his experience and skills from Michelin Star kitchens all the way to Kuala Lumpur, serving up some well-thought through dishes that are complex in technique, and have a lovely balance of flavours and textures. All at a very reasonable price-point! Very surprising indeed! I’m guessing that I will be hearing more about the food at Hemisphere Restaurant & Bar in the future!
  
Hemisphere Restaurant & Bar is located at:
Regalia Residence,
2, Jalan Sultan Ismail,
Chow Kit,
50480 Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia.
 
Telephone: +603-2742 1098
Website: http://www.hemispherekl.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hemispherekl/
 

 
Tea at Hideaway Happy Mansion, Section 17 Petaling Jaya
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Joanne and I chanced upon this quaint little cafe while we were searching for a place to have lunch after church on Sunday. It is located in Happy Mansion in Section 17, Petaling Jaya which is slowly but surely becoming a place with a couple of hipster eateries. I prefer the Happy Mansion area as it is way less crowded and congested as compared to Section 17’s market square (where the old cinema used to be) which is quite crazily packed with patrons these days (good luck trying to find parking there). Who knew that the old and sleepy neighbourhood of Section 17 PJ would end up like this?
Anyway, back to Hideaway cafe. From the outside, the cafe was pretty unassuming and looked like an ordinary cafe…
 
It’s pretty hard to spot the cafe so just round the block until you see the entrance
But once I was inside, I was so impressed by the decor
It’s a very Instagramable spot!
The “fireplace”
The array of cakes! Order at the counter and your food and beverages will be sent to your table.
This was the best seller – the Pandan Gula Melaka cake with a sprinkling of sea salt! We had a slice of this and we were very impressed with the flavours and moistness of the cake!
A few other creations that we intend to try the next time we’re here.
This cake was also highly recommended by the proprietor Doreen who’s known among those who frequent Publika as she had a shop there.

As it was lunchtime, we ordered some pasta. This was the grilled chicken pasta with pesto sauce. Pretty decent!
But this was the surprise – Nasi Lemak Pasta! Basically all the elements of a nasi lemak with the rice replaced with pasta! Spicy and very flavourful and with some chunks to chicken to add some protein to the dish!
Scones with butter and homemade passion fruit jam which was absolutely wonderful! You can also opt to have it with cream and jam.
  
Hideaway cafe is located at:
AG-7, Happy Mansion,
Jalan 17/13,
Section 17,
46400 Petaling Jaya,
Selangor, Malaysia.
 
Telephone: 017-883 4438
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hideaway17/
Operating Hours: Open daily from 11am to 8pm (open till 10pm on weekends)
  
We will definitely be back to try more of their cakes!
  

  
Coca Restaurant at Bangsar Shopping Centre
The interior of the Coca Restaurant in Bangsar Shopping Centre is modern and cheery!
  
My partner in crime and I decided to try out the newly opened Coca Restaurant in BSC which is located at TK1, Level 3, Bangsar Shopping Centre, as she was feeling in the mood for something soupy. The restaurant occupies the lot which was formerly TwentyOne, and was pretty bustling on a Saturday evening. In fact, every table was occupied therefore I really recommend that you make a reservation if you intend to visit during peak hours. As we were there rather early, we were fortunate to get a table.
  
Honestly, my Huawei Mate 10 Pro with its dual Leica rear cameras is so good that sometimes I don’t even bother bringing my camera out with me. It’s also handy for impromtu occasions where I decide to snap some pics of the food/ restaurant, and it’s also pretty awesome for portrait shots.
We opted for the chicken broth as she was slightly under the weather. It was adequately flavourful and got sweeter as more and more ingredients were added.
The beef was pretty good. Not cheap though (the whole menu was very Bangsar price) but it was fresh and flavourful!
I really enjoyed the meatballs stuffed with cheese! Let these cool adequately though as the cheese can be piping hot!
However, I’d recommend that you avoid ordering the seaweed wrapped fish as they were not too fresh and had a very strong fishy smell.