A Weekend Getaway at Empire Hotel, Subang Jaya

How often do you wish you can get away just for the weekend, to somewhere not too far away and yet be able to enjoy a break from the mundanes of a regular weekend? If you are living around the Klang Valley and wish to do that, well, the Empire Hotel Subang may just be the place.  Not only does it provide the perfect weekend not-too-far-away kinda getaway, it is also perfect for business travellers whose businesses are mainly located in the Petaling Jaya/Subang/Klang areas and they do not want the hassle of travelling to or staying in a city hotel in downtown Kuala Lumpur.

A boutique hotel located in Subang Jaya, it houses 198 rooms in a 13-storey building. The hotel is easily accessible via the Federal Highway, Lebuhraya Damansara-Puchong (LDP), New Klang Valley Expressway (NKVE) and the Subang-Kelana Link that connects to the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport Highway with Shah Alam Expressway (KESAS) and New Pantai Highway (NPE) just few kilometres away. Public transportations are all at hands reach, particularly trains from the KTM Komuter station that inter-connects to Kuala Lumpur City Centre, so guests still have the option of easy transportation to town should they want to go shopping or have other errands in the city.

Recently we had a chance to check out this hotel in the Subang neighbourhood. Checking-in was a breeze at the chic ultra-cool reception. The lift took us up to the “Empire Sanctuary” floor where our Duplex Suite was located. Just love those funky black & white motifs on the carpet, don’t you?!  The spacious suite is extremely comfortable. I love the floor-to-ceiling glass windows on the lower level, the plush sofa in the living area and the bright colourful floral motifs of the chairs at the dining table. There’s a little kitchenette too, fully-equipped with crockery, microwave oven and refrigerator in case you’d like some eating-in while staying here. Well we didn’t get to use this as our meals were all taken in the restaurants of the hotel.

It’s the first time we’re staying in a Duplex suite!  We walked up the wood-panelled staircase to the upper level and were greeted by a king-sized bed that looked extremely inviting. We loved the Crabtree & Evelyn toiletries in the bathroom. But what I really loved was the dedicated workspace room complete with an executive working table and chair where I could catch up a bit on my net surfing, thanks to the fast wifi!

On the bedside console, there’s a iPod docking station, wired internet broadband connection and of course an IDD phone system all available within easy reach from the bed. Oh, did I mention the 32” LCD TV in the room with in-house satellite movie stations? We watched 2 movies while staying there… just had to max out that fine in-room entertainment system!

Generally, the rooms in The Empire Hotel are very spacious and ultra comfortable. Choose from Premier Essential or Premier Dualistic or Premier Clique or for the ultimate, go for the Empire Sanctuary Optima Duplex Suite.  Published prices starts from RM520 (Premier Essential) to RM1750 (Empire Sanctuary Optima).

Additionally, the Empire Hotel Subang offers comprehensive meeting and conference facilities with three meeting rooms -Throne, Crown, Scepter and one Emperor Ballroom to suit all your meeting requirements. The state-of-art Emperor Ballroom has LED lights that can change colour accordingly, curved wooden ceiling panels and artistically designed mural on the wall.

Shout Lounge, located on Level 2, their friendly neighborhood lounge is stylish yet comfortable, is a great place to host all kinds of occasions, parties, product launches, networking events, get-together or even just to unwind a long day’s work. Shout Lounge offers all a variety of beverage choices, breathes a contemporary urban feel with cool lightings and today’s best music.

Kitchen Art Brasserie (located on Level 2) is Empire Hotel’s main dining outlet … it’s elegantly decorated while showcasing the breath-taking view of Subang Jaya. This outlet features an endless parade of colours, textures and flavors from all over the world, artistically fused together for an unforgettable dining experience. Both the indoor and outdoor areas of this outlet is an architect’s dream with the curved wooden panels on the ceiling and artistic chairs.

Do check out their website: www.empirehotel.com.my and you’ll see there are some really attractive offers available now!

The hotel stay packages come with complimentary buffet breakfast at their Kitchen Art Brasserie which serves a decent spread of continental and local items.

 

Di Wei Chinese cuisine restaurant, will satisfy most Oriental cravings, thanks to their scrumptious selections of freshly steamed dim sum, Cantonese and Shanghainese dishes and top quality wine selections for all wine enthusiasts out there. This restaurant is located on level 1 and is unlike most other Chinese restaurants as it has chic white furniture and an expansive wine cellar.

 Crispy-skin Roast Pork

 Szechuan Soup

 Stuffed Lotus Roots

 Wagyu Beef stir-fried with Garlic

 Lotus Leaf Rice

Desserts: Pumpkin Puree with Strawberries and Tong Yuen with Sesame Paste filling

So, it was at Di Wei that we decided to have our lunch. Since we had already sampled their dim sum offerings before – read our review here – we decided to try some of their regular Cantonese and Shanghainese fare from their menu. Seeing “Roast Pork” on the menu, DL can never resist this – it’s as if next to the “Roast Pork” item, there’s a SOS that says “EAT ME”!  Layers of fat and lean meat pork belly topped with crunchy skin – who can resist?  I like the spicy sour and hot Szechuan Soup, which proved to be an excellent appetizer.  It paved the way for more delicious items like the Stuffed Lotus Roots and tender lipsmacking Wagyu stir-fried with fragrant garlic.  We rounded off the meal with some cold Pumpkin Puree with tangy slices of strawberries and my favourite Tong Yuen – glutinuous rice balls bursting with gooey sesame paste filling boiled in a refreshing gingery soup.  Ahhh…. life is good.

For more information on Empire Hotel Subang, kindly contact 03 – 5565 1388 or log onto www.empirehotel.com.my today.