Kim Ma Restaurant, Palace of the Golden Horses – Chef Roy Wong’s revamped menu

The last time I was in Kim Ma Restaurant, I remember vaguely a restaurant that was very traditionally Chinese in décor, with the obligatory lanterns hanging all over it. Yes, it has been that long.

All that had changed now. Kim Ma has just gone through quite a massive refurbishment. I love the new look. Its understated elegance in muted shades of bronze and gold is amplified through the majestic-looking shiny beams criss-crossing the ceiling in some auspicious-looking patterns. The warm earthy tones emanate an air of comforting welcome and yet maintain its modern chic. The general feel was that Kim Ma’s makeover has transformed it into a modern Chinese restaurant without compromising on its traditional offerings.

The restaurant’s 5 private rooms are plush and luxurious. Sofa sets are placed at the front for guests to chill with pre-dinner drinks before adjourning to the dining area at the back. Kim Ma now has a seating capacity of 120 including the 5 private rooms.

Executive Chinese Chef Roy Wong has come up with a new menu and we had a chance to sample some of his new creations recently. Even before meeting him, I have heard much about Chef Roy’s amazingly creative culinary skills and I couldn’t wait for dinner to start.

We were served Chef Roy’s famous amuse bouche – a Soft-boiled Egg with Japanese mushrooms, served in its own shell – a simple and beautiful presentation. Perfectly boiled, the egg white was creamy and its luscious runny yolk mixed deliciously with the sweet earthy mushrooms.

A platter of Chef Roy’s signature dim sum came next. All 3 were steamed – I have no complaints. The Steamed Prawn Dumplings with Truffle looked like regular “siew mai’s” but these had prawn meat with black mushrooms topped with truffle and garnished prettily with shrimp roe and spring onions. Very old school basic dim sum but bursting with freshness in the bouncy texture.

The Steamed Chicken Roll with Morel Mushrooms used Hong Kong Beancurd Skin which is smoother and silkier. In between the minced chicken and mushrooms, there were strips of deep-fried yam sticks yielding a firm mouth-feel to those rolls – a clever touch by Chef Roy.

The delicate-looking Steamed Angled Loofa Dumplings with Superior Broth was a pretty sight to behold. The dumpling skin was thin and translucent – the pinkish prawns and green loofa within were semi-visible. The dumplings were served soaked in a sweet clear superior broth – this is a definite re-order for me!

Kim Ma Restaurant serves dim sum for lunch on week days and on weekends, dim sum is available from 10 am onwards. Prices start at RM10++ per item.

With a revamped menu, Chef Roy is all out to wow his diners, many of whom are his regulars. However, many of his signature dishes still remain in the special set menus and some on the a la carte menu – they are just too good to ditch.

Chef Roy’s famous Double-boiled Minced Chicken Broth with Fish Maw and Black Chicken Quenelle (RM45.50++) was a typical example of the man’s genius. One would never guess that the delicate creamy layer floating by the side of the soup bowl was actually minced chicken and not tofu. It had the light silky texture of beancurd or whipped eggwhite – it’s mind-blowing how that could have come from minced chicken! The quenelle was delicious: firm and bouncy texture of the black chicken mixed with some crunchy diced water chestnuts.

In the next two dishes, we had a glimpse of Chef Roy’s penchant for creative modern interpretations of Chinese cuisine. Chicken Ravioli with shaved truffles and stuffed morel mushrooms with prawn paste in porcini sauce (RM32.50++) was Chef Roy’s interpretation of the Italian pasta. The difference was that the texture of his ravioli was smooth and unctuous. The ravioli skin had been firstly steamed and then soaked in water for 2 minutes to get the right texture.

The Stir-fried Broccoli with Sweet Corn Yam Puff (RM8.50++ per individual portion) looked really pretty with the florets and puffs strewn across a shiny creamy yam broth. The yam puffs with sweet corn were refreshingly a good match.

Pan-fried King Prawns with XO Sauce (RM48++ per portion) would be something to indulge on if you are a fan of prawns. The halved king prawn was really fresh and succulent and it’s a good thing the chef went easy on the XO sauce so as not to mar the natural sweetness of the prawn.

A good dish to go with plain rice would be the Tofu with diced chicken and salted fish in claypot. The soft smooth tofu was really good and anything with salted fish in a claypot earns bonus points from me. Enough said.

Fried fresh mushroom rice with baked garlicky cod (RM33.80++) was another fusionistic dish from Chef Roy. This was a winning combo as the tender velvety cod was an excellent accompaniment for the aromatic rice.

Dessert was something interesting: Chilled Yacon with Mango Sauce, Vanilla Ice Cream and Rice Crispies (RM12.50++). I liked the rice crispies more than the rest of the components. These were not those packaged cereal box rice crispies but rather black glutinuous rice which had been fried and puffed up in Chef Roy’s kitchen.

Kim Ma Restaurant
Palace of the Golden Horses
Jalan Kuda Emas
Mines Wellness City
43300 Seri Kembangan
Selangor
Tel: 03-8946-4888
Fax: 03-8943-2666

Guests who spend a minimum of RM300 at Kim Ma Restaurant will be entitled to a complimentary Mines Privilege Card

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