If you, like me, have never been to Ti Chen – the Chinese restaurant of The Saujana Hotel Kuala Lumpur, you may find it a bit confusing to locate it. It’s actually located in the Saujana Golf & Country Club. Walk up a flight of stairs and you will see the entrance of the restaurant on your right. Newly refurbished, Ti Chen now spots lots of rich red and black tones in the furniture and walls. Ornate oriental-style carved wood panels, shimmery drapes and bright red lanterns hang from the ceiling, giving the restaurant a very authentic “Chinese” feel. With the completion of the refurbishment, Ti Chen has 2 things to celebrate: the new revamped look and the introduction of their 2 new chefs – Chef Lai Chong Sheng and Dim Sum Chef Yau Kim Yew.
While we have yet to try Chef Yau’s dim sum, we recently had a taste of some of Chef Lai’s a la carte dishes. Starting off with Roasted Duck and Mandarin Orange Salad, we like the Wafu Dressing that’s drizzled over the salad. The light tangy Japanese-style vinaigrette dressing, with hints of soya sauce, was perfectly matched with the roasted duck slices.
Steamed Cod with Preserved Radish was executed well by the chef. While it may not be a very unique interpretation, we like the flaky tender texture of the cod, which had been steamed to just the right level of done-ness. The saltish taste of the preserved radish gave the dish a dash of character.
Steamed Prawns & Scallops with Green Ginger Puree was rather interesting. Prawns hugging a scallop each and topped with a fine paste of ginger and spring onions, they were then steamed with a sprinkling of Chinese wolfberries.
At this point, you can see that Chef Lai loves the “healthy” approach in his dishes. This was reinforced in the Homemade Beancurd with Crabmeat & Pumpkin Puree. The addition of Shimeji mushrooms and fresh edamame in this dish gave it more colour and dimension. It’s a tasty dish… may not look very presentable in the photo as the pumpkin puree was very thick and kinda overpowered the dish, visually.
My favourite dish was the Fried Rice with Tobikko & Crispy Beancurd Skin. The grains were evenly tossed with sufficient “wok hei”, well-flavoured and those crispy bits of beancurd skin gave it an interesting mouthfeel. I also like the popping effects of the tobikko!
Seabird Nest with Aloe Vera in Longan Syrup ended the meal on a sweet and refreshing note.
The 39-year-old cheerful Chef Lai Chong Seng comes with 19 years of culinary experience. He has worked in the Seychelles and the UAE as well as manning the kitchens in several deluxe hotels and country clubs in Malaysia. Chef Lai’s portfolio covers local and foreign experiences establishing his skills in Cantonese and Szechuan cuisines; he’s also an expert in fruit and vegetable carving.
Ti Chen
Saujana Resort
Jalan Lapangan Terbang SAAS
40150 Selangor
Tel: 03-7843-1234
Fax: 03-7846-2789
Opens for Lunch from 12.00noon to 2.30pm and for Dinner from 6.30pm to 10.00pm
www.thesaujanahotel.com