Celestial Court @ Sheraton Imperial Kuala Lumpur

 

Celestial Court is a Chinese restaurant housed in Sheraton Imperial KL that serves exquisite Cantonese Fusion food. They serve Dim Sum during the day and also cater for event and wedding functions in the evenings.

THE RESTAURANT

What stands out immediately about this restaurant is the modern balcony that is the entrance into this venue. Creatively this little architecture can be used very pleasantly for weddings to give it a great grand feel to your wedding.

Preceding this balcony is a long stairwell that can be nicely decorated as well. There are some seating areas that has a viewing window out to the KL city.

 

WEDDING/EVENT NOTES

Should you want to book up the whole restaurant for your event, it is able to seat up to 100 people. Wedding set menus start from about RM168++ per person and they do have a minimum spending of RM17,000++ if you should want to reserve the whole restaurant.

They are also open to setting up a raised platform should you need a stage for you or your band.

Following Sheraton Imperial’s house rules, the restaurant is good for you to use until about 10.30pm for your event.

Something unique about this restaurant is also the availability of matching coloured Ratan chairs instead of your typical banquet chairs.

There are ample parking space for your guests and hotel jockey services are provided.

Celestial Court would be a cozy venue for Chinese food dining with its oriental contemporary interior and unique balcony design for your wedding.

 

2013 MENU SET OPTION FOR EVENTS

1. Celestial Court Four Hot Combinations

This is the traditional ‘Four Season’ starter dish at your meal and Celestial Court adds their own twist into the menu.

The 4 mini dishes are:

• Stir Fried ‘Kong Poh’ Topshell Szechuan Style
  My first bite into this dish was a nice crunchy feel and as I continue to chew on it, it has a great juicy follow-up
• Deep Fried Spring Roll
  The uniqueness of this traditional dish is the ‘German Mee Hoon’ that blends well with the Chicken and Prawn paste
• Steam Dumpling
  A very fresh tasting dish due to the way it is cooked to preserve the freshness of the prawn, and then combined with mince chicken, parsley and water chestnut
  [SECRET TIP!] I asked how they preserved the prawn’s freshness and Chef told me that they marinate the prawns with sugar for 1 hour and then flash it with water for another hour! This also helps get rid of its ‘fishy’ smell!
• Beancurd Roll
  A unique twist to the traditional beancurd with prawn and fish paste, Chef adds unsalted cheddar cheese to the mix!

2. Braised Assorted Dried Seafood Soup and Crab Meat, Crab Roe

One of many hotels who has taken to a no shark’s in on the menu policy, Celestial Court offers this seafood soup which has an assortment of crab meat, crab meat roe, sea cucumber, dried scallop and abalone.

The soup is served in individual bowls so that it remains hot while you are drinking it.

The most important aspect of any great soup is its soup base and Chef uses his added secret ingredient of Chicken Feet to the normal whole chicken. This is because it creates a slight glazed feel to the soup that gives is the smooth texture.

3. Signature Roasted Duck with Spice Flavour in Thai Spicy Mango Sauce

Usually if you dine this dish at most other restaurant, the roast duck will be accompanied with a plum sauce. Chef at this restaurant instead… uses a Mango sauce! Hearing mango sauce for the first time, I figured that this sauce would be a sour tasting but NO!… It was a nice sweet sauce that combined so well with the crispy duck skin and had me craving for more! It was VERY appetizing and I could not stop eating it!!

4. Steamed White Pomfret Fish with Supreme Oil and Celery Broth

I personally steam fish at home so I kind of know that the 2 main points of a good steamed fish dish is the freshness of the fish, and the sauce. Chef creates this exquisite sauce by Deep frying the fish bone, then boiling it for 3 hours together with celery, mushroom and chicken. Once done, he then pours the sauce over the fish, adds a dash of cili padi and steams it.

When you first taste the dish, you can taste the little kick from the cili and this blends well with a fresh tasting soup-based sauce.

5. Stewed Fish Maw with Chinese Mushroom and Whole Dried Scallop and Garden Green

You can’t really go wrong with fresh vegetables. but the blend of the fish maw and dried scallops went very well with the traditional greens. The fish maw was well stewed and had great texture to it

6. Poached Live Tiger Prawn with Chinese Herbs and Shredded Ginger, Spring Onion Soya Broth Sauce

This dish had a good sized selection of fresh prawns and the minute the dish was served, we could smell the chinese herbs. Chef explained that they cooked the prawns to about 70% ready with chicken broth and then he adds the chinese herbs, ‘tong kwai’ and wolfberry for a quick while and serves immediately. This is the secret to preserving the firm and juicy texture while still allowing the prawns to quickly absorb the herbs.

7. Lotus Leaf steamed Rice with Assorted Meat

This is a mixed glutinous and fragrant rice steamed dish and topped with mushroom, dried scallop, chicken, prawns and bamboo shoots.

8. Chilled Sea Coconut with Small Fungus and Longan with Chinese Pastries

The sweet desert is nicely chilled and was a good end to our meal. This mixed well with the pastries which were red bean filled and cutely shaped into strawberry and orange looking fruits!

 

Executive Chinese Chef – Ho Boon

Chef Ho Boon started his trade at the age of 17 and to date has about 32 years of culinary experience. His specialty is Szechuan style cooking that he finds a lot of inspiration from reading a lot of recipes in any free time that he has. His trick is to first choose the name of the dish and from there work out what the dish should be and how it is cooked. I had a chance to meet Chef Ho Boon, and he was a very friendly mild mannered person and had no problems sharing with me his tips when I asked him.

 

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VenueMenu Recommendation for Events/Weddings

Event Capacity: max 100 persons
Venue Table Arrangements: Mixture of round and square tables but can be flexible to change all to banquet tables.
Event Option: You can utilize the entrance balcony and have decorations placed in along the stairwell leading up to the restaurant. They will also have an option to setup a mini stage for a band if you wish to bring one.
Event Time: 12.30pm – 2.30pm OR 6.30 – 10.30pm (latest 11.00pm)
Location Convenience: Located in the heart of Kuala Lumpur
Halal/Non-Halal: Pork-Free
Type of Cuisine: Chinese Cantonese Fusion
Minimum Charge: RM17,000++ to book the whole restaurant
Advance Booking Period: Minimum 1 week in advance, subject to availability
Guest Parking: RM8 nett
Average Price per pax: from RM168++
Price Range*: $$$$

*price range is my personal rating system out of the overall venues that we have been to. It is a rating of between $ to $$$$$

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Celestial Court @Sheraton Imperial Kuala Lumpur Hotel
Jalan Sultan Ismail, 50250 Kuala Lumpur
www.sheraton.com/imperialkualalumpur

For reservations and enquiries, call +603.27179528

 

photos by Edwin Tan | Make-up by Agnes Yip

Villa Danieli @ Sheraton Imperial Kuala Lumpur

 

Villa Danieli is housed on the 5th floor of the Sheraton Imperial Hotel, a hotel located in the heart of Kuala Lumpur. The restaurant is a fine dining Italian restaurant which can also cater for events and small cozy weddings.

 

 

THE RESTAURANT

The first impression I got when I first arrived at the restaurant was I felt like I was in a typical Italian home with rich décor and a cozy woodsy feel. OK… I have never been to an Italian home.. but that’s how it made me feel!

Then came the aroma of the wood burning oven! Glancing up we can see a colourful hand painted mural which added to the overall ambience. This is as Italian as it gets!

WEDDING/EVENT NOTES

The restaurant can cater for about 100 people inside and an additional 50 people out on the balcony. The seating arrangements are mostly a mixture of round and square tables but they mentioned that it could possibly be replaced with banquet tables for events.

The choice for menu is either buffet or a pre-set menu and they would need at least a week in advance for reservations. To book up the whole restaurant, a minimum charge of RM20,000++ would need to be spent, however, they are quite flexible and open for discussion

There is a small space for a band if you would like to bring one over and they can help to setup a a platform stage for them.

Private events/weddings can be held there until 10.30pm where the restaurant will close. Parking is fixed at RM8 for functions at the restaurant

Villa Danieli is a nice venue for a small cozy wedding and has a nice view of KL Tower from the balcony and pool area which connects out from the restaurant. This also means that there is minimal decoration needed for your event.

The Pool Area is right next to the balcony of the restaurant

Overall, this is a really unique venue that you should consider to host your event/wedding

 

MENU CHOICES FOR EVENTS

Wedding Menu 2013 (Set Dinner) #1
This is one of the set menu options for weddings and they are flexible to mix the choices up to your liking. All these dishes had authentic Italian names to it but I’ll spare both of us the need to translate.

1. Antipasti Plate – Beef Carpaccio with truffle mushroom salad and parmesan shavings AND Buffalo mozzarella salad Sicilian Style

This starter dish is a very fresh and light due to the Sicilian Style dressing. It is a blend of Cherry tomatoes, basil, black olives and onions. It isn’t Italian without Olive Oil and you can taste the right amount of it in this dish. I even got a free crash course in Olive Oil appreciation

2. Pasta – Truffle risotto with saute mushroom sauce and parmesan

I really love the fresh truffles that is spread out on the dish. These truffles are air flown weekly from Italy! The sauce is rich and creamy and the only way I can describe it is it is.. super nice. Writing about this makes me feel like going back to the restaurant tonight!

3. Main (Choice 1) – Herbs steamer cod medallion with capsicum marinate “panzanella”, chick pea puree and lemon saffron butter sauce

For me the sauce was the main greatness of this dish. It was refreshing and creamy to the right texture and really compliments the fresh cod fish.

3. Main (Choice 2) – Australian beef sirloin seared and sliced with roasted potatoes and slow cooked cherry tomatoes, aged parmesan cheese shavings and rosemary beef jus

The beef was cooked to perfection and the rosemary jus and cheese shavings gave it a unique sweet and lightly salted taste that went well with the tender beef.

4. Dolce – Almond pannacotta with star anise marinate fruit salad and mango sauce

This has to be the best pannacotta that I have ever tasted.. to my liking of course. It was just the right amount of sweetness and had a nice blend of almond to it. The texture of this desert was so silky and reminded me of smooth tofu.

 

Western Menu 2013 (Set Dinner)  #2
This is the second option available for wedding/events

1. Antipasti Plate – King prawns salad ‘Catalana’ with a crispy vegetables and tomato strawberry coulisse

Catalana is a typical name of a salad from the South of Italy and the key to this dish is the dressing which is a blend of tomato, strawberry and olive oil

2. Pasta – Ricotta and lemon ravioli with rock Lobster and cherry tomatoes ragout

A tomato based pasta dish which had a good blend between the stuffed ravioli and the lobster chunks.

3. Main – Roasted Australian lamb rack with fresh thyme, eggplant ‘caponata’ and honey mustard jus

The grilled lamb by itself was perfectly cooked and it was juicy and tasted fresh with the herbs and thyme. The sauce is a blended honey and I was educated that caponata is a typical Sicilian side dish

4. Dolce – The desert choice for this menu option was the same as the previous one.

 

 

Chef De Cuisine – Alessandro Graziosi

A young chef from Milano, Italy which started his education studying classical art. I have always had the impression that Italians are very artsy and Chef Alessandro is a perfect example. He started cooking for himself and was passionate about making sure every dish he cooked was an art piece by itself. He began to fall in love with the kitchen environment and the life of a chef. He started his trade at NOY, a famous fusion restaurant in Italy which served mixture of Japanese, French and Italian cuisine. Travelling the world, he has been in Malaysia for a year and his specializes in French, Northern Italian and European Continental cuisine.

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VenueMenu Recommendation for Events/Weddings

Event Capacity: max 100 persons inside and 50 at the balcony pool area
Venue Table Arrangements: Mixture of round and square tables but can be flexible to change all to banquet tables.
Event Option: You can utilize the balcony/pool area which has a nice view of KL Tower. They will also have an option to setup a mini stage for a band if you wish to bring one.
Event Time: 12.00 – 2.30pm OR 6.30 – 10.30pm (latest 11.00pm)
Location Convenience: Located in the heart of Kuala Lumpur opposite Pavilion Mall
Halal/Non-Halal: Pork-Free
Type of Cuisine: Italian Set Menu or Buffet
Minimum Charge: RM20,000 to book the whole restaurant
Advance Booking Period: Minimum 1 week in advance, subject to availability
Guest Parking: RM8 nett
Average Price per pax: from RM198++
Price Range*: $$$$

*price range is my personal rating system out of the overall venues that we have been to. It is a rating of between $ to $$$$$

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Villa Danieli @Sheraton Imperial Kuala Lumpur Hotel
Jalan Sultan Ismail, 50250 Kuala Lumpur
www.sheraton.com/imperialkualalumpur

For reservations and enquiries, call +603.27179528

 

 

photos by Edwin Tan | Make-up by Agnes Yip

Chutney Mary Restaurant & Bar

 

Chutney Mary is a cozy restaurant located at Telawi Bangsar serving authentic Northern Indian cuisine. I discovered this restaurant after being introduced to the owner through one of the weddings that I was coordinating for. My clients had chosen them to cater for their event and my experience with them was pleasant!.. as their team was very friendly and great to work with. So naturally I had to go visit their Restaurant!…

 

 

 

THE RESTAURANT

This cozy restaurant at a glance easily sits about 80 – 100 people and I had confirmed that it is available to be booked out for an event. On top of that, through my own personal experience as well, they provide catering services as well.

It was great to have owner, Mary Gurmit Kaur, chatting with me while I had the privilege of tasting the awesome menu choices. She told me that she used to be a lawyer but due to her passion in Indian Cuisine, had made the bold career move and opened her restaurant.

The whole restaurant interior design is based on an Indian traditional village. As we sat and chatted, I glanced around and you can see the authenticity in the Mud Walls and Rajasthani Mirror works of art. Mary mentioned that it was all handmade.

My opinion is that it still has a contemporary feel to it while enjoying some tradition. Definitely a unique point about the restaurant.

 

MENU CHOICES FOR EVENTS

Specialty Starters

1. Kairi Chicken Special – Skewered Chicken served in a (Cute Mini) Tandoor

The dish is cubes of boneless chicken marinated with fresh mint, mango and yogurt… skewered and grilled over a charcoal fire in a traditional Tandoor oven. It was then served in a hot mini tandoor that looked really cute! And it also served a good purpose for keeping the skewered meat warm and trapping its flavour. 

2. Chicken Cheese Kebab – Boneless Chicken in a Cumin Enriched Cream and Cheddar Cheese

I personally love tandoor dishes and this one is for creamy cheese lovers. Its basically chicken that was marinated in Royal Cumin enriched cream, cheddar cheese, coriander and a cashew paste, then grilled in a tandoor oven.

Main Courses

1. Tandoori Chicken – “The King of Kebab”

This is probably the best known Indian delicacy! and the tastiest way to Garam BBQ chicken. Its basically the whole chicken, marinated in a mixture of yoghurt, ginger, garlic paste, lemon juice, tumeric powder and garam masala. Rich with spices!, it is then skewered and cooked in a Tandoor oven. Comparing to tandoori chicken that I have tasted elsewhere, this particular one was really tender and juicy! I asked what was the secret to it being that way, and I was told that they used ‘Kampung Chicken’ (Village Chicken – these chicken was called that because they were traditionally raised in small villages and not large farms. This is why it is more expensive than normal chickens sold in the supermarkets) . It was served on a mini grill to further enhance the whole eating experience because you could smell the aroma of the spices in the air!

- - How the Tandoori Chicken was served:

Step 1: The dish arrived on the table (yyuummmmmm!!):

Step 2: Some oil was poured on the charcoal

Step 3: The aroma of the charcoal mixed in with the chicken

2. Methi Tomato Fish Curry

The main specialty of the dish is the use of their home made Kashmiri spice blend of about 8 different spices. This cooked with fresh tomatoes brings out a sweet, spicy curry flavour that goes very well with seafood. It’s a creamy, light spicy dish

3. Lamb Rogan Josh

Using the home made Kashmiri spice blend, I have a slight bias to this dish because of my favoritism to the lamb meat! It was a creamy rich curry with tender lamb cuts.

4. Yellow Dahl Tadka (Vegetarian Dish)

This vegetarian dish is a creamy yellow lentil based serving tempered with assorted blend of spices. If you enjoy Dahl, this is a aromatic and rich dish and would go very well with briyani rice, basmathi rice or naan bread.

5. Aloo Gobi - Potato with Cauliflower Masala

One of my husband’s personal favorite! It is cubes of fresh potato and cauliflower tossed with herbs and traditional Indian spices cooked with tomatoes and coriander.

During my husband’s ‘temporary vegetarian’ period (That is another story), he loved coming to Chutney Mary due to the variety of choices! and it was great for our family as he was the only vegetarian. So ordering and making everyone happy was an easy task!

Accompaniments

1. Plain Briyani – Spiced Basmathi Rice

This is a plain briyani rice that goes well to accompany all the dishes that you have ordered. Especially goes well with the curries. There are also other choices if you fancy single order dishes, like Chicken Briyani, Lamb Briyani, Prawn Briyani and Fish Briyani.

2. Assorted Naan – Assorted Indian Bread in a Basket

This bread basket was served with an assortment of garlic naan, plain naan, butter naan and tandoori naan. The tandoori naan was my personal favourite because it was a slight bit more chewy. Their naan breads were very soft and tasty. It went well with the dishes we ate.

- - Making the bread!… (Do not try this at home)..

Step 1: Kneading the dough

Step 2: Fluffing

Step 3: Tossing!

Dessert

1. Gulab Jamun

I was told that it is a famous Nothern Indian Dessert. It was basically syrup dipped fried dumpings of milk reduced to a semi solid texture served in powdered cinnamon.

2. Kulfi

A Northern Indian ice-cream! A smooth blend of cream, fresh milk, sugar and almond… it’s a light ice cream which went well with the special spice toppings it was served in

3. Carrot Halwa

Shredded carrot flakes cooked in fresh milk and served with dry fruits.

 

 

TEAM CHUTNEY MARY

Mary and the team is very passionate about their Indian cuisine and it is proven in their food. Chefs here are from Calcutta and perfectionist at heart. I love the concept of the open glass window that overlooks the kitchen and the going-ons. It is truly a testament to their belief in serving wonderful Indian delicacies.

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VenueMenu Recommendation for Weddings/Events

Event Capacity: Restaurant maximum capacity is about 100 persons.
Event Option: They provide catering services for out of restaurant functions.
Location Convenience: Located in the Telawi Bangsar which is in the middle of KL and PJ.
Halal/Non-Halal: Halal
Type of Cuisine: Northern Indian
Price Range*: $$$

*price range is my personal rating system out of the overall venues that we have been to. It is a rating of between $ to $$$$$

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Chutney Mary Restaurant & Bar
No. 21-G, Jalan Telawi 2, Bangsar
5910 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
www.chutneymarybangsar.com

For reservations or catering enquiries, contact +603 2282 9923

 

photos by Edwin Tan