Category Archives: ~ Food review / alcohol pairing ~

Patron Secret Surprise Dinner @ Marini’s on 57

Posted on by
2

Yup, dat was d title of a session by Patron in the city recently. I like Marini’s – nice n fancy for a proper dinner with great drinks.

 

IMG_1515 - Copy

 

Proceedings began with the one-of-kind ‘Bloody Mary’, a stronger called Marini’s Blooded Junior, as it was created by Junior Joe, formerly of View Bar, now with Marini’s.

 

Marini's bar area

Marini’s bar area

 

With a base of Patron Silver, it’s got Asian-kitchen aromas, as there’s a bbq-powder rim, Maggi seasoning sauce, and some tomato juice. A unique, herbaly drink, with a bitter finish. The celery ice-cubes sure grow on you.

This was served with smoked shrimps.

 

Some of the participants

Some of the participants

 

The second cocktail, Twisted Moments is like a margarita that’s more like a martini – strong, and taste-wise, bitter-sweet. This uses Patron Reposado.

 

Served with bamboo clams

Paired with a dish of bamboo clams marinated in Reposado

 

Berries Basil Smash was definitely my fave of the night – a fruity blow-up. Very pleasant berry aromas, and a superb fruit cocktail experience. Berries go really well with tequila, especially slightly-aged ones. This Patron Anejo drink was served with Venison Tartare. Great stuff.

 

Keep 'em comin!

Keep ’em comin!

 

Killa

Perfectly-balanced

 

Patron also has a vodka! This was used to make the Ultimate Martini. Two words – very strong. (Served with caviar.)

 

Rambutan?

Rambutan?

 

IMG_1542

Ultimat vodka

 

Unfortunately i had to split before the dessert, and missed the Patron XO Cafe!

 

IMG_1547 - Copy

Flowing

 

The orange version - excellent! Had several shots

The orange version, Patron Citronge – excellent! Had several shots. Orange liqueur, but at 40%

The crew, with Junior second from right

The crew, with Junior second from right

 

Patron is a well-respected, 100% agave tequila. While the Silver is the standard issue, the Anejo and Reposado display more character due to aging in barrels.

The first time i had it, things got messy. Haha

And it comes in cool bottles too!

 

Brain damage: 7.5/10

Share

Sake sampling

Posted on by
Reply

Sake. Hmmm.

Anyway, had a session with some top stuff recently, with a Peking Duck dinner at Imperial Hotel, Subang.

Proceedings kicked off with some sparkling yuzu (Kozaemon, ABV 5%). Never had it before – grapefruit juice with sake in it. It’s like that kat chai shin mui shit – very sweet-sour, with a strong tang.

Refreshing

The girls loved it.

Next of the four drinks was the Junmai Daiginjo (16%). The daiginjo term means this one’s a top cat, premium stuff. It smelt of fruit – overripe banana to be exact.

$350 a pop retail

It tastes sweetish, but maintains the sake blandness. It’s even got a lychee-like tinge. Nice.

The Peking Duck made it’s entrance about then. Great stuff i gotta say.

Dead duck

Next on d list was the Junmai Miya…. (ABV 15.5%). This one smelt of fruity rice, and tastes less sweet. We had it with siew yoke.

I preferred this one if am consuming a lot. Goes down easier. However, the  others liked the Junmai Daiginjo.

This one’s $180

If the sake has the word junmai on it, that means it’s only made purely from rice. Otherwise, it also has distilled alcohol in it.

After dinner, shit got serious. A mega bottle of yuzu appeared.

More juice?

Tastes a lot like a lemon concentrate drink, to me anyway.

What we learnt is that these sakes are from old, boutique breweries (they dont call them wineries). However 90% of the sake in Malaysia are from four to five commercial breweries.

My ride met a buddy

Overall the Japanese drink and the Chinese food went together pretty effortlessly. It shd be reasonably easy for these guys to market the sake to some of the more established Chinese restaurants. In the meantime, contact (03) 7846-8282 if u want their sakes (7 types in total).

Banzaiii!

Share

Good Ol’ Ronnie Q’s

Posted on by
2

Ronnie Q’s (2282 0722 ) is a restaurant-bar that’s definitely an icon of Bangsar. It’s been quenching thirst for 20 years now! Amazing. Probably a million litres of beer have been swallowed here.

It’s the original neighbourhood pub, on Telawi 2. Dozens of bars and clubs have come and gone in the Telawi area since Ronnie Q’s first opened as pioneer (Canteena too, but it died recently), dozens, but Ronnie Q’s has remained strong.

The laid-back, friendly atmosphere and good drinks and food has ensured that owner Ronnie can look forward to many more years.

Large space

I guess i’d describe it as a classy traditional sports-bar. It’s seen some renovation over the years, and has kept up with the times, but maintains a British pub feel.

Sports feature heavily here.

The bar’s length is probably the longest in Bangsar

It’s a GAB outlet, so beers on tap are Guinness, Tiger, Kilkenny, Paulaner and Strongbow.

Food is a supporting act and is mix of western and local. The regular favourites are the wild boar dry curry, and Spicy Mutton/Pork ($16.90), both served with toast. Great with beers.

The wild boar is tender, while the spicy pork is a laid-back, medium-spicy curry. Easy-going with great flavours.

The mutton dish is rich, a lil sweetish, and way spicier. The kind u keep nibbling at with a cold antidote in the other hand.

The Spicy Mutton is an awesome snack

The lamb satay is unique; done sweetish, kinda caramalized, and reminds me of lap chong.

Lamb

Had to have the Pork Ribs. It was a great call. The meat’s juicy, medium-tender, coated with a bbq-style sauce, and very fresh.

Yea baby

You’ll also find stuff like Fish n’ Chips ($20), All-Day Breakfast ($24.90), burgers & dawgs (pork/beef/chicken/lamb), Bangers ‘n Mash ($22), chops, sandwiches and snacks.

Met Batboy

The semi-outdoor area

At happy hours, you’ll get sets of two pints at these prices, all NETT: Guinness ($41), Kilkenny ($43), Tiger ($34.20) and Strongbow ($47). And during Euro 2012, u’ll enjoy happy hours all day, all night.

Share

Dining in Comida

Posted on by
1

Checked out Comida (6211-2662) recently, a joint with good Mediterranean & Western food in Publika.

The joint

It’s got an interesting menu, with a range of pastas, pizzas & burgers, among others, and it’s the home of what i call the BFP, Big F ‘in Pizza, a 24-inch monsta.

Good f 'in luck

Had some tapas to kick off. A kick-ass. The  Prawn Aubergine Tapas ($17.60, all prices NETT) rocks due to its gravy. Additional bread was ordered for some dunking.

Biggie hits d road

The Comida Burger ($23.10) is a beef patty (200gm), a good blend of meat, sauteed shrooms, beef bacon, bbq sauce, and some green stuff; and the patty is flamed just right to be still juicy.

Not a giant, but decent size

The highlight of d meal was the Creamy Pesto Prawn ($29.70) , a spaghetti-based dish, with prawns sauteed in olive oil & homemade pesto cream. Few pasta dishes can come close to this one. It’s all in d cream. So good that again bread was ordered to scoop d remnants of d pesto cream.

This dam ting has got me craving for it at random times.

Wont last long. Do not share

You could also try this (off-menu) – the Prawn Masala – a spicier, reddish version of d above. Enticing.

Another notable pasta is the super n simple Duck Confit Spaghetti ($28.60), which features duck slices in a pasta drenched with olive oil n peppered with sun-dried tomatoes. I assume the outlet’s strength is mainly in its pastas.

They’re also risottos & paellas. For a snack, the spicy anchovies, or the spicy chicken wings are a good bet.

Casual dining for sure

If ur a big-time eater, u cd go for d BFP challenge – if u can slaughter the 24-inch pizza in 20mins, its on da house. U also get a $50 voucher, and a Comida VIP Card. So far, 26 winners.

D outdoor sec is cool too

I hear the Comida De Postre puff is a mean hot-seller, with peanut butter on d inside, choco hazelnut sauce on d outside, topped with vanilla ice-cream. My preferred dessert however was more basic – Red Sangria ($19.80) as u’ll get loads of fruits in your face.

The Long Island Tea rocks, with none of dat cheap-shit liquors in it, but d good stuff. At $23.10, sweet deal.

Long Island being gang-raped

 

Chomp chomp

It’s a GAB outlet, so u get d three for $$ deal, in this case, it’s $55 nett  for three pints of Guinness/Tiger all night. Also the happy hours daily – 5-6pm, it’s $5.50 nett for a mug of Tiger or half Guinness Draft, then $6.60 (6-7pm), and $7.70 (7-8pm). Nice.

An event called 12 Strings happens every Sat nite from 9pm, featuring different musicians weekly. Worth hangin out. Been finding my ass there almost every week now.

Wall art

Comida’s reputation for good food means it has catered for, among others, Sum 41, Simple Plan, Deftones, Avril, as well as all artistes at the Future Music festival like Grandmaster Flash, FloRida, Chemical Bros, etc.

They’re also with FoodPanda, if u rather have d food delivered.

Mexican, or Mexican't?

Related Posts with Thumbnails
Share