New Dim Sum Menu at Xin Hwa (Mandarin Oriental Hotel)

I've been a fan of Xin Hwa for quite some time. It was only last September when a new chef, Jeff Lee was appointed to head the restaurant and now they are revamping the kitchen again for the addition of another new chef, Lie Wing Ping specifically to take care of their dim sum menu.

It amazes me sometimes how these hotels and eateries eagerly better themselves to keep ahead with the eclectic tongue of Jakartans. Words on the street they'll have another Michelin star chef this year. Let's see if that come to pass. For now, let's talk dim sum! 

If you've dined in Xin Hwa you'll find major changes in their dim sum menu. I personally find it pleasing to the eyes.  I find the chef is pivoting to show his personal craftsmanship. They are colorful, bright, and playful with the addition of uncommon ingredients. From the taste department, it appears that the authentic chinese influence is at play. Out of so many that we tried, most of them reveals a rather mild seasoning and more attempts on bringing out the ingredient's natural flavor. Indonesian tongue that are not accustomed to embrace foreign cuisine, might prefer stronger tasting options. Well, you can always add some 'sambal' whenever it please you. =p 

A few of the highlights are: 

Netted rice crispy turn over, stuffed with prawn, mango & apple slices (IDR 22k) 

I'd have to say this dish stood out the most that afternoon. The fresh bulky prawns provide the sweets, and the fruits blend in with the sours. Let's not forget the crunchy layer that added the texture. We had (ehm) three plates of this.

Wasabi mayo prawn with roe

This is actually taken out from the dim sum menu, and moved to the regular ala-carte menu. They were being kind to serve us this as well. A big fan of wasabi, this has slowly moving into my comfort food category. I know how it'll taste and I know I'll get what I wanted. The more kicks it sends to the nose, the better it gets. 

Scallop and shrimp dumpling with X.O sauce (IDR 32k)

Mighty combo. 

Oven baked fluffy pastry with black pepper fungus and goose liver terrine (IDR 28k)

Speaking of uncommon ingredients. Where else you'd find a foie gras in a chinese dim sum? This is Jen's (from Shoegarmama) favorite. What's not to like when the texture, flavor, and ingredients mix well and complement each other. 

Egg yolk custard bun (IDR 28k)

It used to be really difficult to find this in Jakarta. I don't know why, but recently I've encountered it a lot. From May Star to Taipan and now Xin Hwa. My only wish is that they keep this in their menu. Out of the three I still favor Taipan because of its crunchy texture (yes, it's not a bun). But for the bun, this one is on par with May Star's. I love to have this as dessert. A perfect sweet buttery close is all we need, isn't it? 

Dumpling with shrimp, crab meat, truffle and water chestnut. (IDR 28k)

Crystal dumpling with assorted Mushroom & Asparagus  (IDR 22k)

For IDR 138.000 ++ and a bottomless amount of order, I personally think its quite interesting to visit this spot again. Maybe just for the foie gras? (That's the chinese mind talking). Well, if your thinking of dim sum and you haven't tried Xin Hwa, give it a shot and let me know what you think. Tweet me @wanderbites. Beware though, I've hid clues all around the post, make sure you read it with care. ;) 

Until my next post. Have a jolly weekend everybody and a happy February. 

Cheers, 

Fellexandro Ruby

Food & Travel Photographer / Storyteller

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Xin Hwa 
Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Level 2
Jl. MH Thamrin
Ph: 021 - 2993-8888
Email: mojkt-xinhwa@mohg.com

Breakfast Like a King at Imperial Wok

Hello! Gong Xi Gong Xi for all of you who celebrate Chinese New Year. I had a blast last weekend, the angpao wasn't much, but the togetherness with fifty-plus family members was priceless. Anyway, angpao is one of Chinese traditions where the married couple give a certain amount of money in red envelope to the kids or single adults as a mean of wishing them a prosperous year ahead. Well, since I'm not married yet, here's my angpao for you Wanderbiters =) And what could be more CNY-ey than  a review of dim-sum resto! Get your chopsticks ready!

Dimsum is the chinese term used for small portion dishes usually served in small bamboo steamer. It goes way back to the old times in Canton where people love to gather and relax while enjoying tea. Thus, people having dimsum is said to have yum-cha (tea tasting). At the beginning drinking tea and eating was not recommended as it was believed it will lead to excessive weight. However, as research found out later that tea actually helped digestion, tea houses started offering snacks. These snacks later become a tradition for the elderly to feast on after morning exercise. This tradition goes on as we see today, dimsum is mostly served from mid-morning until mid-afternoon.

I kicked off my Imperial breakfast with a scrumptious crispy puff with chasiu (red pork) fillings. I always have an interest in mixed-texture dishes just as this one. The layers of crumbles is one appetizing combo with the soft, tender, and sweet pork. Just as I expected.

Up next are the 'musts'. Yep! Gotta have these on dimsum. Chicken feet and hakau (shrimp bonnet). There's a tale from one of my uncles. Years ago when he was a kid, as a family of immigrants, during the tough years, having one portion of chicken is the ultimate treat. His parents used to tell them don't eat the feet, the neck, and the wings, they're dirty part of chicken and meatless. The mom and dad would give the kids the meaty part of chicken, the drumsticks and breasts. He continued to hate this particular part of chicken until one day a friend stuffed him up with one luscious chicken feet then he realized, the feet is the best part of chicken, the meaty part was nothing compared to the fatty gelatinous tender skin! Good thing he found out early enough and didn't get to miss what the chinese like to call 'phoenix talons'. So kids, thank God if your parents give you these feets, it means THEY LOVE YOU! =P

Another musts menus are the siew may (pork dumpling) , and the xiaolongbao (soup dumpling). Xiaolongbao is often considered as the prime showoff of a chef skills. The skin must be thin enough for the tounge, but strong enough so that it won't easily break when pulled off with a chopstick. However, this one was lame. The meat inside wasn't spiced enough, also the soup tasted more salty than savory. It was almost like munching a spoonful of salt. Same thing goes for the siewmay, nothing special. Suprisingly, despite of these turnoffs, I had a turn-on from this particular dish below.

I know what you're thinking. Yes! One breakfast can be such a drama (especially for a king =p) It was the steamed bun with saltyeggyolk fillings that delight me from the very first bite. Quite hard to explain by words, you gotta have to taste it yourself. And when you do let me know what you think. =) 

Now, there's a reason why I had them in this order. Why you asked? So that when the main menus happen to be a failure, I know I can always count on this one. This couldn't go wrong, shouldn't go wrong, and has never went wrong. My favorite closure for every dimsum dining: Fried Mantau! One thick feathery-textured hot mantau dipped in sweet condensed milk. YUM!

Well, they might not be the best dimsum I tasted, but breakfast like this surely made me happy and feel special (as a king). One happy belly once again made one happy food photos and one happy review. After this my favorite dimsum ranking is still unchanging with Taipan restaurant on the top and Eastern coming second just because of its all-you-can-eat dimsum =p. Let me know what your favorite place for yumcha!

Cheers,

Fellexandro Ruby
Food Blogger & Photographer

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Imperial Wok 
Rukan Gold Coast, Block A 11-23
Bukit Golf Mediterania
Ph: 91214351