It may not be Chinese New Year but there’s still reason to toss a salad of softshell crabs, crispy enoki mushroom, fruits and vegetables, all beautifully arranged like a Yee Sang. A sesame sauce with wasabi is drizzled over these, and we dig in our chopsticks and stir them all up. It’s the grand starter dish to the special set menu curated by six master chefs in the Oriental Group of restaurants to celebrate its 25th anniversary.
Drizzling the sauce on the Softshell crab, crispy enoki, fruits and vegetable salad
We were at Noble Mansion in Petaling Jaya, where this was presented to garner good vibes for the rest of the year. The sesame dressing had the zing of wasabi in it, and besides the softshell crabs and enoki, there were jellyfish, pear, ice plants, rose apple, cucumber and peanuts. It was delightful.
Double-boiled chicken stuffed with superior bird’s nest soup
Double-boiled Superior Bird’s Nest Stuffed in Chicken
An incredible aroma trailed the Double-boiled soup superior bird’s nest stuffed in chicken was it was brought to the table. The chicken plumped up with the bird’s nest or “kam see yin” in it. Cut up, we each had a good portion of the bird’s nest in the soup together with bamboo pith and ginkgo nuts in it. The soup left a gummy feel on the lips, the bird’s nest with the chicken was a luxurious treat.
Deluxe Roast Suckling Pig Platter
Crispy Suckling Pig skin covering iberico pork wrapped round gooseliver sausage resting on a mantou
The Deluxe roast suckling pig platter served up iberico pork wrapped round goose liver sausage and spring onion covered with sauce and sitting on a mantou. It’s completed with a crispy roast pork skin on top. I crunched through the skin, touching the yummy meat with the aromatic gooseliver sausage, with the mantou as a wrap.
Braised Whole 5-head Abalones with Dried Seafood in Whole Lotus Root
Braised whole 5-head abalones with dried seafood in whole lotus root was a culinary masterpiece. It had two lotus root “boats” that been braised about five hours overnight, then stuffed with goodies like grilled octopus, Japanese dried scallops, chicken meat and diced mushrooms that had been pre-cooked. Then it’s a final braising in the boat, with abalones at the side.
I liked the crunchy bite of the lotus root, the dried seafood in it, the abalones and the flavourful braising sauce that brought everything together.
Taro Pears with Korubuta Pork
The next savoury dish – Taro pears with Kurobuta pork — could have been mistaken for dessert in its lavish presentation. The deepfried taro pears sat on a “tree” with red spoons of pickles of radish, leek heads and cherry tomatoes beneath. The crispy taro pears gave way to creamy yam with a tasty korubuto pork filling. The pickles served as a balance to the richness of the “pears”.
Braised Ramen with King Prawn
Braised ramen with king prawn sat in an orangey winey broth tinged with prawn oil. The broth had a slight bitter edge because of the chiu hing chow in it but tasted good with the ramen.
Jade corn dessert and green tea mochi
Almond cream with egg white, and Jade corn dessert and Green tea mochi were the sweet ending to this meal. I loved the almond cream. The green tea mochi was delicate and good. The skin of the jade corn dessert with pandan lotus filling was a little thick.
The master chefs who curated the menu — celebrating 25 years of The Oriental Group of Restaurants
This eight-course grand dinner menu for 10 is RM3888++. It will be available at Oriental Pavilion on 13 Aug, Noble Mansion 15 Aug, Oriental Treasure 16 Aug, Oriental Sun 19 Aug, Tang Room 21 Aug and Seafood World 14 Aug and Ruyi (both pork-free) on 20 Aug, among 11 restaurants in the group. The dishes will also be available a la carte in all these restaurants.
Noble Mansion is at Plaza 33, Jalan Professor Khoo Kay Kim, Seksyen 13, Petaling Jaya, tel: 03 7032 3288.