Dishes for good fortune in three sets

(Left) Stewed sea cucumber, black mushroom, dried oyster sea moss roll with farm greens. — SIA HONG KIAU /The Star

CELEBRATE the Year of the Dog with dishes specially whipped up by chefs at the Tao Chinese Cuisine restaurant at Intercontinental Hotel Kuala Lumpur.

Located on the first floor, the restaurant exudes a warm ambience with dim lighting and hundreds of teapots that make up the charming decor.

Then there is the cloud-like ceiling in the main section which when lighted, gives diners the impression that they are dining under the stars.

This Chinese New Year, Tao offers diners three festive set menus – each representing harmony, prosperity and longevity – which start from RM1,988 nett for a table of 10.

At a media review, the eight-course Prosperity Menu was served up for sampling along with two types of yee sang.

Steamed Eight Treasure Glutinous Rice.

One yee sang contained fresh Atlantic salmon with Korean sweet pea, salmon roe and crispy fish skin while the other came with tuna and salmon roe.

The freshness of the fish and combination of ingredients were quite enjoyable although the plum sauce was a little too sweet for our taste buds.

“This year we have five types of yee sang to choose from and our sauce is specially made with lemon vinegar for a more sour taste then the usual,” said the hotel’s dim sum chef Lo Tian Song.

To wash down the yee sang, glasses of champagne were served.

Deep-fried sweet potato nian gao served with chilled aloe vera, peach gum and osmanthus oolong tea syrup.

Next came the Double-boiled Fish Maw with sea cucumber, mushroom, scallop and chicken in a thick soup which was tasty to the last drop.

The Prosperity Menu comes with a unique offering – Crispy Roasted Chicken drizzled with spicy sesame vinegar sauce.

This dish is specially for those who enjoy spicy and sour food, similar to dishes in Szechuan cuisine.

The meat was tender and when eaten with the red sauce, it was just right for those with a stomach for spicy food.

Crispy Roasted Chicken with spicy sesame vinegar sauce is available in the prosperity menu.

This was certainly a different twist to the regular chicken dishes served for Chinese New Year.

The Steamed King Tiger Garoupa with garlic and the Wok-fried Tiger Prawns are two seafood offerings that are synonymous with Chinese New Year celebrations.

“For the prawns, we wanted to make it in a Mongolian style, with the use of peppers to give it the taste found in most traditional Mongolian dishes,” said the hotel’s Chinese banquet chef Ngoi Siak Kong.

The Steamed Eight Treasures Glutinous Rice came next – the dish well was prepared with just the right amount of salt. And though we were full, we could not help sampling the dish which thankfully came in small portions wrapped in lotus leaves.

Wok-fried Tiger Prawns with Mongolian butter sauce.

Finally, it was time for dessert and the offering was simply irresistible.

Deep-fried sweet potato nian gao shaped like mini mandarin oranges were served with chilled aloe vera, peach gum and osmanthus oolong tea syrup.

The nian gao literally melted in the mouth, and quite unlike the nian gou available elsewhere.

The festive promotion at Tao is on until March 2 and reservation is required.

The sets are priced at RM1,988 nett (Harmony menu), RM2,388 nett (Prosperity menu) and RM2,688 nett (Longevity menu).

TAO CHINESE CUISINE, Level 1, Intercontinental Kuala Lumpur, 165, Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur. (Tel: [phone]). Business hours: 11.30am to 2pm (lunch) and 6.30pm to 10.30pm (dinner) daily. Pork Free.

This is the writer’s personal observation and not an endorsement by StarMetro.