Au with dishes from his Reunion Stars Chinese New Year menu at Li Yen, The Ritz-Carlton, Kuala Lumpur. — Photos: LEONG WAI YEE/The Star
SYMBOLISM and tradition take centre stage during Chinese New Year when food becomes more than just a meal.
It is tied to wishes for prosperity, good health and family togetherness.
At The Ritz Carlton’s Li Yen, the Lunar New Year menu leans into classic reunion flavours, with an emphasis on refinement over novelty.
The restaurant is offering three set menus from Feb 3 to March 3, along with seasonal dim sum, a la carte dishes and yee sang options.
Each set features an eight-course spread dubbed The Reunion Stars, served for lunch and dinner.
Li Yen executive Chinese chef Alex Au said the restaurant’s approach was to preserve core elements of Chinese New Year cuisine while upgrading ingredients where appropriate.
“The sauce is the soul of our yee sang,” he said.
“The dressing follows a house recipe that has been passed down and remains consistent each year.
“It’s a Hong Kong-style sauce with a Malaysian touch.”
For a start, one can toss to good days ahead with the Prosperity Salmon and Jellyfish Yee Sang.
The soup course features Double-boiled Chicken Soup with Dried Scallop, Dried Fish Maw and Black Garlic.
Deep-fried Prawns with Truffle Sauce and Tobiko.
Au said the base stock was made from old hen, pork ribs and pork bones simmered for at least six hours, before being cooked further with fermented black garlic.
“The most important thing when making the soup is starting with a good base stock.”
He added that the black garlic was sourced from Shandong, China, and fermented for 60 to 90 days depending on conditions.
Au said dried Japanese scallops and kampung chicken contribute natural sweetness to the broth, allowing it to rely on the ingredients’ flavour instead of added seasoning.
“I don’t need to add extra seasoning. You taste the ingredients as they are,” he said.
The soup stands out for its intense umami, clean sweetness and depth, with the black garlic and Chinese herbs lending it a comforting warmth.
Steamed Bamboo Fish in Soy Sauce.
Steamed bamboo fish follows, prepared Hong Kong-style with soy sauce, spring onions and coriander.
One of the stand-out dishes is Deep-fried Prawns with Truffle Sauce and Tobiko.
The aroma from the truffle sauce, crisp coating and bite from the tobiko combined with freshness from the prawns makes for a very satisfying dish.
For the vegetable course, there is Wok-fried Australian Asparagus with Elm Fungus, Fresh Lily Bulbs and Goji Berries.
The asparagus is bright and snappy, while the mix of fungus and lily bulbs provides softer textures.
Chinese-style Barbecued Iberico Spare Ribs is among the festive offerings here.
“We requested a heavier cut so the meat holds better to the bone,” said Au.
The meal ends with Hong Kong-style Waxed Meat Claypot Rice.
The dish takes up to 45 minutes to prepare, allowing the vegetables’ flavour, Chinese herbs, and meat to infuse the rice.
House-crafted Walnut Cream with Sesame Glutinous Rice Dumplings is served alongside steamed “nian gao” shaped like goldfish.
Besides the set menus, Li Yen is also offering a seasonal Lunar New Year dim sum selection alongside a la carte and yee sang options during the same period.
The restaurant also has delivery and takeaway options for selected Chinese New Year items.
Lunch set menus start from RM498++ for two, while larger lunch and dinner sets are priced from RM3,398++ per table of 10.
Advance reservation required.
LI YEN RESTAURANT,
Level 2, The Ritz-Carlton,
Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Imbi, Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur.
(WhatsApp: 018-623 0038.) Business hours: Noon to 2.30pm (weekdays), 10.30am to 2.30pm (Sundays and public holidays) and 6.30pm to 10pm, daily. Non-halal.
This is the writer’s personal observation and is not an endorsement by StarMetro.
