You would need to be living under a rock to have not felt the Chinese New Year fever that is gripping the country once again, and regardless of your race or religion, this is a super time to get stuck into the best of the festivities: the food! Like many hotels and restaurants nationwide, the West Lake Garden – which occupies a lovely spacious area off the lobby of Sunway Resort Hotel and Spa – is putting on a super New Year spread that reminds diners of just why the much-loved dishes are exactly that.

Chef Lee Yew Ken is the man in the kitchen, and his CNY offerings include four different set menus that cater for a range of tastes and budgets. All of them begin with yee sang – it would be criminal not to – and Chef Lee’s homemade sauce is back to popular demand. “I use peach and pineapple, as well as plum,” he tells me, as we watch the waiters arranging the colourful salad, “and last year everyone loved it!” .e yee sang toppings range from lobster to salmon depending on the set ordered, and all must be tossed high and loudly for lots of luck in the coming year!

Regardless of set ordered, the subsequent seven courses include soup, meat and fish dishes, before dessert ends the mighty meal, and the balance of dishes chosen on each set is careful, guiding the stomach through a symphony of filling, attractive, and enjoyable meals. Keep an eye out for the chef’s favourite savoury of Oven Baked Rock Salt Chicken with Herbs – this tender chicken has all the warming flavours of herbs, and is subtle in a way that only confident chefs can pull off. .e Canadian Cod is as light as chocolate mousse and delicately delicious; seafood lovers will be thrilled with the large choice of dishes across the menus, but this was my favourite. Desserts are traditional options done terrifically – the sticky, treacly New Year’s Cake had my whole table clamouring for more.

Once the stomach is full, it is easy to linger and enjoy the calm that seems to imbue this richly decorated restaurant. Decked in deep reds and fluffy carpets, the large main dining area has a wall of windows to allow sunlight to stream in or lights to twinkle, depending on the time of your soiree, while six private dining rooms are ideal for those looking for some space and privacy.

Amid the mass of restaurants to choose from this season, West Lake Gardens can certainly hold its own, especially when you factor in the ample parking and the proximity to the much-loved mall for some post-meal shopping opportunities. If you’d rather lie low until the whole festive frenzy is over, visit in March and see if Chef Lee’s winning touch extends into the dim sum buffet and the a’ la carte menu; I suspect it might!

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Fact File :

West Lake Garden
Sunway Resort Hotel and Spa
Persiaran Lagoon
Bandar Sunway
Petaling Jaya
Tel: 03.7492 8000
www.kualalumpur.sunwayhotels.com

Prices:

There are four set menus available, and they are priced from RM1,088++ to RM2,013++ per table of ten depending on the choice

Opening Times:

Daily 12pm-2.30pm, 6.30pm-10.30pm
(open from 10 am Sundays and public holidays)

For more restaurant reviews visit: www.DineMalaysia.com

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Source: The Expat February 2013

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