Time Out KL Food Awards 2012

The Time Out KL Food Awards are the biggest dining awards in Kuala Lumpur, voted for by the readers of Time Out KL magazine. More than 50,000 votes were cast between August and October 2012. The 2012 Awards were partnered by luxury beer brand Kronenbourg1664.

The awards celebrate hard work and excellence in Malaysian cuisine from high-end restaurants to hawker stalls. Entertainment for the awards ceremony, held at Zebra Square, came from Karen Nunis and her band. Other sponsors for the night included Asahi Super Dry, Grimbergen, Cape Mantelle wines, Moet & Chandon Brut Imperial, Spritzer and Humble Beginnings. The ceremony was hosted by local radio personality Alison Victor.

All shortlisted outlets were celebrated at the Time Out KL Food Awards ceremony 2012, with the following winners per category:

Best Chinese
Winner:

Celestial Court
Jalan Sultan Ismail | Sheraton Imperial Kuala Lumpur Hotel, 50250 Kuala Lumpur
Tel 60327179900

Price range: RM81 - RM310
Dining options: Reservations, Private Dining


Shortlisted:
Li Yen
Restoran New Paris
Yut Kee

Best Malaysian
Winner:

Bijan
3 Jln Ceylon | Golden Triangle, Kuala Lumpur
Tel 603 2031 3575

Good for: Romantic, Groups, Business, Local cuisine, Special Occasion Dining, Entertaining clients
Dining options: Lunch Spot, Dinner, Reservations, After-hours


Shortlisted:
Songket
Enak KL
Makan Kitchen
Old China Café

Best Indian
Winner:

Bombay Palace
215, Jalan Tun Razak, 50400 Kuala Lumpur
Tel 03 - 2145 4241


Shortlisted:
Fierce Curry House
Passage Thru India
Saravanaa Bhavan
Annalakshmi

Best Healthy Eats
Winner:

Marmalade

BANGSAR
1F-18, 1st floor, Bangsar Village II, No. 1, Jalan Telawi Dua, Bangsar Baru, 59100 Kuala Lumpur.
Tel : 03-2282 8301
Opening hours : 10.00 am – 10.00 pm daily

SOLARIS DUTAMAS
Lot no.2, level G3, block C1, Publika Shopping Gallery, No.1, Jalan Dutamas 1, Solaris Dutamas, 50480, Kuala Lumpur
Tel : 03-6201 7991
Opening hours : 10.00 am – 9.00 pm daily


Shortlisted:
RAW (Real and Wholesome)
The Yogitree
Living Food Bistro

Best Cheap Eats
Winner:

Nasi Kandar Pelita
There are 28 outlets located in Malaysia. For more information click here


Shortlisted:
Fierce Curry House
The Humble Chef
Yut Kee
Meng Kee

Best Seafood
Winner:

Fatty Crab Restaurant
No 2, Jln SS 24/13 | Taman Megah, Petaling Jaya, Kuala Lumpur
Tel 03-7804-5758
Opening times: Tues-Sun, 5.30pm-11.30pm


Shortlisted:
Lala Chong Seafood Restaurant
South Sea Subang
Unique Seafood
Causeway Bay Spicy Crab
Fisherman's Cove

Best Coffee
Winner:

Artisan Roast Coffee
4 Lorong Rahim Kajai 14, Taman Tun Dr Ismail
Tel 03-7733 6397

Opening hours:
Mon-Fri: 8am – midnight
Sat, Sun & Public holidays: 9am – midnight



Shortlisted:
Antipodean Café
RAW (Real and Wholesome)
Chilla Cup
Whisk Espresso Bar & Bake
Espressamente illy
Café Art at The Warehouse

Best Banana Leaf
Winner:

Kanna Curry House
No 29 Jalan 17/45, 46400 Petaling Jaya
Cuisines: Indian
Dining options: Breakfast/Brunch
Opening times: Open daily, 6.30am-9pm


Shortlisted:
Raju Restaurant
Sri Nirwana Maju
Devi's Corner
Nagasari Curry House

Best Pub Grub
Winner:

Sid's Pub

TAMAN TUN DR ISMAIL
34 Lorong Rahim Kajai 14, TTDI, 60000 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: +603-7727 7437

BANGSAR SOUTH
M-5A The Village, Bangsar South, 2 Jalan 1/112H, Off Jalan Kerinchi, 59200 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: +603- 2287 7437

BUKIT TUNKU
H2 Taman Tunku, Off Langkat Tunku, Bukit Tunku, 50480 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: +603-6205 2588


Shortlisted:
The Green Man
Healy Mac's
Tom, Dick & Harry's
D Legends bar

Best Thai
Winner:

MyElephant Thai Restaurant

SECTION 17
Block C-G4, Happy Mansion, Section 17,, Jalan 17/13, Seksyen 17, Petaling Jaya, Selangor
Tel 010-220 1283

HARTAMAS
20-2 Jalan Sri Hartamas 8
Taman Sri Hartamas
50480 Kuala Lumpur
Tel 03-6201 0649

AMAN SURIA
No.22 PJU 1/43
Aman Suria, Damansara
47301 Petaling Jaya, Selangor


Shortlisted:
Erawan
Surisit Thai Kopitiam
Rama V
Tamarind Springs

Best Middle Eastern
Winner:

Al-Amar

TAMAN SHAMELIN
No 28, Jalan 13/91, Taman Shamelin Perkasa, Cheras, 56000 Kuala Lumpur
Tel : +6 03-9281 5855
Fax : +6 03-9281 5572
General enquires : info@al-amar.com

PAVILION
Lot 6.10, Level-6, Pavilion Kuala Lumpur, 168 Jalan Bukit Bintang
Tel : +6 03-2166 1011

FAHRENHEIT
Lot G-44 (01), G-44(02), G-44(03), Ground Floor, Fahrenheit 88, 179 Jalan Bukit Bintang, 55100 Kuala Lumpur
Tel : +6 03-2141 3814

Shortlisted:
Hadramawt
Laziz
Tarbush
Naab

Best Italian
Winner:

Garibaldi Italian Restaurant & Bar
LG10&G22, Bangsar Village 1 Jalan Telawi 1 Bangsar Baru, 59100, Kuala Lumpur
Tel 03-2282 3456


Shortlisted:
La Risata
Neroteca
Ciccio
Sassarosso
il Lido
Tatto

Best European
Winner:

El Cerdo
43 & 45, Changkat Bukit Bintang, 50200 Kuala Lumpur
Tel 603-2145-0511


Shortlist:
Albion
Brotzeit German Bier Bar & Restaurant
The Press Room
twenty.one kitchen+bar

Best Fine Dining
Winner:

Prime Steak Restaurant
2 Jalan Stesen Sentral | Le Meridien Kuala Lumpur, 50470 Kuala Lumpur
Tel 6032263-7434

Shortlisted:
Sage Restaurant & Wine Bar
Frangipani Restaurant & Bar
Cilantro Restaurant & Wine Bar
Ten Japanese Fine Dining

Best Meat
Winner:

The Warehouse Gallery & Café · Ril's @ The Warehouse
198 Jalan Tun H S Lee, 50000 Kuala Lumpur

10:00am - 1:00am
Tuesday to Sunday
Closed Mondays


Shortlisted:
PRIME
Jarrod & Rawlins
The Daily Grind
DISH
El Cerdo
Las Vacas

Best Japanese
Winner:

Kampachi

Kampachi outlets in Malaysia. Click here


Shortlist:
Kyoto Lab
Fukuharu
Rakuzen
Gonbei San
Hanare
Ten Japanese Fine Dining

Best New Restaurant
Winner:

Acme Bar & Coffee
Jalan Ampang | Ground Floor at The Troika, 50450 Kuala Lumpur
Tel +60 321622288


Shortlist:
La Vie En Rose
Five Sen5es
myBurgerLab
Wondermama
Ten Japanese Fine Dining
Bistro à Table

Outstanding Chef of the Year
Winner:

Chef Garth Welsh, The Westin

Shortlist:
Chef Steve Allen, DISH
Chef Nathalie Arbefeuille, Nathalie’s Gourmet Studio
Chef Amir Khan, The Press Room
Chef Pierre Chahda, Al-Amar
Chef Isadora Chai, Bistro à Table

Restaurateur of the Year
Winner:

Benjamin Yong, Big Ideas Group

Shortlist:
Joseph Afaki, The Eatertainment Company
Dan Thompson & Richard Holland, DrBar
Khairil Ibrahim, Ril’s Steakhouse
Edward Hyde, Gastrodome
Werner Kuhn, The Werner’s Group

Bloggers' Choice
Winner:

Bangsar Babe, Yuzu Japanese Restaurant

The Gardens T236 Lingkaran Syed Putra, Kuala Lumpur
Tel 03-2284 7663


Shortlisted:
Places and Foods, Gu Yue Tien
Kelly Siew Cooks, Loco Mexican Restaurant and Bar


For more information, visit
Time Out KL Food Awards 2012

Hee Lai Ton (Pudu) Restaurant 喜来登（半山芭）海鲜酒家

The Chinese New Year's Eve dinner is the most important dinner for Chinese. Normally this is the family reunion dinner. This year we decided to have our reunion dinner at a restaurant. When I was asked to make reservation 3 weeks before CNY, most of the famous restaurants in Kl were fully booked, for both sessions, 5.30pm-7.30pm and 8pm-10pm. Wow, seems like having reunion dinner at a restaurant is fast becoming a norm in KL.

The only option left was Hee Loi Ton. We had a pretty good experience when we had our reunion dinner here 2 years ago, so we thought it is alright to go again.

We booked the 5.30pm slot, taken RM428 nett set menu - 7 courses meal for 4-6 pax. Personally, I felt it was pricy with the types of food served.

First dish is always Yee Sang for CNY set menu. Yee Sang is raw fish salad. It usually consists of strips of raw fish (most commonly salmon), mixed with shredded vegetables and a variety of sauces and condiments, among other ingredients. Yee Sang literally means "raw fish" but since "fish" is commonly conflated with its homophone "abundance", Yee Sang is interpreted as a homophone meaning an increase in abundance. Therefore, this dish is considered a symbol of abundance, prosperity and vigor.

Salmon Fish Yee Sang

The captain had even forgotten to put the salmon until I realised it at half way eating. Gosh! Taste wise, just normal. I had a better Japanese Yee Sang with my office mates for "Sau Gong" lunch.

Shark's Fin Soup with Crab Meat


Fish and Prawns are must have dishes with my family during festive meals. They symbolize Prosperity and Joy.

Steamed Gui Hua Fish with soya sauce. The original menu was served with Pomfret, my family prefer Gui Hua instead.

Guillin Style Prawn with special sauce - it was savoury and was the only dish that gave me a pleasant surprise that day.


I still prefer Lap Mei Fan at Elegant Inn which I blogged for my Dong Zhi reunion dinner. Click here for my previous post.

Waxed Meat Rice

Dry Scallop with seasonal vegetable. Kai Lan was served that day. I did not like the thick broth and don't you think there was too little dry scallop?

Sweetened Sea Coconut


It was a disappointing dinner as we were being rushed to eat and the food quality dropped - maybe I have put too high expectation. Hee Loi Ton, Pudu used to be my recommended restaurant, but not during CNY anymore!


Food : ★★★☆☆
Ambience : ★★☆☆☆

Hee Lai Ton (Pudu) Restaurant 喜来登（半山芭）海鲜酒家
3rd Floor, Shaw Parade,
Jalan Changkat Thambi Dollah, Off Jalan Pudu,
55100 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Type:
Chinese restaurant chain (non-halal)

Business Hours:
10:00am to 10:00pm (daily)

Contact:
603 2148 8666

Marco Polo - Wisma Lim Foo Yong, Jalan Raja Chulan

Had my Chor 2 Hoi Nin breakfast at Marco Polo Restaurant. The restaurant opened at 9am, not many people yet when I arrived at 9.15am. Most dim sum were still being steamed, therefore not many varieties yet, and the service was a bit slow as not many workers, perhaps some were still on leave. However, they apologized for the delay, which was excusable during festive season.

Marco Polo is one of the oldest Chinese restaurants in Kuala Lumpur, and is one of the very few which has survived the intense competition. The staff are mostly middle-aged women who're very experienced and who seemed to have worked there all their lives.

The dim sum at Marco Polo's good, but not great - a far cry from its past when once its Har-Gau & Siu-Mai were legendary.

Loh Mai Kai (steamed glutinous rice) - delicious!

Chee Cheung Fun with Cha-Siu filling. The rice rolls were thinner than expected, so it was soft and melted in the mouth right away.

Cha-Siu Bao - the baos were smaller than usual, and the dough was not as fluffy. The bao’s laden filling of caramelized pork with sesame seeds was delicious.

Pei Tan Chok (century egg congee) - I like the flavour of dried oyster in the congee – strictly personal preference.

It was a satisfying meal. KL has an array of better Cantonese restaurants these days, and Marco Polo did not seem to have moved with the times much.

Marco Polo Restaurant
1st Floor, Wisma Lim Foo Yong,
86, Jln Raja Chulan,
50200 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-21412233

Food : ★★★☆☆
Ambience : ★★★☆☆