Fine dining, Michelin-starred restaurants, and a la carte menus are three things you don’t often find in the same sentence—but now you will at DC Restaurant. The one Michelin-star establishment in Taman Tun Dr Ismail (TTDI) rolled out an à la carte menu not long ago, aiming to give guests the option of trying out dishes from the restaurant without committing to a longer dining time like they would with a tasting menu. This, however, does not equate to a lesser dining experience. If anything, it opens up avenues for DC Restaurant to be more than just another fine dining establishment in KL—something I was able to personally experience.
That night, we entered The Cellar, where we began our night of gastronomy with briny oysters, delicately enhanced with elysium flowers and paired with Dom Perignon champagne—a classic. Spain is the next destination that Chef Darren Chin brought us to, with an adorable ball of pan de yuca topped with 24-month aged beef Cessina and a verdant roasted spring onion dipping sauce on the side. Make no mistake—the dip isn’t just a supporting actor in this dish, but instead ties the pan de yuca together for a harmonious bite. On the same plate is a French flatbread with smoked shiitake and kombu, topped with uni in seawater (we’re told by the chef that keeping uni stored in seawater maintains its consistency). The flatbread shines with its medley of herbs and aromatics, while the uni adds a nice touch of creaminess.
Alongside the a la carte dishes, there was another new thing: Moonbar, the restaurant’s in-house bar, has a new head bartender, Christyne Lee. Rather than the standard wine or cocktail pairing, she had decided on a mocktail pairing for our dinner—a pleasant surprise nodding towards the increase in demand for alcohol-free options. The first pairing of a ginger shrub with rock melon was a twist on the Dark & Stormy cocktail, with the ginger spreading warmth into our palates, while a later pairing featured fermented belimbing with fresh pineapple juice and passionfruit to complement a tomato declination dish. Every drink was thoughtfully crafted to match and not overpower the dish pairing, and Lee makes a point to include some form of local ingredient in each mocktail.
After having several courses, the chef stunned us when he brought out a tray laden with a massive turbot fish. It was grilled “Elkano” style—grilled whole in a special metal basket, close to the coals—with an extremely tasty turkey chorizo crust. Surf and turf, they say. Chef Darren was in high spirits while carving out the fish for the party of seven at The Cellar, saying that this a la carte style dining allows him to experiment with larger cuts of meat and styles of cooking. It’s rustic and lets people taste the difference with cuts that are not as premium, but that’s not always a bad thing. Take the wagyu rump, for example, prepared with bone marrow in galangal spice and served with a dark cherry sauce. The striploin and ribeye cuts are typically favoured in haute cuisine, but most would turn away from the rump. Yet, when prepared spectacularly, it showcases its robust flavour and a heftier chew that some would prefer over a fattier cut. In this case, the meatiness of the rump went well with the tart, salty dark cherry sauce. We toasted to this with the virgin Cosmopolitan that Lee shook up with a reduction of pomegranate juice and orange.
For dessert, pastry chef Nico Ooi took over with desserts that required some serious construction. First, though, were the sorbets in three contexts: first, a mixed herb sorbet with orange juice. Light with green nuances, it was refreshing after a series of heavy mains. It was an appropriate palate cleanser that gave way to a lemony Champagne sorbet, reminiscent of the earlier Dom Perignon we had. Finally, we came to my favourite of the trio: muscat shiso ice cream, a delightfully sweet yet herby ice cream that was rich on the tongue without being too cloying. The final dessert, Lotus Blossom, seemed to fall a little flat after the wondrous trio of sorbets. Ooi spent a great deal of effort piecing each lotus petal together, only to have this hard work buried in sorbet upon serving at the table. Still, the flavour was great—poached white peach soaked overnight in raspberry served with peach vinegar and verbena lemongrass.
Address: 44, Persiaran Zaaba, Taman Tun Dr Ismail, 60000 Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur
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