Melting Pot Café

Spice me up!

April 25, 2019

Black pepper, candlenut, cardamon, cloves, cinnamon and star anise: These six spices take centrestage at the aptly named Citarasa 6 Sekawan, happening for the month of Ramadan at Melting Pot Café in Kuala Lumpur’s Golden Triangle. I am not terribly fond of buffets but I must admit Melting Pot’s chefs do take great pains to create one of the best spreads in town.

Variety of ulam-ulam with different types of sambal, including a lusciously creamy tempoyak

You can't get fresher dates than these 

This year, the variety of kerabu, ulam-ulam and the accompanying sambal and dips, are astounding. The Chicken Liver Kerabu, in particular, is lively on the tastebuds and I love the thick, creamy tempoyak. Almost like eating durian flesh.

If you prefer to start slow, have a chilled drink or a cup of hot tea/coffee, with fresh dates still hanging in bunches. Then there’s the soup station for Bubur Lambuk and Seafood Tom Yam as well as the salad bar, with sushi, fresh salad greens and various dressings and toppings. Next to this are fresh oysters and poached prawns and mussels on ice.

All kinds of kerabu and salted fish

Grilled whole Red Snapper with Percik Sauce

There's also Thai-style steamed barramundi

On the other side of this island table is a whole Roasted Lamb, carved as you wait, and Grilled Red Snapper with percik sauce. Move along and you’ll find claypots filled with tempting hot curries and at the other end, there’s dim sum and Thai-style steamed fish kept hot in huge bamboo trays.

Gearbox Soup

Unlike most places which serve mainly Malay cuisine, Melting Pot Café has a balanced menu of Malay, Indian, Chinese and Western cuisine as well as Thai and Padang fare as well as an impressive line-up of cooking stations along one wall. 
There’s goreng-goreng (fried fare) and a range of beef soup such as Gearbox, Tulang Rawan (cartilage), Oxtail and Perut (tripe). Gearbox is always popular and all evening, I see customers walking gingerly to their tables with giant bowls of Gearbox Soup.

Well-marinated and deepfried quail and prawn

I am drawn to the goreng-goreng station. The aromas wafting over from there is irresistible. I fill my plate with deepfried crab, udang galah, chicken and the most succulent, well marinated burung puyuh (quail) that I have ever eaten. So good I go back for a second helping. Usually, these birds tend to be dry from overfrying.

Roti John is immensely popular

There’s teppanyaki too, next to the trays of Roti John and Lala Kam Heong. Customers choose their favourite seafood or meat and the chefs will cook this a la minute.

Siput Sedut Masak Lemak Daun Kunyit

Black Pomfret in Spiced Black Soya Sauce

Back to the hot mains. I always look forward to siput sedut (Belitung or sea snails) and am rewarded with a yummy Siput Sedut Masak Lemak Daun Kunyit. The turmeric leaves add their special flavour to the snails. Ikan Bawal Masak Kicap Berempah is another dish to have more of. The chunks of black pomfret go so well with the mildly spiced dark soya sauce gravy.

Tender chunks of meat in Lamb  Varuval

Butter chicken

Indian Fish Head curry

Another dark as night dish comes from the Indian section. Lamb Varuval looks forbidding but don’t let that fool you. The pieces of lamb are so tender and juicy, with a gorgeous aroma. Or have Butter Chicken or Fish Head Curry with rice or tosai and dalca.

Doesn't look like it but Sayur Kapau packs a whole lot of kapow!

Sambal Udang with Onions

Beef Dendeng Kering Balado Merah

Gulai Ikan Masak Lemak

Thai-style roasted chicken

Braised  shitake mushroom with silken tofu

For Indonesian Padang cuisine, I love the Sayur Kapau (softly cooked cabbage and long beans in a creamy curry gravy), Sambal Kentang Ikan Bilis Tempe (potato, ikan bilis and tempe in dry sambal) and Gulai Ikan Masak Lemak. There’s also Beef Dendeng Kering Balado Merah.

Having had my fill of mains, I head back to the salad station for Fruit Rojak. I pick chunky pieces of guava, pineapple, jicama, cucumber and sour mango to go with the thick rojak sauce, topped with crushed peanut.

Kuih muih to satisfy your sweet tooth

Then it’s off to the dessert counters, laden with cakes, pudding, jelly, fresh fruit, ais kacang and local kuih muih. There’s lekor, cekodok, banana and sweet potato fritters, prawn fritters, kuih talak, kuih sago, kuih kole kacang, kuih ketayap, serimuka, pulut panggang, bahulu and more.

A freezer is filled with ice cream potong in various flavours such as yam, red bean, cempedak and even teh tarik. The Pengat Durian with steamed glutinous rice proves to be the crowd’s choice though while Ondeh-Ondeh and Apam are freshly prepared.

phoenixbee@gmail.com

  

MELTING POT CAFÉ

Concorde Hotel KL

2 Jalan Sultan Ismail

Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia

Telephone

+603-2717 2233

Email

fbkl@concorde.net

Promotion

Citarasa 6 Sekawan with over 160 dishes

Nightly: May 11 to June 1, RM138 nett

May 6 to May 10: RM118 nett

June 2 to June 4: RM118 nett

Children 5-12: 50% discount