Special thanks to JT Restaurant for extending this food review invitation.
It is a little-known fact that The Heritage Club is open to the public. With the exception of gaming room, visitors can access all sections of the building including the fitness center, the spa and the sole eatery, JT Restaurant Oriental & Western Cuisine.
JT Restaurant is lavishly furnished to provide an upscale setting for dining. As the restaurant is halal-certified, it also attracts governmental and corporate clientele.
Besides the à la carte menu, JT Restaurant also offers buffet meals on specific days. Outside the regular schedule, buffet can also be arranged for private dining events. In addition, JT Restaurant also offers catering service.
In conjunction with the Muslim month of Ramadan, JT Restaurant offers buffet dinner each evening. This makes JT Restaurant one of rare non-hotel restaurants that offers buka puasa buffet on daily basis. To allow the cooking of certain types of food, makeshift canopies are erected outdoors to accommodate several cooking stations.
The main attraction of this Ramadan buffet dinner is the durian station. Each evening, the restaurant prepares a dozen of durians to be served under a handful of cooking styles. Guests can still eat raw durians, but why do so when there are more interesting ways to enjoy the king of fruits?
One novel way is to barbecue durians over burning charcoal. Although not really piping hot, the lukewarm state allows durian flesh to unleash its aroma more prominently. In addition, there are also deep-fried durians that are similar in appearance to pisang goreng (banana fritters).
Satay is another Malay dish which enjoys widespread acceptance across ethnic boundaries. This year, the satay station features one type of skewered meat: chicken. Marinated with turmeric and steadily roasted over burning charcoal, the chicken satay is scrumptious indeed.
Moving to dishes from the Indian subcontinent, yellow basmati rice provides light mouthfeel as the rice grains are rather loose from one another. Also included are cut pieces of tandoori chicken that have been roasted to perfection.
Due to communal lifestyle in the kampung (Malay villages), food is often cooked in large woks called “kawah”. Tonight’s dinner features Daging Gulai Kawah Berkentang. Beef and potato cuts are simmered in milky curry so that savory flavors combine properly. When cooked, the dish is so rich that it can be eaten with plain Bengali bread.
The buffet also includes a number of cooked dishes such as Kari Ayam Berempah. Pieces of chicken are cooked in a rich stew of spices such as cumin, turmeric and cardamom.
As for Kari Ikan, slices of mackerel are cooked in an even thicker curry gravy. Meanwhile, Kupang Masak Lemak is a dish of mussels cooked in coconut milk gravy.
Ramadan dinners is incomplete without ulam (raw vegetables). Although the number of choices is modest, the types include ulam raja (king’s salad), pucuk ubi kayu (cassava shoots), tomato kecil (cherry tomato), kacang panjang (yardlong beans) and bendi (okra). Intensely-flavored condiments like Cincalok, Budu, Sambal Cili Padi and Sambal Kicap Berlada are provided.
As for desserts, there are a number of sponge cakes, jellies and fruits. There is also a salad bar for the more health-conscious diners.
JT Restaurant’s buffet dinner carries a decent price tag of RM78.00+ per adult, RM58.00+ per child and RM68.00+ per senior citizen. The buffet runs from 12 June 2016 to 3 July 2016.
Name: JT Restaurant Oriental & Western Cuisine
Address: 2, Jalan Scotland, 10450 George Town, Pulau Pinang
Contact: 04-227-3373, 019-662-1673
Business hours: 12:00pm-10:00pm
Website: https://www.facebook.com/JT-Restaurant-1556582174609729
Coordinates: 5.41921 N, 100.30419 E
Directions: Driving along Scotland Road (Jalan Scotland) towards the Penang Botanic Gardens, follow the left curve to Jalan Utama. The Heritage Club is the building immediately on the left. JT Restaurant is located at the west wing of the building. There are no entry and parking fees for restaurant customers.
