This evening, Royale Chulan Penang rolls out a new theme for its Friday buffet dinner, The Asian Mash-Up. This new menu replaces the 7 Continents Buffet Dinner which ran for past 9 months. Held at Sri Tanjung Cafe, the new buffet places more emphasis on Asian cuisines.
The main attraction is the station carvery just outside the Boustead Building. Roast lamb is kept warm on a rotisserie over burning charcoal. Served au jus, the lamb goes well with grilled vegetables and mashed potatoes.
Ayam Masak Madu has a lovely touch of honey sweetness, making the chicken succulent indeed. A sprinkle of sesame seeds not only improves the dish’s visual appeal, but also enhances its aroma.
Roast Chicken With Mushroom Sauce is another recommended poultry dish. It comes with baked potato wedges, button mushrooms, bell peppers and black olives.
Malay rice dishes are Nasi Briyani, Nasi Dhall, Nasi Tomato and Nasi Hujan Panas. Since this is an Asian themed buffet, I think this is a good opportunity to introduce other regional rice dishes like Yangzhou Fried Rice (Chinese), Kimchi Fried Rice (Korean) and Chicken Mandi (Arabian).
Sambal Sotong Pasta is an amalgam of Malay and Italian cuisines. Al dente spaghetti is flavored with sweet-spicy cuttlefish, making the pasta quite appetizing. The dish comes with cherry tomatoes, black olives, onions, capsicum and mushrooms too.
Chilled seafood is well received this evening. Diners have the opportunity to savour flower crabs, spanner crabs, prawns, crayfish, mussels and scallops. Several dipping sauces are provided.
The desserts section serves to tantalize the taste buds in different directions. Shown here are Apple Blueberry Pie, Fruit Jelly and Crème Brûlée. I enjoyed the Apple Blueberry Pie very much; hopefully it stays on the regular menu.
Chocolate Mousse is perfect if you appreciate the bold taste of cocoa. The dessert is nicely decorated with crushed chocolate cookies, gooseberries, strawberries and blueberries.
Next, Sago Gula Melaka is a local pudding made of sago. The pudding is nearly tasteless on its own. Therefore, Sago Gula Melaka is almost always eaten with gula melaka (palm sugar) and coconut milk.
Bread & Butter Pudding is a dessert flavored with egg custard, chocolate chips and vanilla sauce. Meanwhile, Pengat Keladi is very similar to Pengat Pisang except for the fact that bananas are replaced with sweet potatoes.
Other notable pastries this evening are Swiss Rolls, Butter Cake, Chocolate Cake, Rainbow Cake, Meringue Tartlets, Fruit Tartlets and Cream Puffs.
For The Asian Mash-Up buffet dinner, there are four menus on weekly rotation. In honor of the elderly, Royale Chulan is launching “Seniors Eat For Free” promotion: For every two paying adults, one senior citizen’s meal is on the house! This promotion is also applicable to the Surf & Turf buffet dinner every Saturday.
Name: Sri Tanjung Cafe
Address: 1 & 2, Pengkalan Weld, 10300 George Town, Pulau Pinang
Contact: 04-259-8888
Business hours: 6:30am-10:30pm
Website: http://www.royalechulan-penang.com/dining
Coordinates: 5.41700 N, 100.34401 E
Directions: From the ferry terminal at George Town, turn right and drive along Weld Quay (Pengkalan Weld). Royale Chulan Penang is located shortly on the left. There is a small lane right after the hotel, which leads to the main entrance and multi-level car park. Guests who dine in Sri Tanjung Cafe can get their parking tickets validated for a flat rate of RM5.00 per entry.