Inside Off Menu KL 2022, Tatler Dining's Annual Food Festival

Here's what went down at the second edition of Tatler Dining's Off Menu KL

The weekend of November 5-6 saw 12 of Malaysia's best chefs from Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Ipoh and Langkawi showing off their skills at Off Menu KL 2022. Held at Pavilion Hotel Kuala Lumpur, Off Menu KL was indeed a feast of epic proportions with the participation of Aidan Low of Akâr Dining, Chong Ko Wai of C3 Lab, Daniel Yap of Gooddam, Dino Lee of Jade Pavilion, Francesco Fedrighi of Horizon Grill, Haruka Hokune of Sushi Azabu, Johnson Wong of Gēn 根, Kunavathy Ponnampalam of Ultime Atelier & Boulangerie, Lee Choon Boon of Jeff’s Cellar, Marco Caverni of Mandarin Grill, Mattia Salussoglia of The Ritz-Carlton, Langkawi, and Su Kim Hock of Restaurant Au Jardin.

An exclusive Tatler event, Off Menu is designed to bring together renowned chefs from all over the country and place them into teams of two. These teams are tasked to create exciting, one-of-a-kind dishes you would never find elsewhere, not even at their restaurants. Off Menu debuted in Hong Kong in 2019, and has since been hosted in Shanghai, Taipei, Manila, and Singapore. This is the second year in a row that Kuala Lumpur hosted Off Menu.

Rattan furniture completed the tropical party look

Giant hot air balloons adorned the night sky

As night fell on the courtyard, the space transformed into a vibrant tropical-themed party

Guests were eager to collect as many stamps as possible in their Off Menu KL passports.

The team behind Babylon Vertical Farms and its microgreens

Photo 1 of 6 Rattan lamps for the beach vibe

Photo 2 of 6 Coloruful giant balloons

Photo 3 of 6 Pretty flowers added a festive touch

Photo 4 of 6 Night scene

Photo 5 of 6 Off Menu passport

Photo 6 of 6 The team behind Babylon Vertical Farms

The hotel's open-air courtyard was given a tropical makeover complete with rattan lamps and colourful balloons to create a laidback beach club vibe. Off Menu KL was divided into four sessions (lunch and dinner) over two days. When guests checked in, they were each given a passport. To get their food, they had to bring the passport to be stamped at the respective booths.

A veritable culinary showcase of creativity, the 12 dishes at Off Menu KL combined techniques, ingredients, and flavours for a truly eclectic spread. Each plate was also complemented with microgreens from Babylon Vertical Farms.

Su Kim Hock and his team travelled all the way from George Town to be a part of Off Menu KL.

Restaurant Au Jardin's finished dish of charred kailan with over-fermented petai tempeh.

Aidan Low with his team behind the fierce performance from Akâr Dining over the weekend

Aidan Low's apricot kernel tofu with charred scallions, strawberries and cherry tomatoes were a hit

Daniel Yap and his Gooddam team executed their miso beef agnolotti, made with kombu pasta dough and dressed with a shio koji butter sauce, perfectly

Haruka Hokune with a Chocolate de Ultime dessert from fellow participating chef, Kunavathy Ponnampalam

Guests could not get enough of Haruka Hokune's Italian saba roll and chu-toro nigiri.

Dino Lee personally greeted and served guests who arrived at his booth for his bao creation

Dino Lee's Jade Pavilion Golden Butter Bun was a wave of nostalgia for many at Off Menu KL

Lee Choon Boon with his Off Menu KL creation

Lee Choon Boon's snow crab and Hakka rice wine creaton

Marco Caverni and the Mandarin Grill team

A crowd favourite, Marco Caverni's risotto was topped with crispy prawn floss, a crayfish terrine, finger lime, and chive oil.

Mattia Salussoglia serving guests his assam pedas acqua pazza grouper, which was a hit with many guests

The assam pedas acqua pazza was served with a sauce that gave the dish its kick

Francesco Fedrighi serving his surf and turf roll during an afternoon session.

The steaks and lobsters for Francesco Fedrighi's surf and turf roll were freshly grilled right next to his booth.

Johnson Wong grating hazelnuts to top off his dish

Johnson Wong's black chicken and mushroom "cappuccino" was topped with grated hazelnuts

Kunavathy Ponnampalam with her creations for the weekend

Kunavathy Ponnampalam's Chocolate de Ultime combined a multitude of textures into one dessert.

Chong Ko Wai's deconstructed apple tatin was accompanied with a crispy palmier stick for diners to dip into the jar.

Photo 1 of 24 Su Kim Hock and his team travelled all the way from George Town to be a part of Off Menu KL

Photo 2 of 24 Su's charred kailan with over-fermented petai tempeh

Photo 3 of 24 Aidan Low with his Akar Dining team

Photo 4 of 24 Low's apricot kernel tofu with charred scallions, strawberries and cherry tomatoes were a hit

Photo 5 of 24 Daniel Yap of Gooddam

Photo 6 of 24 Yap's miso beef agnolotti, made with kombu pasta dough and dressed with a shio koji butter sauce

Photo 7 of 24 Haruka Hokune of Sushi Azabu

Photo 8 of 24 Hokune's Italian saba roll and chu-toro nigiri

Photo 9 of 24 Dino Lee of Jade Pavilion

Photo 10 of 24 Jade Pavilion's Dino's Golden Butter Bun

Photo 11 of 24 Lee Choon Boon of Jeff's Cellar

Photo 12 of 24 Choon Boon's snow crab soaked in Hakka rice wine

Photo 13 of 24 Marco Caverni of Mandarin Grill

Photo 14 of 24 Caverni's risotto was topped with crispy prawn floss, a crayfish terrine, finger lime, and chive oil.

Photo 15 of 24 Mattia Salussoglia of The Ritz-Carlton Langkawi

Photo 16 of 24 Salussoglia's assam pedas acqua pazza

Photo 17 of 24 Francesco Fedrighi of Horizon Grill

Photo 18 of 24 Fedrighi's steak and lobster roll

Photo 19 of 24 Johnson Wong of Gēn 根

Photo 20 of 24 Wong's black chicken and mushroom "cappuccino" was topped with grated hazelnuts

Photo 21 of 24 Kunavathy Ponnampalam of Ultime

Photo 22 of 24 Ponnampalam's Chocolate de Ultime

Photo 23 of 24 Chong Ka Wai (left) of Texture by C3 Lab

Photo 24 of 24 Chong's deconstructed apple tatin was accompanied with a crispy palmier stick

Akâr Dining and Restaurant Au Jardin presented vegetarian options while the chefs from Gooddam, Mandarin Grill, and The Ritz-Carlton, Langkawi dazzled guests with their Italian dishes. For a great taste of Asia, Sushi Azabu, Jade Pavilion and Jeff's Cellar served up fantastic morsels. Horizon Grill gave its take on a surf-and-turf roll and Gēn 根 treated us to a heartwarming soup, which was ideal in the rainy weather. Guests completed their meals with desserts from Ultime and Texture by C3 Lab.

Aside from dining on gourmet dishes in a relaxing bazaar-like atmosphere, what made Off Menu KL extra special was the opportunity for the guests to interact with the chefs directly—and vice versa. Although they were often busy preparing the dishes, the chefs still found time to greet diners and explain their creations, something that the diners really appreciated.

Melissa Lim of San Francisco Coffee picking up her caffeine fix for the day.

The selection of La Juiceria drinks at Off Menu KL

Connor's was a popular choice for those who preferred a drink with rich flavours and notes of coffee.

Cocktails were flowing out of Lillet's cart throughout the weekend

Water from Langkawi Pure comes from the highest peak in Langkawi, the mystical Gunung Raya.

Guests could enjoy Martell on the rocks or as part of a summery cocktail

Uncle Jeff Drinks' bottles of kombucha featured adorable labels, designed by founder Jeff Lau

The hints of citrus and tropical notes in the 1664 Blanc brought refreshment to the Off Menu KL guests

There were two variations of Carlsberg for diners to choose from.

Jacob's Creek provided both red and white wine options

Somersby 0.0 was a fantastic non-alcoholic option for the diners.

Photo 1 of 12 Melissa Lim at the San Francisco Coffee cart

Photo 2 of 12

Photo 3 of 12 The selection of La Juiceria drinks

Photo 4 of 12 Connor's stout beer

Photo 5 of 12 Cocktails at the Lillet cart

Photo 6 of 12 Langkawi Pure water

Photo 7 of 12 Martell cognac on the rocks

Photo 8 of 12 Uncle Jeff Drinks' bottles of kombucha featured adorable labels designed by founder Jeff Lau

Photo 9 of 12 1664 Blanc beer

Photo 10 of 12 Carlsberg Danish Pilsner and Smooth Draught

Photo 11 of 12 Jacob's Creek wine

Photo 12 of 12 Somersby 0.0

There were plenty of drinks too. Upon arrival, a lot of the guests made a beeline for the San Francisco Coffee cart for a quick perk-me-up before hitting the different booths. They also enjoyed beverages from Langkawi Pure, Uncle Jeff Drinks, and La Juiceria as well as Carlsberg, Jacob's Creek, Lillet, and Martell. Carlsberg presented five alcoholic options including Connor’s Stout Porter, Carlsberg Smooth Draught, Carlsberg Danish Pilsner, 1664 Blanc, 1664 Rosé, and the non-alcoholic Somersby Apple 0.0.

La Juiceria provided cold-pressed juices and a Golden Turmeric refreshment made with Oatside oat milk. Uncle Jeff Drinks had prepared a special kombucha and Jun tea bottles including a Manuka honey tea just for the event. There was also a summery cocktail by Martell.