Cover Dino Lee's Golden Butter Bun and Lee Choon Boon's Snow crab in rice wine with dried scallop and caviar
Dino Lee's Golden Butter Bun and Lee Choon Boon's Snow crab in rice wine with dried scallop and caviar
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Chefs Dino Lee and Lee Choon Boon take note of each others' expertise to craft dishes inspired by Malaysian-Chinese flavours
Tatler Dining Malaysia's Off Menu Kuala Lumpur 2022 will bring together 12 of the country's top chefs under one roof to present 12 incredible dishes that have never been seen on their menus.
See also: Off Menu Kuala Lumpur 2022: Feed Your Curiosity at Tatler Dining's Annual Food Festival
For the festival, Dino Lee of Jade Pavilion at the Pavilion Hotel Kuala Lumpur has come up with the golden butter bun with crab otak-otak filling while Lee Choon Boon of Jeff's Cellar in Ipoh has created a sophisticated dish of snow crab complemented with locally sourced caviar.
The Chefs
Dino Lee
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Taking his passion across the border to Singapore and Indonesia where he worked in numerous dim sum restaurants, Dino eventually returned home and rose through the luxury hotel ranks to become the dim sum chef at Pavilion Hotel’s Jade Pavilion.
Jeff's Cellar is one of the most picturesque—not to mention uniquely located inside a cave—restaurants in Malaysia. It is overseen by Choon Boon who has a flair for taking the familiar flavours and ingredients of Malaysian and Chinese cuisines and turning them into unorthodox, modern dishes.
"Even though we have yet to meet up in person, we have been talking about work, food, and what our dishes would be," says Dino about his partnership with Choon Boon. "The use of buttermilk, for example, is inspired by Choon Boon, as it's commonly used in Western cuisines. However, I mix it with spiced powders to replicate the taste of otak-otak (a type of fish cake popular in this region)."
Choon adds: "I loved working with Dino and his alacrity. He really tried his best to support me despite the limitation of being in separate cities."
See also: Off Menu KL 2022: Gēn 根 and Horizon Grill Join Forces for Italian-Malaysian Indulgence
The Dishes
Above Jade Pavilion Golden Butter Bun packs a flavourful punch
Jade Pavilion Golden Butter Bun packs a flavourful punch
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Dubbed the Jade Pavilion Golden Butter Bun, the pillowy soft pastry has a crispy, pan-fried bottom and is filled with otak-otak flavoured with buttermilk sauce. The filling itself is a juicy combination of chicken thigh and spicy crab for a most delightful morsel.
See also: Off Menu KL 2022: Akâr Dining and Restaurant au Jardin Collaborate on Modern Malaysian Bites
Above Choon Boon's creation is an homage to local ingredients in elevated and sophisticated fashion
Choon Boon's creation is an homage to local ingredients in elevated and sophisticated fashion
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Inspired by elegant small bites that is the essence of dim sum, Choon Boon is fashioning snow crab into dumplings. He infuses the dish with Hakka rice wine, dried scallops, wild sorrel, and fermented cucumber with dill. The final flourish comes in the form of Amur caviar, which is sourced locally.
The sweetness of the crab, the tannin of the wine and the saltiness of the caviar balance one another out wonderfully.
See also: Off Menu KL 2022: Gooddam and Sushi Azabu Team Up for an Italian-Japanese Treat
Above Lee in his kitchen
Lee in his kitchen
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At Off Menu KL, you will also enjoy a free flow of drinks courtesy of San Francisco Coffee, Carlsberg, Jacob's Creek, Lillet, Martell, Langkawi Pure, Uncle Jeff Drinks, and La Juiceria.
The first session of Off Menu KL 2022 on November 5 is completely booked. Tickets are available for the remaining sessions on November 5-6.
- When: November 5, 8pm-11pm & November 6, 2pm-5pm and 8pm-11pm
- Where: Centre Courtyard, 8th Floor, Pavilion Hotel Kuala Lumpur Managed by Banyan Tree
- Price: RM650 per ticket, ticket bundles are available at a discounted price
- Tickets: Purchase HERE
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Credits
Photography: Imran Sulaiman and Jeff's Cellar
Amanda is a KL-born and raised third culture kid, who lives to eat. If not found reading, writing for Tatler Dining, or snacking, she is most likely playing with her dog, Katsu, sourcing new Birkenstocks, or looking for a new restaurant to venture to.
Follow her on Instagram at @feedingamanda.
