3 Meals Of Goodness

I have been to a few Korean restaurants but I can vaguely remember one with authentic Korean ambiance. If I recall correctly, there were loads of Korean restaurants somewhere in Ampang where locals like to call it “Little Korea”. But recently, I had an opportunity to try out another Korean restaurant in Desa Sri Hartamas … an authentic one, that is !

This is the Korean restaurant where Korean go to when they want Korean food. The food at Daorae confirmed my theory: you can find good ethnic food where the people of that ethnicity go. Lunch or dinner, you will be served well with good food, if you can communicate with the Nepalese waiters (fancy a Korean restaurant with Korean owner, captain, cashier and of course, chefs .. but having Nepalese waiters. Mind you though, these hard working waiters actually speak Korean!). Not all of them speak good English, but the numbered and pictorial menu assures that you get the orders through.

The decorations in Daorae are simple yet gives you the authentic feeling. Wooden chairs and tables are used to mimic the hey days of Korea … you can choose to sit at the raised platform at one part of the restaurant and this really adds to the ambiance of a real Korean dining experience.

By the way, you want to guess the name of their chef?

Chef Kim….

I doubt that was a hard guess though.

We were shown to our table, which is one of those I mentioned earlier … a raised platform with a hole under the table for your feet. Sitting next the a very large glass window, you can see a large area of Sri Hartamas in it’s night glory. Since a few more our friends came, we had to move to a room … a little privacy is better since we WILL be quite noisy !

I would say their service is very good ! Fellow waiters and restaurant owner speaks good english so ordering is not a problem. The menu descriptions are accurate too and that IS important. I mean … O-Jing-Er-So-Myun … whatever does that mean ? Of course it’s written in the menu as “sliced squid with assortment of vegetables stir-fried in spicy chili sauce, served with noodles”.

Anyway, orders were swiftly taken and delivered promptly … even before you could learn your first Korean word. The first to be served were the Banchans’. A swarm of little plates litter the table with little bits of something in it. Some are recognizable … fried anchovies … salad … others … I would love to find out.

Korean meals is usually served with Ban-Chan, free-of-charge Korean traditional side dishes that may be refilled. Banchan (hangul ?; hanja: ??, also spelled panchan), refers to small side-dishes served along with cooked rice in Korean cuisine. The most famous banchan is kimchi. Banchan are served in small portions, meant to be finished at each meal. They can be replenished during the meal as they are finished.

As I began to enjoy nibbling at the Ban-Chans served a few plates of raw meat … and i meant red raw meat as you can see my from photo below. I was a little worried in the beginning … if we have to eat some raw stuffs. But actually they were for the BBQ sessions … and guess what, you don’t even need to cook them yourself. Talk about service man !

Bul Gogi is one of Korea’s most popular beef dishes. It is made from thinly sliced sirloin or other prime cut of beef. The meat is marinated with a mixture of soy sauce, pear purée, sesame oil, black pepper, garlic, onions, wine and sugar. It is marinated for two to four hours to enhance the flavor and its tenderization.

Finally the rest of the orders were served and it is truly a feast for me. From sliced squids to Kim-Chi Pancake, I ate Korean food like I never did that night. The sliced squids … it’s korean name is O-Jing-Er-So-Myun or in plain english would mean “sliced squid with assortment of vegetables stir-fried in spicy chili sauce, served with noodles. As the description mentions, it’s basically spicy squids …. with noodle.

Then there’s the Kim-Chi Pancake or more locally known as KimChi-Jeon. Kimchi-jeon is a Korean dish served as an appetizer, snack, or banchan sidedish. Shaped like a pancake, it is a shallow-fried patty made primarily from kimchi and flour. This could have been a very nice dish … except it was served last .. so you can imagine us trying to force it in our throat …..

On the same day, we were very lucky to chance upon Zhang Zhen Hong … I was told he is the upcoming local singer in the chinese song arena. We met and greeted and I took some shots of him and the restaurant owner, as seen here. Before posting this, I did a little reading on him .. and I actually like his songs. I don’t usually listen to chinese numbers but I’ll make and exception .. in this case. You should check him out here … http://zhangzhenhong.blogspot.com.

Here’s my rating on the DAORAE

Contact Details
Korean BBQ Restaurant
DAORAE GARDEN (Tel : 03-6203-2616)
No.9, 1st Floor, Plaza Crystal Ville Center,
Jalan 23/70A, Desa Sri Hartamas,
50480 Kuala Lumpur

Bandar Puteri Puchong Branch (Tel : 03-80621203)
No. 27-1, Jalan Puteri 1/4,
Bandar Puteri,
Puchong,
47100 Selangor.

Subang USJ Branch (Tel : 03-8024-2616)
No.8C, Top Speed Business Center,
Jalan USJ 10/1J,
47620 UEP Subang Jaya

Kota Damansara Branch (Tel : 03-6140-7114)
No.2-3A, Jalan PJU 5/9
Dataran Sunway,
Kota Damansara 47810 Petaling Jaya

2 more branches opening this year, one in Puchong and another in Cheras. I can’t really get a map to the Sri Hartamas branch, but here’s one for Kota Damansara. Taken from Saint’s blog.

Ratings
OVERALL RATINGs : * * * * (Expectations exceeded, this is in my HIGH SCORE list !)
Environment Ratings : * * * * (Efforts were put in for authentic ambiance)
Food Ratings : * * * * (When you’re served that well .. the food tastes as good..)
Service Ratings : * * * * (Korean warmness, just like in the movies)
Value Ratings : * * * (Quality comes with a price tag, don’t you agree?)

Operation Details
Average Price : RM30 – RM40 per person
Business Hrs : Daily lunch from 12:00 – 2:00pm and dinner from 5:30 – 11:00pm
Accepted Cards: major credit cards accepted

Miscellaneous Details
Halal : No
Dining Method : Dine in, take-away
Food/Cuisine : Authentic Korean BBQ
Ambiance/Features : Korean, think Winter Sonata ….
Reservations : Please do, it’s packed on weekends !

Four chinese characters stand proudly on the logo of DRAGON-i.

Being an absolute illiterate in Chinese characters, I can’t read what it says … ok, maybe 2 out of the 4 characters. Anyway, I ask around and found out that it reads … “Long De Chuan Ren” which simply means Descendants of the Dragon. Chinese people often use the term “Descendants of the Dragon” as a sign of ethnic identity. As you walk into Dragon-i, you can’t help but to wonder if you’re walking into an ancient Chinese hall (not that I’ve been to one) or probably into a museum. The many rows of Chinese writings on the walls as depicted in the images here probably means a lot but I am just settling at admiring it’s beauty (can’t read … again). On the other side, 3 Terracotta warriors stand guarding the entrance walkway to Dragon-i … perfectly accentuates the ambiance of ancient Chinese culture.

If you are think casually strolling into the restaurant would get you a seat immediately … dream on! Dragon-i is usually packed to the rim, on most weekends. Utilizing a systematic way for queue management, you register at the reception area and is given a queue slip. You are then shown to the waiting area, consisting of a row of bench … which probably is already filled with eagerly waiting customers.

As you stare impatiently and unblinkingly at the LED sign, waiting for it to display your queue number … you can’t help but feel your stomach growling. By now, the person sitting next to you would have probably heard your audible tummy grouses … and gave you the funny look. But you couldn’t care less, because you just noticed the LED displayed your queue number. Almost instantly, you stood up … flashed a “nyeh..nyeh.. I am going in first” look to the person who gave you the funny look earlier … and walked proudly to your table, led by the waitress.

Finally … time to enjoy a good lunch! As you flipped through the menu booklet … you noticed their specialties … their Xiao Long Bao, La Mian and Szechuan Tan Tan Mian. And also, a handful of other items which looks equally interesting. Of course, I ordered the Xiao Long Pao … and some other items on the menu but deciding to skip La Mian and Tan Tan Mian.

The first to be served were the Shanghainese Steamed Meat Dumpling, or more widely known as Xiao Long Bao (direct translation : little basket bun). Xiao Long Bao are traditionally steamed in bamboo baskets, hence the name. It is filled with soup and meat, wrapped in jiaozi wrapper (a thinly rolled piece of dough that turns almost translucent after being steamed) which is then sealed by pressing the edges together. Shanghai steamed buns can be recognised by their unique design, as the filled wrapper is gathered up into fine folds at the top, prior to steaming. The soup inside is created by placing some meat gelatin inside the dumpling before steaming. The steam heat melts the gelatin into soup.

Caution : Fresh Xiao Long Baos are very hot; the soup can scald your tongue if you’re not careful. Unfortunately, quality declines as it cools down. Picking up Xiao Long Bao can be quite a challenge too … since the jiaozis are quite thin. If you’re not careful, the jiaozis will tear … and there goes the delicious soup.

Generally, Xiao Long Bao is widely available everywhere but to-date, my vote goes to DRAGON-i for serving the best ones. The servings are naturally well proportionated , and the soup is very well-prepared. But I have to make sure I don’t waste any of it when picking it up !!! Hmm … maybe a straw might help … to scald my tongue, that is …

And finally, just add a touch of their Special Chili Oil for flavor and you’re in for a treat!

Now, with the Xiao Long Bao aside, time to have some more starters. We will begin the starters course with the Jellyfish. I first learnt to eat Jellyfish in a sushi restaurant. Since then, there’s no turning back … and here I am .. with a wholesome plate of Jelly Fish with Sesame Oil. For a start, it’s good to know that Jellyfish toughens if excessively cooked, so it’s generally quickly blanched in boiling water for only about 15 seconds. It’s customarily shredded and served cold in salads for a crunchy texture. In Dragon-I, the chefs must’ve put in quite some effort .. for the Jellyfish is both very crunchy and very, very appetizing.

From Jellyfishes, we move on to Eels … and no, this is not a reality show about exotic seafoo dining. Again, I picked up the love of Eel dishes through my sushi dining experiences. Eels are synonymous with Shanghai cuisine. If not properly cooked, Eels may emit some certain fishy smell. Those who fear the fishy smell will love the Honey Glazed Crispy Eel. Actually, it’s so crispy it doesn’t even taste like fish. A good dish as snacks or even with your main courses.

After downing some of those good stuff, you may want to also try their fried rice. You will want to have some rice to go with the mouth watering dishes. There’s a good variety of fried rice in the menu … and I ordered 2 different types, to try. Firstly is the Fried Rice with Shrimp and Preserved Vegetable … something plain and simple, without any meat.

As I mentioned, it’s quite plain especially without the presence of meat but goes well with any good dishes. The next one however, caught my taste bud … it’s the Fried Rice with Ham, Prawn and Fish. The ingredient combo must be working very well for I fell in love with it on the first smell. Well, I do admit I can hardly spot any ham and fish … but the prawns were aplenty. If only it were a little spicy ..I’d go there for lunch and dinner everyday, for a week !

Of course you have to down the rice with some good dishes for a complete meal. What better dish to have than the Special Sauteed Sweet and Sour Spare Ribs … and trust me on this .. if you’re a meat lover … well then, this is your thing ! Every piece of rib is so well marinated that when it’s cooked, the sauces are saturated into the ribs. As you sink your teeth into the ever so tender meat … and take your first chew … you will want to enjoy it slowly, for as I mentioned earlier .. the meat is so tender and juicy and the sauce is sweet with a slight taste of saltiness. And when you swallow … the meat just slides down your throat …gracefully.

All meat and no vegetable isn’t a good idea of a well-balanced diet. To strike balance, we had Stir Fried String Beans with Minced Meat (yes, I know .. more meat) … and what I love about this course is the crunchiness of the string beans and the minced meat, that adds to taste.

Finally, you mustn’t leave the place before having their famous desserts. I ordered 3 different types of desserts to try … which is the Deep Fried Minced Meat & Sesame Pastry, Deep Fried Durian Pancake and Pomelo Mango Cream Sago. From the list of 3, the ones I’d go back for more would be the Durian Pancake. When you take a bite on the Durian Pancake, you will be surprised to discover that the skin is actually very crunchy and crispy .. and more surprised to find that the durian fillings are actually cold. Another experience to leave you coming back for more. The 2 other desserts however, will need more work. For example, both the Pomelo Mango Cream Sago and the Deep Fried Minced Meat & Sesame Pastry are pretty tasteless.

Here’s what I paid for my lunch …

Jelly Fish with Sesame Oil – RM14.00
Honey-Glazed Crispy Eel – RM16.00
Shanghai Steam Meat Dumpling – RM8.00
Special Sauteed Sweet & Sour Spare Ribs – RM20.00
Fried Rice with Ham, Prawn & Fish – RM16.00
Fried Rice with Shrimp & Preserved Vegetable – RM14.00
Stir-Fried String Bean with Minced Meat – RM14.00
Pomelo Mango Cream Sago – RM12.00
Deep Fried Minced Meat & Sesame Pastry – RM6.00
Deep Fried Durian Pancake – RM12.00

Dragon-i is located in 1 Utama new wing and I am pretty sure getting to 1 Utama shouldn’t be any problem for most of you. Here’s the exact location.

Dragon-i Restaurant (1U) Sdn Bhd
Lot S313A, 2nd Floor HighStreet,
1 Utama Shopping Mall,
No. 1, Lebuh Utama, Bandar Utama,
47800 Petaling Jaya.
Tel : 03-7725 8822
Fax : 03-7728 6886

Other branches are located at

MidValley Megamall, Cititel Lobby
CentrePoint Bandar Utama, G115, Bandar Utama
Sunway Pyramid, G1.43. Ground Floor
The Curve, Lot 136 & 137
Cheras Leisure Mall, G22-22A, Ground Floor
Penang QueensBay Mall, Lot 2F-77, 78, 79 & 81, 2nd Floor Centre Court
Pavillion KL, Lot 1.13, Level 1