The Malaysian Insider :: Food
The Malaysian Insider :: Food |
| Posted: 03 Sep 2012 04:39 PM PDT  The interior of The Red Beanbag located at Solaris Dutamas. — Pictures by CK Lim My suggestions for our evening meal have left my friend dumbfounded, but I assure him the food itself would not be quite as… odd. Unusual names aside, there is good eating to be had at one of the most unassuming all-day cafes in town. Beanies begin It all started with New Year's Day. For our first meal this year, my friends decided brunch at this caféthat almost no one had heard of was the way to go. Trying out new and untested dining places is a lot like life — there will be plenty of hits and misses. Still, what better spirit to ring in a fresh year than with optimism and hope? Between bouts of gossip and raucous laughter, we managed to take in an enormous amount of food. We passed around a bowl of Japanese mushroom consommé, each taking a few spoonfuls of the wholesome clear broth. There were plenty of eggs on the table — from Hollandaise-covered poached eggs with asparagus, mushrooms & smoked salmon to a hearty dish of baked eggs with lamb bratwurst, sun-dried tomatoes, potatoes & cheese — and thick slices of crusty bread to mop up all the yolky goodness. From skyscraper-high stacks of fluffy pancakes drenched in maple syrup to burgers stuffed to the point of spilling with Portobello mushroom, buffalo mozzarella, rocket and tomatoes, we still cried out for more and more. And of course, there was their classic French toast to end our search (had we been searching) for the ultimate French toast — fluffy and golden, topped with an addictive layer of toasted shaved almonds. We had found the perfect toast. As we sank back gratefully into our cushioned seats and patted full bellies, our orders of espresso and caffè latte arrived without much fanfare. We nursed our coffees and thanked Lady Luck for such a fortuitous beginning to a year of good eating and drinking. We may not have heard of The Red Beanbag before, but we foresaw, even without a crystal ball, many return visits in the months to come.  (Left) RBB's Specialty Baked Eggs (with lamb bratwurst, sun-dried tomatoes, potatoes, cheese and crusty bread); (right) Eggs Atlantic v2.0 (poached eggs with Hollandaise, asparagus, mushrooms & smoked salmon, served on French toast). These days, The Red Beanbag is one of the hottest spots in town for brunch, especially during the weekends. Miraculously, the Oz-style café managed to arrive at this without losing any of their warm, casual atmosphere or kooky charm. Even when my friends and I have to wait for a table, we are always greeted with friendly smiles and heartfelt apologies by the ever-patient staff. Some of their all-day breakfast standards like the classic French toast have become brunch must-haves. Others, such as their Eggs Atlantic, have been updated with an improved version 2.0 (using French toast instead of plain sliced bread). Much of this success has got to do with resident head chef Ryan Cheah who is always hard at work tweaking his recipes and analysing customer feedback to come out with new menus. The 26-year-old had previously worked at two of the top five Malaysian restaurants (the Miele Guide 2011/2012). Under the supervision of different chefs and learning diversely different cuisines (Japanese, French, German and Malaysian), Chef Ryan developed his own style that is put to practice at The Red Beanbag. It's not only brunch that the Red Beanies (as the staff of the café call themselves, as do its most fervent admirers) excel in, though. Chef Ryan and his kitchen crew have recently launched their latest dinner menu.  (Left) The Leeky Duck (smoked duck breast, served with leek & duck broth on a bed of spaghettini); (right) Fowl Luck (roasted chicken thigh with herbed potatoes, mushrooms, olives & mushroom gravy). Two thumbs up! Global goes local Consider this newly converted Red Beanie hooked: I return on subsequent visits with different friends to try practically every item on their dinner menu, one quirkily-named dish at a time. My best friend and I had dinner here before her work-related move to South Africa. My Don Scallopino (seaweed risotto served with seared scallops & seafood) felt like fine comfort food; while she had the My Crustacean Cousin (tiger prawns, scallops and pipi shellfish served with freshly pressed tagliolini). Tasting both dishes, she observed it wouldn't only be local food that she would be missing once she leaves Malaysia for the next couple of years.  Chef Ryan Cheah slicing smoked duck breast "When I first picked up French cuisine, it was with a Japanese twist to it. That caused me to want to learn pure Japanese cuisine next. "After that, I realised the important thing is to use the freshest and most sustainable ingredients rather than simply the most expensive stuff. "The challenge lies in learning how to best use them and to match the different flavours and textures." Starting from scratch Chef Ryan has a tattoo of The Red Beanbag logo on his right forearm and I've always been curious about it. Apparently, he had it done before the café even opened. What if restaurant was unsuccessful? Wouldn't the tattoo be a frightful (and permanent) reminder of his failure? "Not really. I don't believe in absolute failure," he replied. "Let's say, I needed 10 out of 10 points to learn how to start a kitchen from scratch. Even if it didn't work out, I would not have to start at zero with my next venture, but maybe at four, or five points? I would have earned some points and learned something." The young chef obviously believes in putting in his best with any endeavour, and his philosophy serves as an inspiration for the rest of his crew and the Red Beanies. Back to basics As my friends and I wind down our evening by sharing a generous slice of Red Velvet cake and a Nutty Professor (thick chocolate mousse with nuts served in an espresso cup, topped with cappuccino-like froth), we get philosophical too and wonder what a suitable motto for the Red Beanies might be. One suggests, "Eat lots of good food. Then good coffee. Repeat." Not a bad idea. How about another caffè latte, then, fellow Red Beanies?
 (Left) My Crustacean Cousin (tiger prawns, scallops and pipi served with freshly pressed tagliolini); (right) Tale of an Ox (slow-cooked oxtail with carrot purée, mash and sautéed broccoli). Lot A4-1-8, Solaris Dutamas, Jalan Dutamas 1, 50480 Kuala Lumpur. Tel: 03-6211 5116. Open Tue – Fri 10:00am – 10:00pm; Sat & Sun 9:30am – 10:00pm; closed Mondays. Website: http://www.facebook.com/theredbeanbag/ * Kenny is a happy Red Beanie; how about you? Read more of his musings at http://lifeforbeginners.com |
| McDonald’s set to open first location in Siberia Posted: 03 Sep 2012 04:16 PM PDT  Employees serve clients in a McDonald's restaurant on Pushkin square in Moscow on February 1, 2010. — AFP pic According to English-language site The Voice of Russia, the largest fast food chain in the world is about to break ground on its first restaurant in the biggest city in Central Siberia, Krasnoyarsk, at a price tag of $130 million rubles (RM13 million). The restaurant will have a drive-thru service, along with separate facilities for children and a banquet hall. The arrival of the Golden Arches is poised to up the ante and present a major challenge to Subway and KFC, the only two global fast food chains operating in Siberia. Recently, KFC announced plans to open 300 outlets in Russia by 2015. That means doubling its presence in the country and building 30 to 40 restaurants a year. According to The Voice of Russia, there are currently 324 McDonald's locations in non-Siberian Western Russia. Other West Siberian sites which are being eyed as possible McDonald's locations include Novosibirsk, Barnaul, Tomsk and Novokuznetsk. — AFP-Relaxnews Employees serve clients in a McDonald's restaurant on Pushkin square in Moscow on February 1, 2010. — AFP pic |
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