Pages

Monday, September 5, 2011

Sunday Lunch Buffet @ Al-Amar Lebanese Cuisine, Pavilion Kuala Lumpur

Lebanese cuisine is something new to me, so when the opportunity arose to dine in Al-Amar Lebanese Cuisine Restaurant in Pavilion KL, I snapped it up immediately. Al-Amar is an award-winning restaurant, having won numerous awards from Time Out KL, Malaysia International Gourmet Festival (MIGF) and Malaysia Tatler. Established in July 2008, Al-Amar offers a variety of Lebanese, Middle Eastern, Western and Asian flavours. Almost 50% of its ingredients (such as chickpeas, grains, spices and the reputable seven spices) are imported from Lebanon to deliver the authentic taste of Lebanese cuisine. On top of that, the kitchen is led by four highly experienced Lebanese chefs.


I was invited to try their ongoing Sunday Lunch Buffet, priced at RM65++ per person. I found the buffet to be a great introduction to Lebanese cuisine since we got to try various types of hot/cold mezze (appetizers), main courses and desserts. The spread will vary every week, but the main Lebanese dishes such as hummus, tabbouleh, and moutabbal will be present.


The various awards the restaurant has garnered over the years

The restaurant is tastefully decorated and the red theme is prevalent, with Arabic-styled red lanterns and chandeliers above and the theme continues at the dining table, creating a relaxed atmosphere.



Al-Amar serves alcoholic beverages such as beer, spirits and Lebanese wines


Al-Amar means the moon in Arabic

Classy interior

A healthy AND delicious affair...

The buffet spread was beautifully laid out, and was a burst of different colours, flavours and textures. Other than Lebanese cuisine, this buffet also offers some Western and Asian dishes such as ravioli, chicken tikka masala, seafood thermidor and quiche, all very well prepared.



Diners helping themselves at the buffet



Fattouch is a traditional Lebanese salad, with a mixture of tomato, cucumber, lettuce, radish, mint leaves and rockets served with a special sumac dressing. The dressing was tangy, which made this salad irresistibly refreshing and appetizing.


Al-Amar bakes their own Lebanese breads, which are constantly replenished during the buffet. Warm and fluffy, it goes really well with either the moutabal or hummus. Both the spreads were smooth and creamy.


Moutabal - mashed aubergine mixed with sesame seed paste and a dash of lemon juice, topped with olive oil


Hummus - mashed chickpeas mixed sesame seed paste and a dash of lemon juice, topped with olive oil




Executive Chef Pierre Chahda showing us the chickpeas that the hummus is made of


Colorful vegetables, which can be eaten with the hummus and moutabal too


Mixed olives and gherkins

Chicken Liver & Prawn Butter Crostini

Mixed Pastries Platter - love the cheese rolls, fried pastry stuffed with savoury homemade Lebanese cheese. There's also beef sambousik (fried dough stuffed with minced beef and spices) and spinach fatayer (fried dough stuffed with baby spinach, onions and lemon zest).



Garlic & Rosemary Baked Brie


Another simple but lovely salad - Date, Orange and Carrot Salad



Roasted Pepper Antipasto - good


Tabbouleh, another traditional Lebanese salad which I have been told is a must-have at every Lebanese meal. Made of fresh parsley, tomatoes, onions, and bulgur wheat and topped with lemon, olive oil and spices. (Interesting fact: the largest recorded dish of tabbouleh weighed 3557kg and was created in October 24, 2009 in Beirut, Lebanon and has earned a place in the Guinness World Record)


Salmon Caesar Salad

Quiche

Chicken & Sun Dried Tomato Tort


After helping myself to the hot/cold mezze, I moved on to the main courses, which is a mix of seafood/meat, rice, and soup.

Spinach stew, one of the Lebanese main dishes featured, turned out to be one of my favorite dishes despite its unappetizing looks. The taste and texture of this dish was quite similar to "mui choy" (Chinese preserved vegetable), and since I love mui choy, I loved this.



Brocolli and Cheddar Soup - this is Western of course


The Chicken Tikka Masala was really delicious; the meat was tender and well flavoured with all the different spices.


So many new interesting flavours unearthed that afternoon at Al-Amar



Asian, Western and Lebanese - all on one plate


You can also get chicken and beef chawarma (shawarma) here..



And what is a buffet without an array of mouthwatering desserts...

Beautiful cakes

The baklava here is excellent; I was guilty of eating quite a few of these that afternoon. A sweet ending.

Chocolate mousse


A beautiful tear-drop cake

Peach Mousse

Strawberry Mousse

Fresh fruits

Fruit platter

Some of the decor that caught my eye



There is also an outdoor terrace overlooking Jalan Bukit Bintang for you to enjoy your meal or shisha

Thanks to Mr. Joseph Sabeh Afaki and Mr. Ralph Zeidan of Al-Amar for hosting and introducing Lebanese cuisine to us. It was both an informative and delicious afternoon.

Full set of photos available to view here.


Join them on Facebook or Twitter for latest updates and promotions.

Pork-free.

Service: Good.

Price: RM65++ for the Sunday Lunch Buffet, inclusive of unlimited soft drinks and juices. Available every Sunday from 12.00 - 3.30pm.

Location: Al-Amar Lebanese Cuisine, Lot 6.10, Level 6, Pavilion Kuala Lumpur, 168 Jalan Bukit Bintang, 50450 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03-2166 1011



*PROMOTION: I Love Discounts is now offering a deal whereby you can enjoy the Sunday Lunch Buffet at Al-Amar Lebanese Restaurant, Pavilion KL for RM52 instead of RM75.40 (31% off). Hurry and get it today to experience Lebanese cuisine at its finest. Check out the deal here.

21 comments:

  1. hey! nice writeup there! And so detailed :)

    First time here, will link your blog on my blogroll. Nice seeing you that day XD

    ReplyDelete
  2. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I enjoyed the foods and Lebanese cuisine is something new to me too! nice meeting u there. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  4. RM65++ sounds like an awesome deal, considering that the a la carte prices here are quite high, if i recall correctly! but still worth it, since the quality of the food is pretty high :D

    ReplyDelete
  5. I see that you've got spam from the same lady as well.

    i just wish that my parents would one day fall in love with middle eastern/ mediterranean cuisine. after their trip from turkey, it appears that they've developed a strong aversion towards it. :((((

    ReplyDelete
  6. Nice review!Has always pass by Al-Amar but never tried it.The food looks awesome..will try it soon!

    ReplyDelete
  7. ahhh! gotta LOVE Lebanese cuisine.. we were at Express - excellent food by the surroudings were so warm.. need more aircond to enjoy my meal i tell ya!! LOL

    ReplyDelete
  8. I LOVE their fluffy bread! So good! :) Gonna try out their buffet soon :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. I love the ambiance there but Middle East food not really my cup of tea :P

    ReplyDelete
  10. your blog mskes good reading.I enjoyed all of the dishes,

    ReplyDelete
  11. Isaac: Nice meeting you too, and thanks a lot for linking me :)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Caroline: Nice meeting you too, hopefully will get the chance again soon :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Sean: Yes it is, I took a peek at their a la carte menu and for RM65++, you do get to try a lot of very well prepared Lebanese and international food. Plus there is a promotion on I Love Discounts now... RM52 for the buffet. Get it if you're interested to try. :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Michelle: Yeah she spams me every now and then and I just delete her comments. So annoying. Lol.

    Awww never mind, next time you're back in KL, I teman you eat Lebanese cuisine okay?

    ReplyDelete
  15. eencyweency: Thanks very much for dropping by. Hope you will enjoy your experience at Al-Amar :)

    ReplyDelete
  16. Ciki: Am planning to visit Al-Amar Express very soon - been raving about Al-Amar Pavilion to Hubby so he wants to go now too :P

    ReplyDelete
  17. iamthewitch: Gonna get the deal ah?

    ReplyDelete
  18. Choi Yen: Why not? Maybe just try one time and you might like it.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Margaret: Thanks very much, glad you enjoyed reading this. :)

    ReplyDelete
  20. Aww, so nice they invited you there! I don't think I will have chance to try out their foods too because my dear is not an adventurous eater! =.=

    ReplyDelete
  21. awesome :)
    Nice info towards Tabbouleh haha, sounds Boleh as in Guinness world record lol hehe

    ReplyDelete

Please drop any comments or questions you may have here. Thank you so much for reading!