KEN HUNTS FOOD: Italian Flair @ Swez Brasserie, Eastin Hotel Penang.

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Italian Flair @ Swez Brasserie, Eastin Hotel Penang.

The month of May is going to be an interesting one, with all the public holidays and school holidays around, why not bring yourself and your family or friends to enjoy a scrumptious meal at Eastin Hotel Penang? During the month of May (from 1st of May to 31st of May, 2013), Eastin Hotel Penang (Swez Brasserie, Ground Floor of Eastin Hotel Penang) will be offering an array of delectable dishes, under their themed buffet- Italian Flair.

Prices for the buffets are as follow:

Lunch: Monday - Friday

12:00pm - 2:30pm

Rm 48++ (adult) Rm 24++ (child)

Hi-Tea: Saturday and Sunday

12:00pm - 3:00pm

Rm 55++ (adult) Rm 28++ (child)

Hi-Tea: Festive Occasions
12:00pm - 3:00pm

Rm 68++ (adult) Rm 34++ (child)

Semi Buffet Dinner: Sunday - Thursday

6:30pm - 10:00pm

From Rm48++ per person

May Credit Card Promotions:

MAYBANKAD, Standard Chartered Bank, OCBC Bank, CIMB Bank, Citibank and VISA card members, guests can enjoy 15% discount for Spanish Splendor Semi Buffet Dinner (Monday to Thursday) and Weekend Buffet Dinner (Friday and Saturday) from 6:30pm to 10:00pm.

For inquiries or reservations, kindly contact Eastin Hotel Penang, Swez Brasserie at +04- 612 1128.

The meal kick started with Panzanella Salad- Fresh Tomato Salad with Crusty Bread and Cheese (新鲜番茄乳酪沙拉). The dish has a hint of Basil-like flavor and it does not surprise me in terms of both flavor and texture. I am sure things will be better if this were to go with a bottle of wine.

Next, we were being served with all these Assorted Bruschetta (意大利式烤面包) which came in relatively smaller sizes than I thought. There will be 3 types of Bruschetta (Mushroom, Chicken and Seafood) available for the buffet, while I had their Mushroom Bruschetta, flavors were there but the Baguette was slightly too hard in texture.

As for soup, we had Cream of Tomato Soup (番茄奶油浓汤) which turned out to be extremely delectable. It has the creamy flavor, well balanced with a hint of sourness and the aroma of Basil. Bring soaked for quite some time, the Croutons were slightly soggy but nevertheless, the soup itself was good, what an appetizing soup to boost up my appetite for the meal!

Moving on to the mains, we had this Chicken Milanese (米兰式烩鸡) with Tomato Rice. The Chicken was deep fried till perfection while maintaining the juiciness and tenderness of the meat, however, it tasted like an ordinary decent Fried Chicken to me, in other words; it lacked of some kick and unique flavors to stand out against other dishes. The Tomato Rice was okay though, it has a quite buttery flavor and good enough on its own.

I did not quite enjoy this Capuccina Style Cabbage (意大利式焖洋白菜) which comes with some Coconut Flakes, Almond Flakes and some Tomatoes and Carrots. The Cabbage however, was sprinkled with some Cocoa Powder beforehand. The dish was on the salty side and some buttery flavor could be tasted out but after some clarifications with Chef Kelvin, I was told that they did use milk in the process of making this dish. Also, the julienned Cabbage was not as crunchy and juicy as it seems.

As for the Semi Buffet Dinner Main Course (the menu will be rotating, do call them up for more information), we get to sample this Lasagna al Pesto (香草起司千层面). This is something should not be missed by cheese lovers. The Lasagna has some Spinach being sandwiched in the layers too, I like the overall flavor but I find it slightly too oily to my liking, probably because of the use of Basil Pesto, I would definitely prefer the Bolognese based Lasagna.

I was attracted by the piquant flavor of Braised Osso Bucco (焖炖小羊颊) before it was served to us. The Lamb was braised till the texture I like- fork tender. Some bloggers find this dish a bit salty but it was okay for me.

Up next was this Beef Meat Balls with Cheese (起司牛肉丸). As much as I adore the texture of the Beef Meat Balls but they were a tad salty to me, especially with the cheese. They have actually added some cheese into the meat patty before shaping into ball-shape so they could be over-seasoning the meat. Way too salty to my liking.

How could one not serving Tiramisu (提拉米苏) for dessert when it comes to Italian themed cuisine? Their Tiramisu was slightly below par in my opinion, I would prefer a Tiramisu with a better texture and creamier.