Stuffed banana peppers with wild river Wolf Herring fish paste.
As with any omakase experience, diners have to trust chef Andy Ong to create a memorable meal for them.
According to Ong, Braised Chinese Cabbage in Consommé is his preferred curtain-raiser. The delicately soft Chinese cabbage had a pleasant clean sweetness, melding cohesively with the broth’s umami taste.
“Clear but intensely flavourful, this broth is painstaking to make, but its nuanced depth and clarity is incomparable. The sweetness comes from simmering pork, chicken bones and Yunnan ham. I have my own technique to ensure the broth is clear of residue,” he says.
The unique Pan-Fried Fish Maw.
One unique dish not found in any other restaurant’s menu is Ong’s special Pan-fried Fish Maw that comes in a pool of concentrated, brilliant yellow sauce, obtained from pan-frying village chicken fat. The concentrated flavour was derived from a base stock of Chinese ham, pork, chicken, dried scallops and Shaoxing wine. Slightly crispy at the edges, we found the spongy-chewy fish maw made a sublime pairing with the lush, viscous liquid.
The Steamed Threadfin topped with spring onions looked plain and simple, but the taste of the fish was on-point. The fork-scraped spring onion bestowed a slightly pungent sharpness to the soft and sweet flesh. We lapped up every drop of the yummy fish jus, integrated with superior chicken stock.
A5 Miyazaki Beef with fried garlic.
A testament to the chef’s labour of love, the Crispy Duck flaunted an appealing sheen. It had been expertly drenched in hot oil until its skin turned crackle-crisp.
Ong carved pieces of the crispy skin at tableside for us to savour before he doled out meatier pieces for our enjoyment. These were to be dipped into the four house-concocted condiments and sauces – brown granulated sugar, shoyu-infused salt, plum sauce with chopped bird’s eye chilli and a sweetish soy-based dip – to further enhance its delectable taste.
Kerabu Meehoon was an accidental discovery.
Nestled within a bed of fried shredded burdock root, the A5 Miyazaki Beef with Fried Garlic was juicy to the bite. Sautéed in a light peppery sauce flecked with chopped coriander, the meat was first charcoal-grilled before it finished cooking in a wok.
Ong told us his Kerabu Meehoon was an accidental creation.
Crispy Duck is a signature dish at Chef Photographer Andy Ong Restaurant.
“One of those days when I was eating fried meehoon, I decided to mix some fried ikan bilis with chopped onion, coriander and some lime juice. That’s when I realised the combination worked.
“Then, for extra mouthfeel, I added smashed cucumber chunks into the meehoon, which helped to absorb some of the tangy sauce,” he reveals.
The flesh of the Steamed Threadfin is naturally sweet.
Other highly sought-after dishes which Ong is known for include Stuffed Pig’s Stomach with Chicken and Shark’s Fin, Stuffed Banana Peppers with Squid Ink Fish Paste, Fried Wild River Ikan Parang Fish Balls (imbued with dried tangerine peel and eaten with fermented clam sauce) and Fried Rice “Pizza”. The garlic fried rice dish, placed on top of eggs fried thin and crispy, and spread out akin to a pizza, was so simple but so delicious!
Be prepared to fork out at least RM350++ per person for a table of two diners, or RM250++ per person for a table of three to 10 pax. There’s no knowing what will be served until dinner begins, so enjoy the surprise ahead. Prior reservations must be made for this Chinese-style omakase menu.
