Sweet and sour chicken with lychee. — Photos: ALICE YONG
Featuring pork-free specialities from China’s coastal city of Putian.
It’s been more than two decades since founder Fong Chi Chung of Putien restaurant opened his maiden outlet at Kitchener Road in Singapore in 2000. The name pays homage to Putian, a coastal city nestled amid majestic mountains in Fujian, China, and is the birthplace of the fabled Southern Shaolin kung fu.
Blessed with bounties from land and sea, native produce such as seaweed, fresh seafood, yam and red mushroom – among others – take pride of place on the dining table. Putian’s simple and unpretentious cuisine emphasises on the natural taste and goodness of these key ingredients while sauces and condiments are often used judiciously.
Sizzling beancurd.
The same culinary philosophy applies at Tien – Putien’s first pork-free outpost in Suria KLCC. During our recent visit, we found Tien’s signature dishes proffered the same palate-pleasing flavours, reflective of the gastronomic spirit of the coastal city’s Heng Hwa community.
Mini glasses of fresh lime juice were provided as we perused the menu, a nice touch to welcome customers. We had healthy thirst-quenchers: Soursop Juice (RM16) and Natural Goodness (a blend of choy sum, soursop and pineapple juice, RM16) that helped to prime our palate for the food.
Silky smooth noodles in a rich milky stock prepared with 14 different ingredients made Tien’s much-lauded Red Mushroom Lor Mee (RM26 per person) an instant hit with us. Redolent with appetising umami flavour, the delicious soupy noodle in pinkish-tinged broth (due to the inclusion of wild red mushroom) had clams, prawns, diced chicken and green vegetables in it. While the flavour for this noodle dish was rather muted, some might appreciate the subtle taste, clearly absent of the saltiness from MSG which we are so accustomed to at commercial restaurants.
Crispy Barramundi fish wings.
The fruity sweetness of lychee added a distinctive appeal to the signature Sweet & Sour Chicken with Lychees (RM33 per regular portion). We liked how the vivid, well-balanced sweet-and-sour sauce enveloped the tender chunks of fried chicken, enhancing the dish.
Stir-fried over high heat, the Sizzling Hot Pot with Beef and Pepper (RM68) also hit the spot for us. Who could resist delectably tender beef heaped atop a bed of sizzling capsicum and onion strips?
Shredded beef with sesame buns.
Flecked with cracked black peppercorns, the Crispy Pepper Barramundi Fish Wings (RM38 per regular portion) easily reeled us in. We relished biting into the fish’s crisp-fried coating that revealed the sweet and still-moist flesh within.
As a counterpoint to our meat-laden meal, we had Braised Bitter Gourd (RM33). Served in a light creamy sauce, the astringency of the thickly cut bitter gourd pieces provided a change of pace and flavour notes.
Red mushroom lor mee.
Topped with minced chicken and mushroom, the Sizzling Beancurd (RM38) came with a layer of omelette lining the hot plate. It passed muster although we reckoned the offering was too ho-hum for a restaurant with Tien’s reputation.
We found greater satisfaction in the speciality of Shredded Beef with Sesame Bun (RM12 per piece, minimum order of two pieces). The scrumptious, pillow-soft golden fried sesame buns tasted delicious when stuffed with the sweetish stir-fried shredded beef and caramelised onion.
With 90 outlets across Asia, the original Putien restaurant in Singapore earned a one-Michelin star in 2016-2021. The same noteworthy albeit pork-free Chinese Fujian food is now served at KLCC’s Tien.
Tien by Putien
Lot 434, 4th Floor
Suria KLCC
Kuala Lumpur
03-2181 2839
Opening hours
Daily: 11am to 10pm
