Elegant Inn Hong Kong Cuisine

Elegant Inn has the luxury of double-layered white tablecloths and intricate wood panelling decorations on the wall. Together with the soft, low lighting and spotlights placed strategically over each table, it creates an air of sophistication.

They may have flirted with the boudoir theme too much: ornate chandeliers and a red, moiré curtain draped across one side of the main dining room. But the ambience puts you in the mood for a refined Chinese meal. For a heightened experience, one of their private rooms has an adjoined balcony space with a panoramic view of KLCC.

But we all know that a Chinese restaurant’s culinary excellence, more than others, is judged not just upon her good looks. She also has to deliver personality, conviction and above all else, flavour.

Elegant Inn scores big in this respect with the Braised Estuary Garoupa (RM63) and Golden Fried Spare Rib (RM52). The meaty fish is prepared with Chinese mushrooms, bamboo shoots and roast pork to create a hotpot packed full with powerful, punchy aromas. If it sounds too robust a manner to treat fish, then this dish will surprise and delight.

The monstrous spare rib is ordered by the piece. The meat is juicy and tender while the outside has a crispy and caramelised coating. Each piece is a complete course in itself.

As expectations begin to rise, the Roast Chicken Osmanthus (RM45) tempered any grand illusions. The chicken is first marinated with Osmanthus flowers and other flavourings before roasting but that seems to have robbed the chicken of some crunch and crispiness, even though it may not have compromised on taste.

The Handmade Beancurd With Shrimp & Pork (RM22) quickly restored refinement to the order of the day. The bean curd disintegrates on the tongue with the rich flavour of the sauce interrupting the tactile experience.

The Fried Rice (RM22), a dish they were proud to recommend, is excellent. Their claim that you can taste flavour in every single rice grain cannot be denied, but arguably many other skilled wok chefs can achieve the same lofty standards at half the price.

The idea to combine Bitter Gourd With Salted Vegetable (RM18) is sound; the briny, preserved vegetables takes away the gourdy bitterness. But in this case, the proportions need to be tweaked and the bitter gourd should have been softer texture.

But Elegant Inn saved the best for last. Forget the Red Bean Soup (RM4), which is far too watery. Not even the refreshing Mango Yoghurt (RM6) with a generous inclusion of diced mangoes should be what you come for. It was the humble Steamed Custard Cake (RM2) or malakao that truly made the grade up to true refinement. Three of the softest, most moist layers of steamed custard, barely solid enough to hold its shape was held together by sweet icing that promoted the dessert to divine. Elegance has a habit of appearing in the most unexpected of places.

Text & Photo Chan Wai Lee