Wholesomely Oriental

*Notice: Oriental Spoon moved out from Sooka Sentral to its new location at One Bangsar under the new name House of Tang.

It’s been aeons ago since I last had any dim sum meal (which is at Ming Court, Ipoh few months back) so, when Food Street, in collaboration with Ms. Lim and Jade Wong invited me over to Sooka Sentral for some halal dim sum last week, I accepted the invitation. It’s my first time trying halal dim sum by the way! And to make things merrier, I dragged KampungBoyCityGal along.

Oriental Spoon is located at the new building next to KL Sentral. In case you don’t know yet, Sooka Sentral is a new lifestyle mall next to KL Sentral which has a variety of eatery under one roof such as Sushi King, Chilli Espresso (belonged to the same group that manages Isthmus), Killiney Kopitiam, Zen (under Secret Recipe), a colourful food court and spa for men. Oriental Spoon is under the group of companies that manages Bangsar Seafood restaurant.

The steamed Siew Mai with Fresh Scallops, RM 10, was a delight with just the right thickness of the skin. Despite the absence of pork, the chicken filling was juicy and tender. The fresh scallop complete the whole ensemble. Delicious.

Named as Sharks Fin Dumpling in Superior Soup, RM 10, we found that the sharks fin were not really visible but the dumpling, stuffed with marinated minced chicken and the soup was very flavourful and fresh. Again, the thickness of the dumpling skin is not an issue.

I’m sure many Chinese restaurants out there have this dish where it is shaped to resembles the porcupine or hedgehog. Their Steamed Spinach Buns with Sesame Paste, RM 8, are coloured the healthy way using extracted spinach juice. The buns were fluffy with not-too-sweet black sesame paste.

There are also some selection of rice rolls (chee cheong fun) but each with different filling, unlike the usual char siew or prawn version. The Rice Rolls with Minced Chicken & Corn, RM 8, was pretty good but the rather thick skin was a letdown though. The sweet corns gave it a refreshing bite.

As for fried dim sum, we love their Yam Puff (wu kok), RM 7 for the crunchy yam shell and barbequed minced chicken filling and also deep fried Lotus Root Puffs. The “lotus root” shell was buttery and light and practically melts in the mouth!

Their Mini Egg Tarts, RM 7 were also another god pick; the crust was light and flaky, holding the fragrant wobbly custard. Three words. Handle with care!

Other than dim sum (which is available daily from 11.30am till 5.00pm), Oriental Spoon also whipped up some good Chinese fare such as this Butter Crab with thick butter sauce. Unlike some restaurants out there, Oriental Spoon uses real butter and not margarine.

And lastly, some carbs to end the meal. Spicy XO Sauce Fried Rice came with generous amount of succulent big prawns, anchovies, spring onion and egg. The spiciness is tolerable and not greasy at all.

Overall, I think that Oriental Spoon did a good job on creating the halal range of dim sum. One quick note; although they closes pretty early, at 8pm but in case you will be arriving late, give them a call and they will extend their opening hours just for you!

And starting from the month of July, they will be having a Dim Sum Buffet promotion on weekends and public holidays (RM 18.80+ for adults, RM 9.80+ for children below 10 years old), from 11.30am till 3.00pm.