Marco Creative Cuisine 1Utama Review

everyone should start their day with a Matcha-Lime Shooter

The newly opened restaurant Marco Creative Cuisine at 1Utama is on everyone's mindplate these days! Who can blame them? They serve beautifully decorated dishes, equally delicious all created by the up-and-coming chef-owner Daren Leong. And behind every successful man is a successful woman (yes!) and her name is Alice. She was full of smiles and warmth welcoming the customers into the restaurant. I was quite impressed with the bond they have, a dream team.

I would say, the one thing that stands out from this restaurant is the unique 7-course meal priced at RM78, called the Journey of Flavours. The affordable 7-course meal is filled with teaser after teasers of taste tantalizing flavors, textures and myriad of colors to not only excite but also nourish the soul. Each dish made with the freshest produce as you can see with their salad platter, and of the freshest ideas.

The whole journey would take roughly an hour or so, depending on how far you would get. The team at Marco Creative Cuisine is probably stalking everyone and waiting for the right moment to serve you your next dishes. You'll need to make a selection before your journey starts SO I hope I'll be able to give you some insights on what dishes you can select for your journey :)

Chef Daren Leong the creator
(image source: Marco Creative Cuisine)

the Marco Creative Cuisine Team
Alice & Chef Daren (middle)
(image source: Marco Creative Cuisine)

The 7-course meal starts with a palate cleanser, a Velvety Matcha-Lime Shooter to get you ready for your journey. The matcha-lime foam uncovers a chilled Lime Snow that refreshes the tongue. The appetizer, Savoury Eclair is a Gruyere flavored Pate a Choux decorated with Aubergine caviar, green chile pesto and tomato confit.

The 3rd (Soup) and 4th (Entree) comes in a choice of 3 to choose from.

For the soup, there is the Strawberry Gazpacho, French Onion Soup, and Truffled Mushroom Soup. I personally tried the Strawberry Gazpacho and Truffled Mushroom soup on my visits. The Strawberry Gazpacho is a chilled cold soup of strawberries, garnished with dehydrated strawberries capsicum and micro greens. I was pleasantly surprised and smiling when I first tasted this cold soup. It was sourish and cold but delightfully perky. A taste that I have never tasted before. I think if anyone has a blind date here it would make a good ice-breaker with this soup. You can help but smile when you try this!

The Truffled Mushroom Soup is a plant-based creamy mushroom soup infused with truffle oil. Very creme de la creme of mushroom soups. Truffles are expensive!

1st-course, Velvety Lime-Matcha (palate cleanser)

2nd-course, Savour Eclair (Appetiser)
3rd-course, Strawberry Gazpacho (Soup)

French Onion & Truffled Mushroom (Soup)

4th-course, Savoury Ice-cream (Entree)

4th-course, Chicken Liver Parfait & Garden Platter (Entree)

When it comes to the entree, the colors of the salad would make you go "Oh no this is too beautiful to eat". But you know what? You paid good money and you're going to kill the beautiful garden if you need to. Since liver isn't my favorite, I only ordered the Garden Platter (religiously) because it's just so pretty. It's a plate of fresh mixed greens planted on top of Edible Soil and Gribiche Sauce (French Tarter Sauce). The edible soul is not Oreos crumbs, it's made of dehydrated black olives! There's a mixture of fresh greens with a slightly bitter, salty taste from the black olives. It's not bad, it's actually very interesting! The taste creates an explosive oh and ahs from every bite.

The Chicken Liver Parfait is a creamy chicken liver covered with a brûlée top served with toasted bread and apple chips. Savory Ice Cream Salad is made with assorted Baby Leaves, heirloom Tomato, seasonal Microgreens, and Violet flowers served with savory Ice Cream.

 5th-course, the chef's recommendation
Duck Breast with Orange Puree & Roasted Beetroot

 5th-course, Salmon with Jet Black Hollandaise

Duck Breast with Orange Puree & Roasted Beetroot

 5th-course, Chicken Roulade with Brussels Sprouts
Squid Ink Japonica Rice

The best part of the journey is reaching to the mains, six choices available for the picking. The chef's recommendation would be the Duck Breast with Orange Purée and Roasted Beetroot. Inspired by Cantonese roast duck, which is usually a dry dish as chef Daren explained. Using the sous vide method to make the meat tender and finishing the dish with Orange Purée, Roasted Beetroot and 66% Valrhona Dark Chocolate sauce. The result is a burst of sour, bitter and sweet notes for the taste buds to explore. This is my favorite, I would highly recommend you order this at least once to try. I've also tried the Squid Ink Japonica Rice because I'm after all a rice person. Unfortunately, I didn't get a sense of fulfillment as compared to eating the Duck Breast but for a more Asian taste bud, this may be well suited. 

Here are the other choices that are available for you:

Chicken Roulade with Brussels Sprouts

A roulade of juicy chicken thigh with crunchy Brussels Sprouts, and flavourful Chicken Jus.

Salmon with Jet Black Hollandaise

Sous vide Atlantic Salmon with Squid Ink Hollandaise, garnished with Pickled Beetroot and Green Chilli Pesto. 

Squid Ink Japonica Rice 

Japanese Short Grain Rice cooked with Squid Ink accompanied with Prawn, Baby Squid and Omelette, served with Garlic Mayonnaise. 

Pomodoro Cream Seafood Pasta 

Penne in rich Pomodoro Cream Sauce with Baby Squid, Clam, and Mussel. 

Vegetarian Arrabbiata 

Penne in Pomodoro Sauce with Aubergine, Zucchini, Shimeji and Hot Sauce, garnished with Parmesan Cheese.

  6th-course, Creme Brulee (Dessert)

With three choices of dessert to choose from, you'll be thinking twice which to go for. I'd say, go for your favorite! My favorite has always been the Creme Brulee. Marco's Crème Brûlée with White Chocolate Sherbet. The crust which breaks into the soft layers of lush egg custard accompanied by white chocolate sherbet (fantastic, although mine melted slightly as I was busy photographing it) and meringue kisses. The Deconstructed Lemon Meringue Pie technically plated with elements of Lemon Curd, Passion Fruit Gel, Italian Meringue and White Chocolate Sherbet. Raspberry Decadence, luscious Raspberry Cheesecake with Raspberry Gel accompanied by Lemon Meringue Shards and Passion Fruit Gel.

The final course is a drink for closure. A choice of either the Single Origin, French Press Coffee, Loose Leaves Tea or Sparkling Iced Berry. I always go for the sparkling iced berry!

I hope you like the photographs I took using my iPhone 6S haha. My camera is in the hospital so I couldn't take awesome photographs of the place but I did my best to show how the journey of the flavors would using Adobe Photoshop haha. I would like to thank the PR and the team at Marco Creative Cuisine for inviting me over to experience my own journey of flavors at their newly opened restaurant. Marco Creative Cuisine was formerly known as Franco which was bought over by another company so that's why the husband-wife duo started Marco.

The 7-course Journey of Flavours priced at RM78 can also be ordered a la carte if you just want to try certain dishes. Do note that each journey is made for one, and is not suitable for sharing. The restaurant is pork and lard free and they do serve alcohol (wine and such). The menu is not vegan/vegetarian-friendly and they do not cater to a custom-made menu or dietary requirements. Prices include 6% GST but exclude 10% service charge.

You can make a booking, 3 days notice needed and arrive 5 minutes before your booked session. They will only hold reserved tables for 15mins only. For guests who bring their own wine to be consumed at MARCO Creative Cuisine, a corkage fee of RM 80 per bottle is 

For À la Carte Order :

Soup, Entrée : RM18 per serving   Main : RM35 per serving (+RM10 for Duck Breast)   Desserts : RM20 per serving

Marco Creative Cuisine

Lot G146, Ground Floor (Old Wing)

1Utama Shopping Centre

47800 PJ, Selangor, Malaysia

Operation Hours

11:00a.m – 10:30p.m

11:00a.m – 12:00p.m Coffee & Desserts Only 

12:00p.m – 03:00p.m Lunch Service 

03:00p.m – 06:00p.m Coffee & Desserts Only 

06:00p.m – 10:30p.m Dinner Service

Last Call 9:30 pm

Contact

+603 7731-8923

reservation@marcocreativecuisine.com
http://marcocreativecuisine.com

My Villa Samadhi Romantic Experience

how I wish I could jump right off here to the pool

You know how I love staycations in wonderful places but when it comes to a stay in the city that's near, easily accessible and still has all that I'm in Bali jazz is probably Villa Samadhi. I have always recommended this place for anyone needing a quick getaway from everything - stress, work, noise. It's also the perfect romantic place for couples to celebrate special moments such as birthdays, anniversaries or honeymoon. To describe how I feel, I would say the moment I stepped into this place, I felt I was transported to a far away resort somewhere in South East Asia. An oasis of tranquility, a place your senses could just reboot. A hidden gem in the city.

Broken Candles: How To Save?

saving my broken Voluspa candle

I googled and read how to save broken glass candles. All the articles basically said that you can melt the candle into a new container. So I decided alright, I'll try doing that with what I have in the kitchen. As you can see, the first picture shows my broken Voluspa candle in Prosecco Rose. This candle smells divine! Like a bed of roses in the spring. It was such a pity that the container broke during delivery so I'm going to save it by moving it into a new container. I used BBW's candle glass jar.

P.S: If you're looking on how to clean a used candle jar, I did it by boiling a pot of water and pouring it into the used candle jar to melt and remove the old wax and any other yucky residue. After an hour, I clean it out with dish washing soap. The remaining label glue and black stains were removed by makeup cleaning oil and wash again with soap.

here's what I did and I'll explain in steps 1 - 6

1. Prepare a clean, dry candle container ready.
2. I double-boil a pot of water with a heat resistant bowl over it. The broken candle is placed in the bowl. It melts slowly, so I helped break the wax into smaller more manageable parts to melt away. Be careful of glass shards, you can remove them at this point but be careful of the hot melted wax.
3. I nudge the wicks off the broken candle bottom, pick it up and placed in the new container to dry and harden. I made sure it would be centralized so it wouldn't look funny later!
4. I removed the old broken candle jar from the melted wax bowl with a cloth. Be careful not to get burnt. Discard away properly, please. I wrapped mine in newspaper and plastic for recycle bin.
5. I used a thick cloth to hold the bowl and pour the melted wax into the new candle jar. Be extra careful this part if you're using the same bowl as me. It's slippery.
6. I let the newly de-pot candle rest, it quickly hardens within an hour. By a day, it's as good as new.

Alright, that's how I did it :) the candle is burning well on my table and the whole process was kinda therapeutic! Just like baking cookies haha. Since glass shards and heat is in use, be sure to exercise safety and care while preparing this. I got away unharmed haha.

p.s: I used a glass bowl because I didn't want to damage or have a hard time cleaning my metal pot. The glass bowl worked like a charm and was easy to clean after.

#MYTravelAdventure – What’s your local travel story?

Travel To Port Klang (Port Swettenham)

 source: guttedarcades

This is a story about my hometown, Port Klang where I would visit once a year. You see, everyone wants to go somewhere exciting; Penang, Malacca, Ipoh where food is abundance and culture is prevalent. But for me? I find beauty in the forgotten. #MYTravelAdventure – What’s your local travel story? This is my Malaysian local travel story. I'll be reminiscing this as a child and as an adult.

Port Klang is a town and the main gateway by sea into Malaysia. Colonially known as Port Swettenham, it is the largest port in the country. These sights were reminiscent of my childhood, both memorable & painful.

Port Klang is the top 13th container port in the world

KTM Port Klang

There are a few ways to reach here by public transport. The easiest way would be taking the KTM Komuter. The trip from KL Sentral (RM4.30) will take about 80 minutes. The train route passed Subang Jaya (RM 2.90), Shah Alam and Klang. The Port Klang railway station is located opposite the ferry terminal l

Port Klang used to be a thriving port town, bustling with town folks from all over thanks to it being the largest port in the country. Being the main gateway by sea into Malaysia, the Brittish colonized this town. AND because the journey from Klang by horse or buffalo wagons to the city was "too long and boring", Frank Swettenham the appointed British resident at Port Klang built a train linking from Port Klang to the city, Kuala Lumpur.

Known during colonial times as Port Swettenham. It was renamed to Port Klang in July 1972. I was born 9 years later. Ref.

 source: akubudaktelok64

If you just watch Beauty & The Beast, then the atmosphere during my childhood was exactly like the town Belle grew up in. People were all over, it was busy, it was awesome growing up in this town. I took my brother and sister on foot to discover the whole town in a day. We would stop by the Kedai Runcit to buy "yum yum" (snacks) and then fishes from the pet store. Of course, our fishes died the next day because we didn't understand a thing about keeping fishes as pets.

The local tavern where daddy always brings us to have chicken chop dinner had strange looking people from the port that I've never seen before. They were white and they had caps. Photographs of ships, strange people filled the walls of the Tavern. Now I realized, it was "ang mohs" from the ships.

D'Tavern, Restaurant & Pub, Port Klang

still old school setting

 hall of visitors, the past

HNS Westminter crew

I always make it a point to visit this tavern nearby my home to have their chicken chop. It's one of the oldest tavern around and was once beaming with sailors from all over the world. I'm amazed it's still surviving despite the harsh changes made to this small town.

my home town Port Klang

At the age of 10 & being the eldest, I brought my 5-year-old bro & 2-year-old sister to tour around Port Klang like free-spirited doves. Now, it's better to exercise caution when you walk around this town.

The oldest hotel in Port Klang town

During its heyday, it's one of the nice hotels for seafarers and visitors from the port but to date, it's not exactly a place to crash for the night anymore. This hotel and building was built by my grandfather. The hotel is probably the only hotel in Port Klang town now.

Pasar Pelabuhan Kelang

The oldest wet market in Port Klang, fishermans comes here to sell their catch

The wet market in Port Klang is probably one of the oldest structure here and still withstood the test of time. This is still a bustling place in the early morning. Just minutes away from my home, my grandmother always sent me here to buy catfish in the morning to feed our 50 cats (we like to rescue animals)

Grandmother handed to the 10 year-old me RM5 every morning to go to the fish market to buy a bag of "cat fish". It's not really catfish, it was just that sardine looking fish to feed the 50 cats and kittens we rescued back at home. My grandmother and I love cats. We have a colony of "atap cats" who only live up the house roofs. We have garden cats, house cats, and back-alley cats. Somehow they all started their own families and we have a huge cat zoo.

We also have 15 dogs and puppies. All this in a single storey house in Port Klang.

the colonials shops that was my "shopping mall" at 10 years old

 abandoned beauty

traveling to the past

how grandma used to shop

Death by Expressway. The shophouses that used to be alive is where I spent most of my childhood rummaging through toys, books, snacks every Sunday morning split between my sibblings. Dad plays mahjong nearby with friends at coffeeshop, we'll go there spy at him through the window & extort for money. Yes I use the word extortion, we won't leave him alone unless he pays protection money

Port Klang was awesome until the new North-South Express Highway started construction. The town I loved went through a slow death. Nobody saw it coming. We didn't even have a protest against this. The express highway was big and tall. My favorite Kedai Runcit stores were just a few feet away from it. The whole stretch of colonial stores suffered from this change.

People started moving out and laborers from neighboring countries started making this their new home. From the bright, bustling town I grew up in, my town has turned into a cowboy town, unfamiliar, dark and unsafe. Shops I grew up visiting, closed down. The fish market, is it still there? The old cinema, abandoned and probably haunted.

my grandma's hardware store in Port Klang

While I was walking around Port Klang this morning, I passed by my grandma's hardware store, still there after so many years. It's the same row as the Great Wall mall (many might not remember Great Wall anymore, used to be the only shopping place for us back in the golden days). Also beside this shop, is where the famous tong shui stall is located at the main road of Port Klang town.

the hawker square where I used to buy tong yuen for auntie

The famous tong yuen stall in Port Klang, operated over 25 years by father & daughter team. It's still here with a bowl of tong yuen from RM1.  Featured on: The Star - February 2009. Roadside stall next to Econjaya (now closed but the signboard is still there)Jalan Raja Muda Musa, Port Klang Opening hours: 8pm - 11:30pm (Closed on Sundays)

Walking around Port Klang after so many years. It was still beautiful. It has potential. It was still awesome to me. It could be alive again, there's so much history and the Tavern is still standing tall serving chicken chop. If only Mr.Seksan of the Sekeping Projects, could come here and turn my once awesome town into a more awesome place.

How Malaysian travel changed me? Well, Malaysia has many wonderful awesome places to visit, and it should not be limited to places of popularity, it could also be a place you find interesting like Port Klang. To appreciate what we have and the forgotten. An adventure of your local beauty of the past. 

Estee Lauder Advance Night Repair

your anti-aging life gold goals

There's always the one anti-fail anti-aging product in the world that everyone is familiar with. Especially when one is brown and affectionately called the "little brown bottle" by fans. When you reach that stage in life that anti-aging starts to resonate, you'll know the Estee Lauder's Advanced Night Repair is one of the highly recommended product to try. It's not cheap either, but mind you which anti-aging beauty product is? The ingredients that call to reverse years off your face, wouldn't be sold for the price of McDonald's. When should one start using anti-aging skincare products? They say as early as 25 but well I started in my late 20's and since pass 35, it has become an even more important to use anti-aging products.

Day 2 AoNang Krabi Thailand

Good Morning Krabi!

The next morning I woke up after the most comfortable night's sleep in a long time (my bed mattress at home is hard not very comfy and hurts my back sometimes) Peace Laguna's comfy spacious Queen size bed gets a big thumbs up from me - wish I could take it back home with me! As we had booked one of the private cottages, the facilities include an outside rainforest shower, personal DeLonghi coffee maker machine with a variety of different capsules replenished every day on request, and 2 personal sun loungers to relax and get your tan on with a view of the lagoon.

A Cut Above's Brazilian Keratin Treatment Review

caught by the bad hair police *cries*

(I've neglected my hair for far too long)

Many years ago, I fell in love with one hair treatment that changed my mindset about paying for hair treatments in salons. No longer do I pay a one-time hair treatment that costs RM100 more or less when I'm reminded how dry or badly damaged my hair is during shampoo visits. It's all thanks to A Cut Above's Brazillian Keratin Treatment. That one time left me with a good impression for many years to come. Even up till now, whenever I think of hair treatment, I think BKT (short for Brazillian Keratin Treatment). I've tried many types of hair treatment since hitting puberty. My hair just wouldn't be tamed. I wished many times I was born with silky, straight hair instead of coarse, frizzy, dry hair which of course didn't go well with keeping up with the trends.

Happy Birthday Butterfly Project

Happy Birthday Butterfly Project

Typing out my thoughts as I listen to Coffee Table Jazz on my speakers and the BBW candle in Mahogany Teakwood burning on my table. I am preparing to wrap up the Butterfly Project birthday party this month, and there are tonnes to do with the rebranding of the community. The community is turning four years old this month, and so much has happened since. From bittersweet memories to new beginnings for our community, I do look forward to seeing how we as bloggers can help brands out there.

Call me old fashion, I still believe blogging is a way to help people, especially for our local mermaids out there starting their own brand and company. As usual, I don't share much of how the community started, and people often think it was a piece of cake. It is not.

Sweat, blood and tears go into managing a community without resources or funding. It's a club essentially for like minded people to socialised, network and participates in activities that would benefit them in terms of growth, credibility, content and knowledge gained from learning.

And yes, the big guy up there. Thank you for looking after this community and for making it was it is today. We wouldn't have survived 4 years just breathing the air. I have in mind to start writing a book on how The Butterfly Project came about. Would anyone be interested to read? hmm.

My final thoughts are, I hope we see new faces this year. Faces who would change the future of the next blogosphere.

P.S: We have not one but two birthday parties this April/May. The first with Jerlynn'L on 29th April, 2017. I'll be announcing the details soon on our Butterfly Project FB Fan page for sign ups.