An acquaintance once asked me which was my favourite festive season. Without missing a beat, I replied Christmas. Why? Cos it’s a quiet and intimate celebration with your nearest and dearest.
Don’t get me wrong. I do enjoy Chinese New Year too. It’s just that it gets so loud, and the volume just so constant. After the first three days, I feel like I need a break from it all.
Hence, when I stepped into The Brasserie, a MICHELIN-selected restaurant at The St. Regis Kuala Lumpur to partake in their Chinese New Year set menu, I was pleasantly surprised. It was such a serene setting with noise level at a bare minimum. This made for a restorative change, and right up my alley!
As with any Chinese New Year meal, we kicked off with the Prosperity Yee Sang with Executive Chinese Chef Boon Fei himself doing the honours. This was the only part of the meal that was at a higher volume, which was unavoidable.
The Brasserie had placed a little info card on the rituals of the yee sang as part of each diner’s place setting, which was appreciated, and made for good reading. It’s little thoughts like this that puts St. Regis Kuala Lumpur above the rest – small gesture with a big impact.
The yee sang itself was chilled and thus super refreshing to dig into. It also had capsicum, shredded salad leaves, cherry tomatoes, and pomelo in it. It felt more like an ‘East meets West’ version, and I really liked it.
The Brasserie’s Auspicious Longevity 6-Course Set Menu
The Palace Flame Wagyu Beef Cheek on The Brasserie’s menu was up first. The beef cheek (tender and sweet), was wrapped in a lotus bun (soft and fluffy). The cucumber and spring onion gave the entire dish a crunch when I bit into it – heavenly. The presentation was simple and yet stunning – a steamer basket placed upon a bed of potpourri.
Imperial Abalone Tartlet was up next. The tartlet base was thin and crumbly, whilst the abalone on a bed of diced up mushrooms (earthy) which were sautéed along with crispy ginger and oyster sauce. I personally do not like the taste of ginger. However, for this dish, the ginger elevated the taste by giving just a hint of itself and also added texture to it. Everything worked a treat.
Our third course was the Golden Crab Toast & Caviar. This was served on a bed of seashells which were placed inside a shelled-out crab – another gorgeous presentation. The toast was Brioche (crispy and soft), the XO crab had a kick to it and along with the caviar this was truly an indulgent dish. Everything came together in one perfect harmony.
The Jade Dew Double-Boiled Fish Maw Soup had lotus root, scallops, mushrooms, chicken, goji berries and ginseng in it. This soup was hearty, savoury and yet sweet too.
For my main course, I had the Imperial Feast Garlic Crab Fried Rice (there are 5 to choose from The Brasserie’s set menu). This comes with braised crab meat on the side. The best thing about the rice was that it was full of wok hei. I completely ate just the rice up sans the braised crab meat. I thought it was too good of a fried rice to drown in the braise and hence ate them separately. By this time, I was already quite stuffed and couldn’t finish my rice but I did lap up the braised crab meat. When eaten all together with the Ikura, spring onion and crispy garlic, it was like a flavour bomb going off!
To end our meal, it was the Jade Dew Mango & Pomelo Sago (this was pretty in presentation, had just a hint of sweetness, and the pomelo gave a tartness to it) and Golden Deep-Fried Homemade Yam Nian Gao (which I took home to the husband, who gave it his seal of approval).
Stars of the show
The Auspicious Longevity 6-Course Set Menu at The Brasserie came together as a collaboration between Executive Chef Norazizi and Executive Chinese Chef Boon Fei. This menu which to me, was delicate, delectable, and refined, came together over five rounds of tastings. Beyond the kitchen, the team also paid close attention to details such as the table setting and placemat design. From the food to the presentation to the ambiance, everything was taken into account.
Service was also impeccable at The Brasserie, as you would expect from a St. Regis. You are addressed by name, which personalises your experience further.
This meal experience at The Brasserie is definitely one for the books and worth every ringgit, not only for a complete change of scenery from the usual Chinese New Year scene, but for the food itself.
Seasonal pours
I was cheeky and asked if this set at The Brasserie comes with alcohol pairing – it doesn’t. But fret not as Astor Bar has come up with 3 curated cocktails just for the season. If you’re there for the dinner service, you could perhaps order one (or all 3) to go along with your meal. I highly recommend the Golden Highball (as suggested by my favourite bartender, Jerry) as this not only has pineapple, and lime in it, but the ingredients also signify wealth and prosperity. A big yes from me!
The Auspicious Longevity 6-Course Set Menu at The Brasserie runs until 3 March 2026. Lunch is from 12pm to 3pm and dinner is from 6pm to 9pm. It is priced at RM178 nett per person.
Yee Sang prices start from RM218+ per set.
For more information regarding their F&B experiences, please call +603 2727 6696.
We were invited by The St. Regis Kuala Lumpur. As always, our opinions are honest and our own.
