Hey, foodies. We’re back with another food adventure. This time, we’re headed to Sheraton Hotel Petaling Jaya to check out an amazing and uniquely-curated afternoon tea for two. Since it’s for two, joining me this time would be my co-worker, Rachel.
Sheraton Hotel PJ recently introduced its beguiling confections and savouries in an all-new Degustation Afternoon Tea-for-two menu. You can now treat your loved ones to an afternoon filled with delectable sweet and savoury creations, courtesy of the hotel’s award-winning chefs, accompanied by premium tea or coffee.
From fresh oysters to elaborate desserts, Sheraton PJ promises to treat you to an unforgettable high tea experience. In true degustation fashion, the afternoon tea set comprises 3-courses, comprising Savoury, Sweet and a Live Station.
The 3-course meal will be available at Link Cafe – a chic spot with exquisite, vintage decor on Level 3 of the hotel. Almost every corner of the cafe is Instagrammable, and they even have window seating, if you prefer a meal with a view. Now, off we go to the food part!
The first course features savoury delights. Have your pick of a variety of fresh seafood curated by Sheraton PJ’s Executive Chef, Edmund Ng. Dishes include Green-tea cured Norwegian Salmon served with a Mango Salsa, Pan-fried Hokkaido Scallop with Cajun seasoning and served with a Jasmine Pineapple Jam, and Fresh Oyster with Pickled Cucumber, Ginger Gel and drizzled with Basil Oil. Now for the taste test. To stay on the safe side, I chose to go with the pan-fried Hokkaido scallop (since it’s not raw). The scallop was nicely cooked and had a little salty-savoury flavour. As for the texture, I felt the scallop was crunchy, which is a good thing. Next up was the green-tea cured Norwegian salmon. Straight up tastes like sashimi. I could tell the fish was fresh, although I’m not into raw food. My favourite part of this dish was the mango salsa filling. It had a sweet-sour taste and lots of chunky mango that added flavour to the raw fish. Moving on to the oyster. Super fresh and there was no lemon given, like for regular oysters. Instead, there was this ginger gel drizzled with basil oil that gave a mild lime taste to the oyster.
Following the first course of savoury items, guests are then treated to an array of sweet treats courtesy of their award-winning Executive Pastry Chef, Shunmugasundaram Balakrishnan, or better known as Chef Shan. Inspired by vibrant floral and botanical flavours, guests can expect rose, lavender cassis, hibiscus, chamomile and osmanthus flavours and shapes in these captivating confections. Here, we got to sample 6 distinct desserts.
The first dessert we tried was the Jasmine Tea & Mango Lime Composition. If you’re a jelly person, this is a must-have. I like how the Jasmine Tea and Mango Lime really compliment each other. The jelly alone had a slight bitter aftertaste. So, I’m guessing that’s the Jasmine Tea part. On top the jelly, was, once again, my favourite item, the Mango Salsa. And to make the tiny glass cuter, a bright yellow milk chocolate was placed on top the glass. This was my second favourite dessert.
Now, for my favourite dessert – the Rose Framboise Millie-Feuille. I would describe this dessert as crunchy, sweet, but not overwhelming. This dessert had a pretty coral coloured milk chocolate on top, followed by a generous amount of rose-flavoured cream and a crunchy bottom. I really like how the rose flavour wasn’t so strong or flowery, but it was super balanced and kept me wanting more. I also admire the chocolate on top with the pretty design on it.
Next up was the Hibiscus & Peppered Strawberry Collaboration. Never really had anything with Hibiscus, so I was quite curious how it would taste. Strawberry is a common flavour in most desserts, but combining it with hibiscus? It’s a mind-blowing experience. This dessert is not really cake-like, but more like a cream. Right at the center is the peppered strawberry filling. To be honest, this dessert was so-so for me. Now, I like my strawberries sweet-sour. So, this peppered version, didn’t really fit my tastebuds. It’s not that bad. Just that after the sweet-sour taste, in comes the kick of peppery flavour.
The next dessert was the Osmanthus & Melon Petit Gateau, Not gonna lie, this dessert looked cute and pretty, but the flavour just punches you in the gut. It is so strong. Just like the hibiscus-strawberry dessert, this one is also a cream-like dessert. I like the white part, cause it had a milky, sweet and creamy taste. But center was just too overwhelming for me. The herbal flower filling had such a super strong aftertaste that’ll you’ll probably forget about other desserts. I mean, if you’re really into osmanthus, this is a dessert for you. To me, the filling was a nope. I did like the base though – a simple butter cookie.
Moving on to Lavender-Cassis Éclair. Now, Lavender can be calming in so many ways, but in desserts, I’m thinking otherwise. This dessert looked like a cake, but it had a gooey texture. The top, which looked like bark, was just biscuit coated in powdered sugar. I actually thought the filling was something chocolaty, because it had just a hint of a chocolate taste. The center was made of lavender cream and can be a bit too rich for those who are not used to strong or floral flavours.
The last dessert for this course was the Chamomile Caramelized Rice & Lemon Variation. This is the cutest dessert. The tiny ball tasted somewhat like the osmanthus and melon petit gateau, but this one had no filling. So, it was just a milky and creamy ball. The purple base was milk chocolate and now, the bomb of this dessert, chamomile rice and lemon. This cracker 100% tastes just like caramel popcorn. And it was super sweet. Taking a whole bite, I felt the caramel was too strong, and I couldn’t taste the other flavours that much. But it’s a good dessert, especially if you’ve got a sweet tooth.
To end the meal, we sampled the Japanese Soufflé Pancake served with Mango & Passionfruit Compote and a Nitrogen Ice-Cream, which was made to order at a live station at Link Café. For this dish, you’ll be in for a treat, as you can watch Sheraton PJ’s talented chefs in action while you wait anxiously to savour this delicious dessert. I really liked the souffle. It was soft, spongy and fluffy. And once again, the star of this dish was the mango salsa. Who would have thought mango salsa could also be served with souffles instead of syrups? The fun part was watching smoke billowing from the ice cream maker as they added liquid nitrogen. The ice cream wasn’t solid as usual. By the time it reached our table, it was slightly runny. But that’s not a problem, because you still get to taste the sweetness and richness of vanilla in the ice cream.
As for the beverages, you can choose from a variety of TWG teas or Vittoria Coffee. I went with TWG English Breakfast Tea while Rachel went with TWG Chamomile Tea. Although the meal wasn’t quite heavy, it was definitely sweet, and the last thing you’ll want is a rich and sweet beverage. These teas were perfect and complimented our meal well.
So, that’s our take on this amazing and specially-curated menu. If you would like to have this one-of-a-kind dining experience, here’s the information you need:
The Degustation Afternoon Tea is available every Saturday and Sunday, from 2.30pm to 5.30pm, exclusively at Link Cafe for RM188 nett for two persons.
For inquiries or reservations, book online at https://bit.ly/yueresv, or call 03-7622 8888, 017-228 6098 or drop an email at dining.spj@sheraton.com.
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