DC Restaurant May 2020 Premium Tasting Menu

DC Restaurant by Darren Chin: Modern French Fine Dining

As businesses in Kuala Lumpur are coping with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, restaurants are creating menus that are lighter, more agreeable and ensuring less wastage across the kitchen. DC Restaurant by Darren Chin has launched its new menu, which included a lighter 3 course menu, a middle 4 course and a premium 5 course menu. We were invited to taste the full range of courses, some of which were not in the final tasting menu, but were stunning nevertheless.

Covid-19 Preventive Measures

In light of the Covid-19 outbreak, Malaysia has been lauded as one of the countries that have managed to handle this very well, and restaurants are applying standard of procedures as advised by the government. Restaurants are disinfected regularly, and each patron is made register themselves with their temperatures upon arrival. Staff at the restaurant also practice hygiene by wearing masks and gloves both when cooking in the kitchen or serving you at your table.

“We are currently only allowing up to 8 tables for service at our restaurant, with each table only seating 2 patrons. We are taking the utmost care and precaution to ensure our patrons are comfortable and feel safe when they dine at DC.” — Darren Chin, Owner of DC Restaurant.

A Tasting of DC Premium Menu

As chef’s all around the world reduce their menus, DC has also followed suit to create a lighter menu that is not only more affordable, but also lets you enjoy a variety of their new dishes which has focused on using more seasonal ingredients. The new menu is a conception of both chef Darren Chin and Sous Chef Tran TT which comprises of DC 5 Course Premium Menu, DC 4 Course Menu and the DC 3 Course Menu.

DC Restaurant May 2020 Seasonal Menu

“We understand the current climate is a difficult one, and therefore have created an option of the lighter 3 course, middle 4 course and premium 5 course menu, with some of our classic signatures like our bafun uni capellini, while introducing some new seasonal plates. As sourcing has become scarce, we utilise what we can get, such as the king sea tiger prawns and a pomfret that is caught from a secret location.”

Agrapart & Fils Terroirs Extra Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru, Champagne

The first wine pairing, a pre-dinner champagne, a decent extra brut, which was quite traditional and buttery.

DC Signature Bread Basket

Freshly baked bread & pastries with unpasteurised salted butter from Normandy, France and Italian truffle pâté
The first dish, a bread course, was a combination of four of their signatures, the croissant, croll, onion emmental bread and aged sourdough. The onion bread is new on the menu, with is fragrant, flaky and cheesy, while the sourdough has the most crispy chocolaty crust. The bread basket at DC itself is worth the visit, which is not served with a side of Italian truffle.

Delamotte Brut Champagne

The second wine paring, a champagne, was to go with the breads and amuse course. Quite complex, the brut champagne went well with the amuse courses, especially the scallops and crab ice cream, complementing the palate quite well.

Hokkaido Scallop and Pomelo

The first amuse, was a Hokkaido scallop prepared with segments of pomelo, chili and yuzu. The freshness of the scallop made the generous morsel a very bright starter.

Lobster and Crab Ice Cream

The second amuse was one of DC’s new signatures, the lobster and crab ice cream. This amuse came with semi dried tomatoes and cherry tomatoes, a brilliant little sweet-sour-umami burst of flavours, textures and temperatures.

Mushroom Arancini with Watercress Sauce

The third amuse, a warm morsel, was an intensely flavourful mushroom arancini, with a dollop of watercress on top balancing the dish out, with its mix of crunchy and creamy.

2011 Zind Humbrecht Clos Windsbuhl Riesling Alsace

The third wine pairing, was a Riesling, which drank very well. The wine had a nice minerality on the palate, and a vintage body, yet a decent acidity. This paired amazingly well with both the amuse and the cold capellini.

Echo of the Sea

DC signature cold capellini with Hokkaido Bafun uni and savoury seafood sabayon
For patrons who have dined at DC, their signature bafun uni capellini is not only a spectacular sight, the flavours are all there. With the briny sweetness of the uni, the textures from the seaweed, and the umami from the seafood sabayon, you can see why this dish is a mouthful burst of flavour.

8 Tentacles

Grilled Korean baby octopus, romesco, yogurt gel and green asparagus
The grilled octopus had a bouncy chew, which contrasted with the crunchiness and flavour of the asparagus. The romesco sauce added a nutty tomato base which went well with the octopus, cutting the fat, while the yoghurt gel balanced the textures out.

Wild Pomfret

Wild pomfret from a “Secret Location” in Pulau Ketam, Klang, lightly steamed, broccoli crème fraîche and roasted bone jus reduction
The wild pomfret was firm yet flaky, and was complemented with the lightness of the dish overall, with the broccoli crème giving an enveloping mouthfeel with the bone jus reduction adding an umami depth.

“We procure our pomfret from our fishermen who take their fish from a secret location out in the seas in Pulau Ketam. It’s only from this select area that we find the meat to have this level of flakiness.”

King Sea Tiger Prawn with Harissa

Homemade harissa
The current interpretation of this dish was a combination of two preparations, in which the result birthed a better dish. The king sea tiger prawn was huge, fresh and springy. These local giant prawns were prepared two ways for the tasting, where one was seasoned with harissa and served with quinoa and zucchini, while the other with a carrot-ginger.

King Sea Tiger Prawn with Orange Carrot-Ginger Foam

Quinoa, zucchini, orange and carrot-ginger foam
The briny sweetness of the prawn complemented the sucrose sweetness of the carrot-ginger, with the quinoa adding a texture to the former. The dish served on the current menu is a combination of both the harissa prawn with the quinoa and foam as accompaniments. It’s great to see the evolution of a thought process where two elements are combined to create something more elevated.

Domaine Juillot-Theulot Mercurey 1er Cru ‘La Cailloute’ Rouge

The fourth wine pairing, a pinot noir, which was quite aromatic and leaned towards being a little spicy.

Lamb

Dukkah, sweet potato and pear
Although not officially on the new tasting menu, the lamb was marinated in dukkah and served with a sheet of sweet potato and pear. Definitely for those that prefer lamb, and although not on the menu, we think the restaurant might accommodate a personal request.

2013 Domaine Rougeot Volnay Santenots Volnay Premier Cru

The fifth wine pairing, a pinot noir, went amazingly well with the two beef dishes that follow. Fairly light and very smooth and dry on the palate, the wine was pretty spectacular and from chef Darren’s personal collection. Definitely help lift and cut the fat of the beef with its acidity.

Australian Wagyu Marbling Score 7

Parsnip, pear and arugula purée
The wagyu was great, being cooked on binchotan coals ensure that crisp on the surface yet perfectly medium rare tenderness. This preparation had a pleasant sweetness from the pear, with the spiciness of the parsnip and arugula purée adding a dimension to the dish.

HidaGyu Japanese A5 Rib Eye

Aubergine and garum
The new menu offers two cuts, the Australian Wagyu with a marbling score of 7, and the more premium HidgaGyu A5 ribeye. In terms of preparation of the cut, the aubergine seasoned with garum was a pretty intensely interesting dish. The sweet sourness and intense umami on the aubergine made it the perfect bite with a slice of the rib eye, where fat meets acid. The aubergine also had the most interesting stiff texture from the pickling process. This dish was probably one of the best dishes on the new menu, simple but such a burst of flavour on the tongue.

Rock Lobster with Carrot-Ginger Foam

Poached in sauce americaine, pea purée and carrot-ginger foam
The lobster was served in two ways for the tasting, both poached in sauce americaine, a traditional French method of treating lobster, where the first style was served with carrot-ginger foam. The lobster was sweet and springy to the bite, with the flavours of onion, peppers and brandy from the sauce, with the carrot-orange foam adding a nice contrast, while the potato and shiitake cake added a beautiful visual and umami balance.

Rock Lobster with Potato Shiitake Cake

Poached in sauce americaine, potato and shiitake cake
The second style was served with a potato shiitake cake which added a nice touch of starch to the dish with a beautiful visual and umami balance. The version available on the tasting menu is a combination of both dishes, with the carrot-ginger foam as well as the potato and shiitake cake.

Za’aba Pizza

Pavlova, strawberries, raspberries, yoghurt-vanilla cream and sweet basil sorbet
The new desert takes its name from the road the restaurant sits on and is easily one of the most visually beautiful dishes, the pavlova was much lighter than it initially looked, almost airy, with a visual imitation of a Margherita pizza. The sweet basil sorbet added a nice contrast to the sweetness of the pavlova. Definitely one of the best desserts to ever come out of the DC kitchen.

Piquillos

Local dark chocolate crémeux, piquillo & raspberry sorbet and soft caramel
For fans of chocolate and sorbet, this dessert had soft caramel in its centre with sheets of chocolate and meringue surrounding.

Le Fromage

5 types of A.O.P cheeses from the cheese trolley accompanied with fresh honeycomb, wild flower nectar collected from the hills of Mae-rim Province, Chiang Mai, Thailand
The cheese trolley at DC is widely known to be one of the best, if not the best, in Kuala Lumpur, although due to the current climate selections may be not as wide, but do go for the truffle pecorino if you selection this as your dessert option.