Tuesday, August 29, 2006

Steak Out Operation

The Dinner

That night, we ventured to La Suisse. This restaurant has been around for many years now and is a popular choice for juicy steaks in the Bukit Damansara area....
La Suisse Exterior

Although it definately cannot boast of having a breathtaking ambience, I found it simple, comfortable and cosy (other than the distinct lack of music in the background):

La Suisse Interior

The appetizers we had that night were the Deep Fried Cheese (sorry - there was some funky Swiss name for this but I've forgotten), the Escargot and the Sauted Mixed Mushrooms:

Clockwise from top left: Sauted Mixed Mushrooms,
Deep Fried Cheese and Escargot

Overall, all the appetizers were good.
(They all cost around RM25++ but the servings are pretty generous so you won't feel cheated)

I love a good plate of Sauted Mushrooms and the one at La Suisse was well balanced and seasoned with herbs that the shitakes do not overpower the delicate button mushrooms at all - delicious!
(Something I would order again)

The Deep Fried Cheese was also good, gratinated cheese atop golden brown bread - so simple yet sinfully sublime.
(I apologise for the bad photo but someone got overexcited and dissected it before I could snap a proper shot)

The Escargots were really juicy, served with a cream sauce and sandwiched between 2 pieces of fluffy pastry and a bed of spinach - also worth a try.
(I would love to be able to explain further but I only managed to steal one piece from Ken)

For the mains, we tried the Braised Lamb Shank, Lamb Chops and Grilled Monkfish with Basil Sauce:

Clockwise from top left: Grilled Monkfish with Basil Sauce,
Lamb Shank and Grilled Lamb Chops

The Lamb Shank was good - the meat was tender and was cooked in a simple brown sauce...

The Lamb Chops, served with a flavourful rosemary sauce, was only ok... The meat was tender but just a tad to salty.

I didn't like the Monkfish very much either - the basil sauce was nice but the fish was also a bit too salty.

Anyway, how could we go to La Suisse and not try it's famous Angus steak?:

Various Photos of The Angus Steak with
the Bearnaisse and Mushroom Sauce

Mmm-MMM. It was GOOD.
Just look at it!
Juicy and flavourful, you can have your steak served with a few different sauces (I like the black pepper, the mushroom and the bearnaisse sauce). They even generously give you a serving pot of extra sauce so that you can have as much as you want.

We ended the night with a bevy of desserts... That night, we had the Raspberries with Vanilla Ice Cream, Red Wine Cherries with Crepe & Vanilla Ice Cream and Red Wine Cherries with Vanilla Ice Cream:

Clockwise from top left: The Red Wine Cherries with Crepe, Red Wine Cherries,
The Raspberries with Vanilla Ice Cream and the Extra Serving of Raspberries

The desserts are generally quite simple but very yummy so please make sure you reserve space for them at the end of your meal.

The Raspberries with Ice Cream were scrumptious - the sharp, sweet and sour taste of the warm raspberries were absolutely striking against the cool, creamy sweet vanilla ice cream.
(It comes served with an extra serving of warm raspberries on the side)

The Red Wine Cherries, either way, were also great! (if you have them with the crepe & ice cream you get slightly less cherries). The cherries, served warm in a red wine sauce, were ripe and rich in flavour - paired beautifully with the vanilla ice cream.

Note: La Suisse gets very packed on weekends so please call ahead to book a place or be prepared to wait for a table.

[ BEGIN EDIT ]
(Dec 2007)
:(
Be warned!
Saturday nights seem to be getting increasingly packed and noisy because La Suisse is popular with families. I do try to be as tolerant as possible with kids because well, they're young and we should all let them enjoy it while it lasts but when they start running around in the small space of the restaurant.... Well, let's just say it's pretty annoying.
(Week nights and Sunday nights are usually nice and quiet though)
(Have deducted a point off the Ambience score accordingly)

Oh, the steaks (and most of the other food) are still great though!
:)
[ END EDIT ]

So it's: Good food, comfortable and simple ambience, reasonable prices for the serving size BUT not very impressed with the fish, no background music and nothing much really, I'm definately coming back - watch out not to overdose of red meat though.


Restaurant Review
Summary Sheet:

La Suisse @ Bukit Damansara

Taste: 7.5
Ambience : 7 6
Service : 7
Price** : RM80/++ per person
Parking: OK

** Approximation - 3 course meal, excluding drinks
Telephone No.: 03-2094 6587
Opening Hours: 11.00am - 2.30pm, 6.30pm - late (Closed on Sundays Now open on Sundays!)

NO PORK SERVED



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17 comments:

  1. I love the food here becoz he does his sauces so well. He used to have this lamb sirloin with the herb sauce - had to have it all the time as I was addicted to it. Another yummy appetizer we always have is the Melted Swiss Cheese - great with bread and gherkins and etc.

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  2. one of your better ratings - okay, i will go there next month when i fly to KL. but there's only one problem - i've no date... :(

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  3. looks good!! but where exactly at Bukit Damansara?

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  4. to wuching:
    Yes... *drool*... they were very juicy.
    (Haiyah... now that you got me thinking about it, I have a craving for the steak there!)
    :)

    to boo_licious:
    (I finally put up this review - sorry for the delay)
    Yeah, Mike and his bro are excellent chefs...
    Well, the beef is great and the lamb is good anyway, and that's more than enough to make me happy.
    (My friend tried the pasta there and said that it's not that nice)

    to laksa:
    You offer to belanja dinner+wine, post it up on your blog and all the girls will come running, I'm sure.
    :)

    to tihtahpah:
    Are you familiar with the area?
    (Hmmm,.. methinks that I should start drawing maps for my reviews)

    It's on Jalan Setiabudi, pretty much right next to Picollo Mondo and Flamenco (same row of shops as the Public Bank).

    (I hope that helps)

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  5. hmmm...okok..i think i got it. :)nevermind the map thingy

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  6. j, how i wish to have da desserts right now!!!! my saliva is dripping......!!!!

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  7. to tihtahpah:
    Cool.
    :)
    I'm always trying to improve my reviews in whatever ways possible anyway - I know a map would be helpful but I'm awful at drawing.
    (I'm kinda scared that my ugly drawings will get ppl lost.. haha)

    to seksun:
    Are you familiar with the main square of shophouses with all the banks in the Damansara Heights area?

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  8. to meiyen:
    Haha....
    Be careful not to drool too much on your computer.
    :)

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  9. Yeah, nowadays Mike's brother usually cooks. Sometimes you see his daughter around when she is back from her holidays.We never seem to make it for desserts though. This place is so popular - once I met my vet here.

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  10. If I didn't know you better, j, I'd say you had my misfortune in mind when you made such a big deal about how "...GOOD. Just look at it! Juicy and flavourful..." that steak was. Very nasty indeed! ;)

    A very meaty review, but I feel satiated. Ta

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  11. Have you visit Checkers before? They serve good quality ribs also.

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  12. to boo_licious:
    ... but the desserts are so yummy!
    :)
    Then again, everything is so yummy and the servings are pretty generous - it is rather difficult to wolf down an appetizer, main AND a dessert, I guess....

    to donkeyblog::
    Bwahahahahaha...
    My evil plan to taunt your pitiful beef-less situation has worked brilliantly!
    *lol*
    Kidding.
    I apologise if I made you salivate over your keyboard.
    :)

    to tekko:
    No I haven't...
    Where is Checkers?

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  13. Would you have eaten at any of the restaurants along Asian Heritage Row?

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  14. to anonymous:
    So far I've only tried the Bar Savahn restaurant and a little cafe next to it....
    (This was way before I started blogging though, so I don't have any photos, etc...)

    I remember both places being quite ok though.
    :)

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  15. Mmm.. yummy looking desserts!
    I'm looking for swiss food in KL/Selangor. Found a swiss restaurant, Chalet Suisse at Jalan Ampang Utama. Anyone been to this restaurant? How does it rate compared to La Suisse? Recommendation needed on any other good swiss restaurant as well.Thanks!

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  16. to C:
    I havent tried Chalet Suisse but thanks for pointing it out! Will try it soon and see how it compares. :)

    Unfortunately, La Suisse is the only Swiss restaurant I know of in KL/PJ. Seems like the whole area is dominated by Italian/German/Spanish but Swiss is rare!

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Appreciate your thoughts, opinions and feedback. :)