Dim Sum @ China Treasures, Sime Darby Convention Centre, KL

Time flies and it's already March and almost the end of Chinese New Year! Today, it's dim sum but there's a slight twist to them, they're all halal. I can imagine the howls of protest from some dim sum lovers saying no way halal dim sum tastes nice since it lacks the essential ingredient of pork. Although I have eaten halal and non halal dim sum, I must admit there are pros and cons to both of them. Even though the taste is slightly compromised for halal dim sum (especially in steamed dim sum as pork is always used), at the long run, halal dim sum is healthier since it uses seafood and chicken as a subsitute. Usually for non halal dim sum, fatty pork is always used as it melts in your mouth hence it's laden with calories and oil.



One fine day, I decided to check out the restaurants at Sime Darby Convention Centre. Well hidden from the main Kiara road, you'll find it if you take a left just next to the golf ball stalls. There's two restaurants here -Halia and China Treasures which take up each side of the convention centre. We ordered a selection of savoury items to try - their Har Kau (RM6.50) and Barbeque Chicken Steamed Pau (RM4.80). The Har Kau is filled with a crunchy prawn but I felt the crystal skin was slightly too thick. I preferrred the pau which was yummy especially eaten hot.



One of my must haves when I eat dim sum is Wu Kok (the Fried Yam Puff). China Treasures version is light and filled with lots of minced chicken. Pretty delicious stuff which you can chomp down quickly.



We only ordered a few savoury dim sum to sample as we planned to try their half of their Peking Duck (RM30 for half, RM60 for whole duck). Here, they skin the duck and prepare the rolls for you to eat. You can also ask for the duck to be sliced up and cooked with noodles.



I loved their noodles as it was delish. Paired with crunchy fried noodles, the combination of sliced duck, mushrooms and crunchy bean sprouts and capsicum was really very good. The Peking Duck pancakes were not bad but I did feel the texture of the pancakes was slightly hard as I'm used to eating the softer versions. Incidentally the way we serve Peking Duck here is entirely different from Beijing - there the pancakes are kept warm and you wrap your own rolls. There's also a lot more items you can add to the rolls unlike here where it's just hoisin sauce, spring onions and the duck skin. When they serve you the Peking Duck there, the first part they offer to you is the skin from the neck which is the best portion as it simply melts in your mouth.



What I was really liked was their Baked Sweet Potato Puff (RM5). The flaky pastry encases yellow sweet potato paste that tasted heavenly. Not too sweet and so light with black sesame seeds for extra crunch.



Their egg tarts (RM4.80) was very good too even though there's no lard in their pastry. The pastry is flaky (suspect they use two layers) and made from shortening. When it comes hot to the table, the filling is slightly jiggly which hardens a bit when left to cool.



We also tried their cold desserts which they have some unusual items like this Mango Creme served with selasih (basil) seeds that always remind me of frog eggs and pomelo sacs. I find it too creamy but Splashie Boy loves it.



My favourite was their Black Glutinous Rice served cold in a young coconut. Unlike other places, there's no coconut milk in this. Instead you have to scoop the young coconut flesh and eat it with the dessert and the vanilla ice cream. Really good stuff as it's not as rich as the traditional black glutinous rice dessert and refreshing as it's served cold here.

Besides dim sum, China Treasures also serves dishes for lunch and dinner. I have eaten dinner here once which I didn't snap any pictures and the food was pretty good. They make their own beancurd with spinach that is served to you individually. My favourite is their Seong Tong Yin Choy (Spinach in Superior Soup) as they mix it with three eggs. Diced salted egg yolks and century eggs are added in the soup for extra flavour and creaminess while cooked egg white is swirled on top of the spinach.

If you dine here, you can get free parking if the bill is more than RM30. Parking spaces are ample here and it's far from the crazy traffic down town hence it's really nice to have a leisurely meal here.

China Treasures
Sime Darby Convention Centre
1A, Jalan Bukit Kiara 1,
Kuala Lumpur

Tel No : 03 - 2089 3788

(Halal. To get here, if you're coming from Sprint highway near Eastin, take a left towards Kiara Road. Drive down and take the first left. Go straight and you will see the convention centre on your right hand side)

*Disclaimer: The opinions expressed here is entirely based on my personal tastebuds and may vary for others. The reviewer also declares that she has not received any monetary or non-monetary compensation from the restaurant for writing this review.

Tagged with: Dim Sum + Malaysian Food