Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Dragon-i @ Cititel Midvalley

Today I brought my mum to lunch at Dragon-i in Cititel. If you're in Megamall, you can access Cititel through Coffee Bean on the ground floor.
Dragon-i specializes in flavours from the regions of China such as Canton, Szechuan and Shanghai.
Spicy food is on my list of favourite foods right next to sashimi so I will be indulging in Sichuan style cooking today.
Sichuan food can basically be described as being extremely hot, sour, sweet and salty. Common ingredients in Sichuan cooking includes chili, ginger, spicy herbs and the famous Fagara (Szechuan peppercorn). The peppercorn is indigenous to Szechuan Province and produces a fragrant and numbing effect to the mouth almost like getting a novocaine jab from your dentist. (Overdose on these peppers and you will be drooling like a buffoon )



The entrance to Dragon-i



Interior



Open concept kitchen




The idea of having these three buttons is ingenious. Patrons need not wave like a raving loon with this device. Press any button for whatever service you need and a waiter will pop up ala' Houdini. Very fun, but I have yet to try pressing all three buttons at once. Hmm.. maybe three waiters will appear at once ?






How does one tell the difference between vinegar and soy sauce in a Chinese restaurant ?
( besides looking at the label lah ! ) Well there's an old Chinese proverb, 'Kou Chou Ngai See Yau' which literally translates to 'Tall Vinegar Short Soy Sauce'. Now you can tell the difference :)



Appetizer



Hot sour soup La Mien $14

La Mien means hand pulled noodles. Patrons will get to see how this noodle is prepared at the open kitchen.
The whole process looks like the chef is trying to skip rope while whacking the person if front of him.
This hot sour soup La Mien is self explanatory.. It tastes just that. Very spicy, very sour and very appetizing. The thick broth is cooked with shredded mushrooms, bits of prawns, tree ear fungus, red onions chili oil and white pepper. Definately not for the faint of heart.




La Mien with brazillian beef brisket Rm15

This dish is nothing to shout about. The soup is quite bland with a layer of chili oil. Nowhere as spicy as the Hot Sour La Mien. The beef although very tender is tastless in the soup.




Sichuan cold spicy chicken $14

Last of all is the Sichuan cold spicy chicken. I did not particularly enjoy this dish as it was not spicy enough and didn't numb my mouth. The roasted peanut bits lends a bitter taste to the dish and the chicken was too dry. It seems like the chef made a toned down version of this supposedly spicy and numbing dish to suit the locals. Bah ! I am paying for authenticity so give me the real deal !



Although there are many other items on the menu I have yet to try, I will probably think twice before returning to this restaurant as these three very simple dishes was a big disappointment. I've eaten authentic Sichuan cuisine in Szechuan Province and this did not come close to the real thing. I also prefer Red Chili Restaurant in Pudu (review coming soon).




Dragon-i Restaurant
Main Lobby Cititel Hotel
Ground Floor Midvalley


Tel No : 03-2282 0155

1 comment:

  1. eh actually the siu long pao tasted quite good..

    ReplyDelete