This year, 13 participating restaurants around Klang Valley will each feature 3 dishes using the US Potatoes to showcase the versatility, nutritional benefits and superior taste of quality US Potatoes. The chefs of these restaurants had been given a task to invent some unique and limited time potato dishes which will be served at their restaurant from 1-30 June 2015.
Thanks to Sidney Kan and US Potato Board, I was able to witness the launch of this US Potato Culinary Festival 2015 held at Villa Danieli, Sheration Imperial Hotel Kuala Lumpur.
The launch event started off with a speech by Mr.Eddie Saw; US Potato Board Country for Malaysia and I was surprised to know that Malaysia is one of the top 5 market for this US Potatoes! Wow.
Ms Indra Balaratnam, a well known consultant professional dietitian was there to gave a speech entitled 'Why US Potatoes is the ideal comfort food'. What's your childhood memories of potato dishes? It's gonna be french fries and mashed potatoes. Well, I'm surprised to know that potatoes are actually good for your health and is in fact one of the healthiest vegetables one can consume.
Here's some nutritional facts about US Potatoes:
One medium-size skin-on US Potato contains only 110 calories per serving, boasts more potassium (620g) than a banana, provides almost half the daily value of vitamin C (45%) and contains no fat, sodium or cholesterol.
Chefs of the 13 participating restaurants were also given the Certification of Appreciation for their great work in crafting some stunning dishes using US Potatoes.
I managed to sample some US Potato crips, fries, wedges, hash brown and nuggets too. If you've tasted these US Potato chips, you'll never go back to your usual chips anymore. Now, anyone mind to tell me where can I buy them?
And the here comes the best part of the launch event; all guests were given an opportunity to sample the specially invented US Potato dishes from all 13 participating restaurants! Are you excited to know what potato dishes had those chefs created? This is going to be a long post with potato dishes!
List of participating restaurants for the US Potato Culinary Festival Kuala Lumpur 2015:
Best Western Hotel, Petaling Jaya brings you 3 types of Asian inspired US Potato dishes. The Crispy Fried US Potato with Ginger Flower & Sweet Chili Dip serves as a good starter for your meal. There's a combination of sweet, spicy and a bit of sourish flavor from the simple kerabu salad and chili dipping sauce and this works well with the oummpph and delicate texture of the US Potato. It actually compliments the potato dish very much.
The second dish from Best Western PJ is the US Potatoes with Seafood. Great presentation and it looks Malaysia Truly Asia dish with the use of sesame seeds, chili and ginger flower. The US potato is mashed to perfection and you'll find some sea treasure in it.
This is a fusion dish where the US potato is roasted and topped with Asian style kerabu salad which we call it Kerabu US Potatoes. I love the addition of Asian parsley, spring onion and a slice of Crispy US potato chip as its topping.
Best Western Hotel Petaling Jaya at US Potato Culinary Festival 2015
Big Hug Burger is a burger joint located in SS15, Subang Jaya and it's right next to Taylor's college and Inti College Subang Jaya. If you're studying in the colleges or living nearby, you gotta try out their limited time US potato dishes. Big Hug Burger brings us the 90's favorites - Western style dishes which consist of a soup and 2 types of mains.
When you dine here, you gotta start off with this Cream of US Potato with Blue Cheese and Cauliflower. It's a creamy and thick potato soup infused with flavorful blue cheese and cauliflower. Well, it's not just a normal potato soup but there's a pretty potato cup filled with bacon floating on the soup too. So, if you're up for a light meal before your class or having a tight timetable, this potato soup is good enough to keep your hunger pangs away (if you skipped breakfast and went straight to class :P )
Being a 90's myself, pasta is like a norm thing to have at a restaurant serving Western dishes. Big Hug Burger understands us very well and thus created this Japanese Curry Spaghetti with US Potato. It's not that spicy as it sounds and it's a mild curry spaghetti with diced potatoes, mushrooms, carrots and some ham. This is my first time having spaghetti with potatoes and I find it acceptable though. I would love it if there's more curry gravy and taste a little bit spicier.
How can you not have a Baked Potato dish when you're dining a potato themed meal. Besides the spaghetti dish, you can also choose to have this Cheesy Layered Beef in US Potato Pocket. This looks interesting where the beef and cheese is sandwiched between this giant potato and it has a crispy coating on the outside. It also has a slice of melted cheddar cheese on top of this potato pocket. You'll need to come hungry to finish this off and it's a comfort food to eat after you're done with all the hectic classes during the day.
Big Hug Burger at US Potato Culinary Festival 2015
Maria's Steakcafe is a famous steakhouse with outlets in Bangsar and Damansara. For this US Potato Culinary Festival 2015, they have specially crafted a 3-course US Potato meal to satisfy your US potato craving. You're going to start your meal with this yummylicious US Potato & Pear Soup. I've tasted this soup and I'm lovin it ( I even has second round of this!). There's a unique combination of pear and potato which makes it taste refreshing, not those where you feel bloated after a few spoons. You can taste the presence of pear in the soup through its crunchiness texture and it comes in very fine state that you can still nibble them a bit. The pear and the potato has created a strong brotherhood and each gives out its own shine to this delicious soup. Bravo!
You'll come to this plate of Mashed US Potatoes with Smoked Salmon and Beef Bacon and its presentation reminds me of my Japanese potato salad dish which I usually order when dining at my usual Japanese restaurant. And similar to my usual, it has carrots, smoked salmon and beef bacon in the mashed - not as a topping but in the mashed itself. So, you'll have a combination of salmon, beef and carrots too in every bite.
The main dish for your potato themed meal will be this classic Shepherd's Pie. It's made with beef bolognese and topped with creamy mashed potatoes before being cooked to perfection in the oven. It may be another Shepherd's Pie in your list but you gotta try this version made with US potato at Maria's Steakcafe.
Maria's Steakcafe at US Potato Culinary Festival 2015
Naughty Nuri's is a famous restaurant in Bali for its legendary barbequed pork ribs. I had been to their main outlet in Bali 2 years ago and you need to queue to get a seat. But it's all worth it because their food is heavenly. Now, you can enjoy their food here in Malaysia because they opened an outlet at Desa Sri Hartamas. In conjunction with the US Potato Culinary Festival 2015, they had crafted some Balinese style dishes with the US potatoes.
Be prepared to tantalize your taste buds with this Bali-Bali Curried Beef Hamburger with US Curly Fries. I'm sure you'll recognize this signature homemade black charcoal bun which is used in some famous burger joints in Klang Valley. Well, Naughty Nuri's baked their own version and sandwiched it with Balinese style curried beef. You'll need to taste this yourself to know how delicious it is. Don't forget to munch a bit of the US curly fries while you have this.
I quite like this Char-grilled Bali-Bali Spring Chicken with US potato. This Balinese style spring chicken is cooked to perfection and fries made from US potato is a great combination. You can't say no to a delicious char-grilled spring chicken and hot & crispy fries.
Beef lovers must not miss this Tok Kamir Style Braised Beef Brisket with US Mashed Potato. The beef brisket has a nicely cooked soft texture and great taste that you'll want for more. The accompanying US Mashed Potato is simply delicious; creamy and has great seasoning.
Naughty Nuri's at US Potato Culinary Festival 2015
The Roulette Restaurant Bar is located at Ara Damansara serving Oriental as well as Western dishes. For this US Potato Culinary Festival 2015, The Roulette has come up with 3 types of light dishes which you can have it as light bites or snacks.
The first one is the Golden US Wedges where potato wedges made from US potato is deep-fried to golden brown and it taste good when it's hot as it has a very crispy outlet layer. It's also seasoned well and you'll find some fried curry leaves in your little wedges bucket.
The next light bite is the Chicken Potato Canape where Basket Weave US Potato cuts are used as a base layer and topped with mini chicken patties and some special sauce. This is a good light bite where you can finish it off in one or two bites. The deep-fried potato cut is crispy and the mini minced chicken patty is well seasoned. The sauce is equally important here as without it; the whole canape will be a little too dry.
If fried food is not for you, here's a more healthier option of potato dish. This Fusion US Potato Salad has its potatoes cut to very thin slices that you might thought it's thin cuts of turnip from a glance. It taste refreshing and it's a good alternative to those fried version of potatoes if you're on a diet.
The Roulette Restaurant Bar at US Potato Culinary Festival 2015
Rendezvous Corner is a restaurant located in SS15 Subang Jaya and it's where the past Salmon Steak shop used to occupy. I used to live in SS15 and my ex-home was located right opposite this place. As most people living in this area are students, the food created by Rendezvous Corner are cater to our common but unique cup of tea too :)
The classic baked US Potato Skin is great as a quick bite or snack when you're having a catching up session with your friends. As Rendezvous Corner is open till late night, this might as well be a lite bite for your supper too. The half cut US potato is topped with delicious and cheesy topping and is baked till the cheese is melted and has a crispy cheese layer at the top!
This Cheese Fondue with US Potato is great for sharing with your friends. Perfect dish to order when you're dining in a group and in need of some light bites. The Basket Weave US Potato cuts are deep-fried and it's a great idea to dip it in the hot cheese fondue. You'll have a very cheesy taste accompany by crispy potato texture in your mouth - all while it's still hot. Yum! It comes with some accompanying broccoli and carrots too to balance out your meal.
The last light bite from Rendezvous Corner is this Curried Mashed Potatos. It's not those usual mashed potatoes dish. The curry mashed potato is made into big patties and coated with bread crumbs before being deep-fried to golden brown. Enjoy it while it's still hot!
Rendezvous Corner at US Potato Culinary Festival 2015
The Burger Factory is a burger joint with outlets in Kota Kemuning and SS15 Subang Jaya. It's famous for its unique burgers and also serve breakfast as well as pancakes on its menu. The Burger Factory has come out with some unique dishes for this US Potato Culinary Festival 2015.
I love their English Curry US Fries where the US Potato fries is seasoned with curry powder, curry leaves, fried anchovies, onions as well as chopped chilies. This is a Malaysian style fries and I enjoyed the spicy flavored fries and in between, I can nibble some crispy anchovies and onions.
The Burger Factory is brilliant to come out with this TBF Trio US Potato Platter where you can try 3 types of US Potato dishes at one go. It comes with a mashed US Potato which is presented like a little pudding, a mini US Potato burger where some salsa is sandwiched between two slices of deep-fried Basket Weave US Potatoes cuts and lastly a US Potato hash brown. The good thing about this platter is that you can have your usual burger at The Burger Factory and still have enough stomach space to fill up this platter. It's something you should order when you're dining at The Burger Factory this June 2015.
This is a great surprise to me because The Burger Factory actually comes out with a US Potato dessert! This stunning plate of dessert is called Mont Blanc Pudding and yes it contains US Potatoes in it. There's a waffle made from US Potatoes and it sandwiched some delicious fillings in the middle. I'm not sure that's the fillings are but it's possible to be some red bean paste, chocolate paste or probably some paste made from potatoes. But it's really delicious and love how it's presented on a unique apple-shaped plate. Anyone can tell me where to get this plate?
The Burger Factory at US Potato Culinary Festival
Jibby & Co is a well known restaurant serving delicious brunch and mains at Empire Shopping Gallery Subang Jaya. Jibby & Co has created some artistic US Potato dishes for this US Potato Culinary Festival 2015. You'll need to drop by Jibby & Co in Subang Jaya to see and enjoy them yourselves.
The first dish is the Spiced US Potatoes with Smoked Lamb Bacon and Saffron Aioli. The well roasted US Potatoes goes well with the lamb bacon and there's a well balanced soft and chewy texture. The sauce served as a good presentation prop and matches the potatoes well.
Up next is the Parisian US Mashed Potatoes with Sumac Spiced Chickpeas and Basil Pesto Sauce. Beautifully presented and it's good to see and good to taste too. There's a unique combination of mashed potatoes with chickpeas and it's topped with an edible flower. Order this your your girl where she can enjoy the flower and eat it too.
Last but not least is the Crisp US Potatoes and Shredded Duck with Spicy Onion Jam. Little balls of bread crumbs coated mashed potatoes with duck are deep-fried to golden brown and wipe it with some onion jam before you pop it into your mouth. Lovely.
Jibby & Co at US Potato Culinary Festival 2015
La Bo Ca Latino
La Boca Latino is a restaurant in Pavilion KL. It serves Latin American food and you can feel and see the unique Latin American culture though its interior as well as its live performance held.
For this US Potato Culinary Festival 2015, La Boca created a Latin America style of US Potato dishes. The first one is US Potato Chili Con Carne where the US Potato is stuffed with spicy and dry beef stew. It smells good and it looks appetizing through the vibrant colours of its platting.
La Boca also served US Potato Nachos Fries and I'm lovin it. US Potato fries are served with sour cream, guacamole, salsa and some side salads. Suggest you to mix them up and eat it. It has great texture of cream, fresh and crunchy texture from the vegetables and has this oumph taste from the guacamole. Yay to this!!!
I can't wait to tell you about this dish. It's my first ever potato chocolate/macaroon bar in my life and I-LOVE-IT! This is called US Potato Macaroon Bars with Chile Ancho Chocolate. It's a chocolate bar made with potato. It taste so good and I can't wait to have more of this at their restaurant in June 2015. You can taste the rich bitter and sweet chocolate taste when you pop it in your mouth and it feels like eating a chocolate truffle. Then, some spicy taste will pop up later when you're about to swallow or chew long enough. You won't actually feel like you're eating something to do with potatoes but it's like a unique chocolate truffle.
La Bo Ca Latino at US Potato Culinary Festival 2015
Villa Danieli is an award-winning Italian restaurant located in Sheraton Imperial Hotel Kuala Lumpur. I really enjoyed their US Potato dishes at the US Potato Culinary Festival 2015. The first stunning dish from Villa Danieli is Wood Oven Baked Cheesy US Potato with Smoked Duck Breast. The US Potatoes are baked with duck breast meat and covered with creamy cheese sauce. The cheesy smell is strong and the soft potatoes will be dancing with the cheese sauce in your mouth.
Next is the US Potato Espuma where the US Potato is mixed into the dough mixture to form the ravioli look-a-like pasta. It actually taste good and I had a few servings of this pasta. Didn't taste the accompanying beef though but it looks good too.
Here's another dessert which I can't wait to share with you. This US Potato cake Villa Danieli is absolutely delicious and you'll want for more once you've tasted this. It's a cake made from US Potato and drizzled with raspberry coulis and finished with some berries by the side. The raspberry coulis goes extremely well with the potato cake and you can't really taste the usual potato taste from it. It's heavenly and it's in my must-eat list.
Villa Danieli at US Potato Culinary Festival 2015
Secret of Louisiana is located at Plaza Kelana Jaya and the team made a great effort in using US Potatoes to create special potato dishes adapted from the type of food which they served at their restaurant. I love their Cajun US Fries Chili Octopus, the Louisiana style. The US Potato fries comes with grilled octopus and it's seasoned well with chili, pepper and salt. I'm so gonna bring my dining partner to their restaurant to have more of this!
Next from Secret of Louisiana is Shrimp Etouffee US Potato Boat where baked US potato is topped with salsa and a shrimp. It's really delicious and I love it when soft texture of potatoes are matched with juicy salsa and what's more with shrimps in it too. Catch it before it's gone.
The last dish from Secret of Louisiana is US Potato Crawfish Pie. It's a US Potato Pie with crawfish! Crawfish is also known as crayfish or freshwater lobster. Crawfish is juicy and the meat is a little bit crunchy and it's perfect to be served with mashed US Potatoes. Oh, and I love their presentation too. It looks like one crawfish is saving another crawfish from the the pot!
Secret of Louisiana at US Potato Culinary Festival 2015
La Risata is an Italian restaurant with its outlets located at Medan Damansara and Persiaran Ampang. Opened since 1996, it serves delicious pizza, pasta and mains which showcase the essence of Italian food. For this US Potato Culinary Festival 2015, the team at La Risata came out with 3 very delicious food too. The first one is this US Potato Gnocchi in Crispy Parmesan Cracker and Creamy Tomato Sauce. The US Potato is made into gnocchi and I like the crispy parmesan cracker which compliments the gnocchi. I think it looks more like a pesto sauce than a tomato sauce to me though but it does taste good.
Beef lovers gonna love this Smoked Wagyu Beef with US Potato Confit. I didn't taste this one though as I don't consume beef but looking at the response at the food counter, it must be really good.
Oh, they came up with a pizza dish too. It's Pizza with US Potatoes and Lamb. This delicious pizza is topped with lamb sausages and thin slices of US Potatoes. Surprisingly, it taste good to me. It's something really unusual and you don't see a potato pizza at any other restaurant.
La Risata at US Potato Culinary Festival 2015
The Daily Grind is a burger joint + restaurant located at Bangsar Village 1. I really enjoyed their US Potato dishes at the US Potato Culinary Festival 2015. And they are the only participating restaurant that came out with a potato drink! I tasted their Crispy US Potato Milkshake and it's really tasty. It's like a milkshake and you don't smell some awful potato smell when drinking it. It's sweet with milky taste and it's refreshing. Just bite some crispy US Potato chips before drinking it.
And they are also the only participating restaurant that came out with this brilliant idea to have a Dog's Dinner. Well, it's not a real dog food for your dog's dinner. It's just a name! The US Potato fries are cooked in flavorful gravy and topped with a bone shaped cookie. Yum yum! Try sending this picture to your friend and he or she might taught that you've gone insane! Muahaha! The Daily Grind team is really creative to think of this idea!
The Daily Grind also brings you the Stuffed US Potato Croquettes where it looks like a lovely pot of croquettes plant from its presentation. You'll find some treasure in this potato croquettes. Visit The Daily Grind at Bangsar Village 1 to find out more.
The Daily Grind at US Potato Culinary Festival 2015
That was all the unique dishes crafted by the 13 participating restaurants for this US Potato Culinary Festival Kuala Lumpur 2015. All these dishes are only available from 1-30 June 2015, hurry and try them all today.
You can also watch a short news clip about this US Potato Culinary Festival Kuala Lumpur 2015 from My Tourism TV channel here.
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