E L L Y B E R R Y: A Romantic Valentine's Day Candle Light Dinner

Hello my angels ❤

On 14th February night, me and my boy decided to spent our dinner at the wonderful Ba Lin Rooftop Bar & Restaurant. Every year, Ba Lin Rooftop Bar & Restaurant always serve different Valentine's Day set menu. It is always exciting and refreshing at the same time dining at Ba Lin as we get to taste something different every year.

This year, they had curated 6 different dishes, 3 courses for the lady and the gentleman. Actually, I like the part that they already pre-set the menu for the couples so that the couples doesn't need to brainstorm and headache what to eat. Plus, their food never fails me. That's one of the strong points why I keep returning to Ba Lin for the special night.

Come and join me for an exciting dining adventure :D
When we arrive at Ba Lin, we were greeted by their friendly staffs. The lovely waitress escorts us to our table. I love the table that they reserved for us, it was located at the outdoor corner side, that means some privacy for us XP The ambiance of the restaurant was warm and lovely with the music of Old Shanghai Jazz Club and candle lighted on each table, very romantic.

The theme for the set menu for this year Valentine's Day dinner is 花好月圆, in English it means Elixir of Love❤

With a hefty price tag of RM388++ per couple for the set dinner (RM450.08 to be exact after 6% tax and 10% service tax), I actually thought that wine is included. Should have read the menu carefully the next time. But after reading through the menu, with the food they serve, the price is considered bearable, roughly RM65 per dish. Still, nothing beats the effort and creativeness of Ba Lin.

**correction : I am deeply sorry for the wrong information about the price I've written above. I think I need to pay a visit to the optometrist soon. The actual pricing for the set dinner is RM288++ per couple, RM334.08 after taxes. Hence, roughly RM55.28 per dish.

Since there's no wine comes with the set dinner, my boy is being a gentleman and order us a bottle of Orion Merlot 2014. I have little to no knowledge when it comes to alcohol. So I can't give any review to it. But all I can say is, the wine is smooth on the palate and it is an inexpensive table wine.

// S T A R T E R / E N T R E E //

For Her (Me)

Chilled Spring Pea Soup With Warm Escargot Cheese Puffs

A lightly chilled soup of baby pea and mint soup served with a warm cheese choux puff pastry stuffed with escargot snails.

The presentation was nice and the pastry is what caught my attention the most because it is stuffed with escargot, love! The choux pastry has a crisp shell with bacon crumbs I believe (?) over it. When you open the little choux pastry lid, you can smell the heavenly scent of the stuffing inside. It gets even better when you take a bite, totally a spoonful of happiness. Inside the choux pastry, it was fully stuffed with button mushrooms, escargot, and cheese gravy.

The soup taste, very veggie (LOL!) with a slight hint of mint. The mint flavor is barely noticeable, in which I like. Of course, my boy doesn't fancy the green pea soup. As for me, I don't hate it, but I don't like it either. But it is great to taste and experience something new (for both of us).

For Him

Foie Gras Goose Liver Tartlet With Orange Pesto & Warm Tomato Salad

Butter puff pastry with goose liver creme brulee custard on a bed of warm roasted tomato & micro-basil salad.

The dish was served with a toast and the foie gras creme brulee custard presented in the shape of a slice of cake. To be frank, I have never taste foie gras before. This is the first time in my life haha! I can't give any clear review about it but all I know is the whole combination of this dish is delicious indeed. My boy loves the sweetness and crispiness of the top part of the creme brulee.

// M A I N C O U R S E //

For Her (Me)

Seared Airflown Salmon Trout With Sakura Leaf Furikake & Asparagus Tips

Lightly seared to medium doneness sashimi grade trout fish, light yuzu & plum glaze, asparagus on a bed of potato puree.

The plating for this dish is a bit dirty for my liking because I need to be careful while dining this dish. Due to the yellow ganache around the rim of the plate was overlined, it easily gets on my fingers, arms and my cutlery. Not that I don't like the art of the plating, if only they keep the ganache away from the edge of the plate, it's fine for me.

The salmon was meh to me~ Don't get me wrong. I'm sure many people love their salmon, it is just that I don't fancy salmon. But I still eat it cause it is part of the experience. I stop eating it until I found out there are still bones in the salmon eeek! I have this weird phobia that I am afraid of bones in my fish.

The asparagus was served in tagliatelle (ribbon pasta) form. This is just my personal preferences, I think this dish will look much better if the asparagus is served normally in its own shape. Of course, it is not all bad for this dish. The potato puree was awesome and flavorful, which I really love.

For Him

Grilled Wagyu Karubi Steak With Smoked Gouda Cheese

Grilled Wagyu boneless short rib MB7 on a bed of mash gouda cheese sticks, miso butter corn, onion jam garlic chips.

This is the first time for both of us to have Wagyu. It was served with medium rare and boy oh boy, it was an amazing experience. The tenderness of the Wagyu is like, boing boing XD Definitely going to have Wagyu again in the future.

The miso butter corn, what can I say more? Obviously, it tastes wonderful since I a huge fan corn LOL!

// D E S S E R T //

For Her (Me)

Apple Rose & Lychee Parcel With Homechurn Milk Ice Cream

Apple & raspberry jam rolled in flakey phyllo pastry stacked on rose and lychee ganache, roasted pistachio served with Good Moo-d Milk ice-cream.

I absolutely love the presentation of this dessert, they add a beautiful touch to the ganache around the dessert with some sakura petals and the roasted pistachio. The way they present the pastry is in rose shape! Not only the presentation looks good, but it also tastes wonderful as well❤ The crispiness of the pastry when you bite it is like music to my ear.

As for the milk ice-cream, the taste is comparable with Sandakan's most famous milk ice-cream which located at Kim Fung, Mile 4, same block as Mei Ngar Restaurant. The combination of the rose pastry and the milk ice-cream is to die for. It reminds me of the English Tea House Apple Crumble :P I should pay a visit to English Tea House soon hehe.

For Him

Brulee Banana Chocoholic Sundae

Valrhona chocolate mousse, banana custard, dark chocolate fudge almond sable, brulee banana, granola, popcorn parfait served with Popcorn ice-cream.

The chocolate fudge is everything! It is airy, light and very rich. I feel sinful for eating it LOL! If you don't like dark chocolate, you might wanna skip this. But if you eat the chocolate fudge with the almond sable, it somehow balances out the flavor.

My boy is not a fan of the popcorn ice-cream, he told me it tastes really weird to him. I tried it myself, it was... interesting haha! I'm glad that my dessert was perfect XP

That is all 6 dishes, 3-course meal for our Valentine's Day dinner. Overall, I really love my entree and dessert. The only thumbs down for me is the salmon. As for my boy, he loves his entree and main course, but not the dessert. But still, for the price we paid, it is worth the experience and we had an amazing night.