Wils reviews: Grand Imperial Restaurant @ 1 Utama Shopping Centre

Being an authentic Chinese, the severe need of excellent Chinese food is a no brainer. One place you can never go wrong is none other than at Grand Imperial. Established in 2008, it is a recognised Chinese restaurant chain in Malaysia and it has also recently gone international in the UK. Just last week, my family and a few of my relatives were at the 1 Utama branch for my grandpa’s birthday. Of course, being the restaurant that it is with a classy ambience and excellent food, reservations is a must especially on weekends. With a total number of 10 people at the table, my dad decided to go for the special family menu where there are 3 sets to choose from, each being a 9 course meal.

For starters, we were served with an excellent Deep Fried Seaweed Chicken and Prawn Roll Coated with Thousand Island Sauce accompanied with Deep Fried Oystal Roll Wrapped with Salted Egg Yolk. Now that was a mouthful. As simple as the serving looks, it is indeed a mouthful and I assume a pretty tough order preparing them. The one on the left, being the Deep Fried Seaweed Chicken, has a delicious equal essence of the seaweed, chicken, prawn and thousand island. The Deep Fried Oyster Roll containing one of my all time favourite salted egg is not one to miss with crispiness and not being overly salty. Finishing off with a cheery tomato tops off the start of a delicious meal.

Next up, is none other than the Braised Shark’s Fin with Dried Scallop and Winter Melon. This bowl of shark’s fin in particular is different than the average ones you get because it is so rich in flavour that it is as good not putting vinegar as it is if you put it.

Ah, how can we not love roasted ducks. This being the Crispy Roasted Black Pepper Duck, it was indeed something new to me because we most commonly have black pepper accompanied with chicken, beef or lamb but never on ducks. The first bite is heavenly. Juicy, lean meat with just the right amount of skin and fat and a black pepper sauce that you will not get to taste anywhere else. The duck has of course made the black pepper sauce taste even better from its rich flavour.

Personally, THE highlight of the night.

Being the biggest fan of seafood (in my books at least), I was of course looking forward to this entre; the Steamed Ocean Garoupa Fish with Basil and Shredded Ginger & Chilli. As I am very particular with the freshness of the seafood I eat, this dish hits the spot of perfection. Steamed excellently with rich flavour without being too salty. One has to be there to have this because it is unexplainable in words.

  

Prawns. You either love them, hate them or is unfortunately allergic to them. If you’re either of the first two, you will not be disappointed one bit. This is called the Fried Tiger Prawns with Preserved Bean Paste and Szechuan Sauce. Many might think that this is a spicy a entre as it has a szechuan essence to it but in actual fact, it isn’t. The prawns were fried to accommodate the flavour in order to not have that burning flavour in your mouth. It was fresh too.

As the night is nearing to an end, comes the greener and healthier dish; Sautéed Kai Lan Vegetables with Black Fungus in Yellow Rice Wine. Refreshing.

 

Time flew by so quickly, that I had to leave at the 6th dish because of the urgency to catch the Liverpool – Manchester United match (YNWA). With only 3 dishes left, the last 2 being desserts, I took my chances to leave to an already excellent meal by any standard. Following the Kai Lan, comes the Stewed “Ee Fu” Noodles with Shredded Pork and Preserved Vegetables as the last main course ended by the desserts Chilled Lemon Grass Jelly with Longan & Two Varieties of Chinese Pastries. Although I wasn’t there to taste them, I was told by my parents that it was as good as it sounds.

This particular set costs RM688.00++ which is actually not that all pricey considering the quality of food, ambience and the number of people it is serving to.

This being my 3rd time in Grand Imperial (twice at the Bangsar Shopping Centre branch), I have to give it to them for serving the freshest food with a very friendly and proactive service with the perfect ambience for any occasion. Indeed, a MUST GO.

Address:
G218, Promenade, Ground Floor,
1 Utama Shopping Centre,
No. 1, Lebuh Bandar Utama,
Bandar Utama, 47800 KL

Telephone Number: 03-7729 7223