EAST OF THE SWEZ

EAST IS EAST AND WEST IS WEST, goes the famous saying, "and ne'er the twain shall meet. Well, maybe not, but I might meet you at the Eastin Hotel near Queensbay Mall which will be officially launched by TYT and CM next Tuesday morning.

HOWEVER me being me, I've already managed a sneak preview of their spacious ground floor coffee house called Swez. Don't ask! It's fantastic for two reasons: one because the food that I tried was really rather good. But that's because of the second reason: it's headed by me old mate Jean Marc Veron, who used to be Executive Chef at Equatorial Penang. Bienvenue encore, mon ami!

And being a true blue Frenchman, he's an exacting taskmaster who keeps an eagle eye on everything that comes out of the kitchen, despite splitting his time between KL and Penang. But he has trained his protege Executive Sous Chef Lim Soon Leong well, and the standard is still pretty high.

There's a reasonably-priced buffet every lunch time (RM45++ adults, RM27++ children), available from noon to 2.30pm. It all looks very clean and presentable, and the food looks authentic and appetising. The theme changes daily, but "We offer 60% western dishes," remarked Jean Marc (there's him there bossing the others about as usual!). There's also a grill bar and action station doing pasta or local. The desserts looked particularly delectable.

At weekends, there's a High Tea Buffet with Japanese on Saturdays and Seafood on Sundays, pricer at RM75++, but Jean Marc promises us "good value" with quality ingredients.

In the evenings there is a la carte or semi-buffet, with some excellent choices, again without breaking the bank: RM45++-RM65++ depending on choice of main course - there's steak, cod, lamb, seafood; the Pasta with home-made Pesto was delicious.

Well whatever it is, I think Swez is going to give the other hotels a run for their money. The only setback as far as I'm concerned is it's not exactly round the corner; one has to physically make the effort to drive all the way out there. But if you're already in the vicinity or want a break from all that retail therapy, then do head there to give them a try. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

HYDRO HAILS

THERE'S A REALLY NICE LITTLE PLACE which people have heard about but not many frequent, a shame because it's got good food and lovely surrounds: Palms Coffee House of the Hydro Hotel (formerly Hydro Majestic and Feringghi Beach). It's situated on the ground floor right next to the deep-blue swimming pool, and you can dine semi-alfresco with a view of the beautiful grounds. We were invited there last night to sample some of their new menu, and the breezes blowing in from the sea were really quite refreshing.

Save for the occasional roar of the traffic which whizzed by on the busy Batu Feringghi Road, it is a very pleasant place, and you even get entertained by the music from the all-girl Filipina band "D'Electric Blue' in the Sea Lounge upstairs!

As Executive Chef Zakaria (affectionately known as Zak) used to cook for no less exalted personage than the Sultan of Brunei himself, you can imagine his forte: yes, Malay food, and as he is from Johor, it covers a large range of fantastic curries and rices. Last night was no exception: the Nasi Kandar dishes which came out were excellent (a word I seldom use), particularly the Beef Rendang and Fish Curry.

From his Chinese chef came some delicious Chinese Ravioli soup and Shanghai Noodles (the only thing I can fault that with is it had a bit too much mushroom in it - not my favourite thing as you know - and a large dollop of chilli oil would have gone perfectly with it!).

HAVING SAID THAT, the reasonably-priced western dishes were and not to be sniffed at either. The Rack of Lamb was tender and tasty, as was the Beef. Good try with the lasagna but it was a tad dry and could have done with a bit more tomato puree. The Mixed Grill would have been my son's idea of heaven: a HUGE platter of steak, sausage and chicken sat on top of a MOUNTAIN of mash, covered with gravy.

Their nightly buffet is great value at just RM30++ and their Saturday BBQ is RM49++; they must be one of the cheapest in town! I was quite disappointed to hear that they'd stopped their Friday Night freeflow buffet due to lack of demand. Such things take years to build up - witness the E&O's very popular Friday and Saturday nights and of course the Rasa Sayang's Spice Market Cafe - and if you don't persevere it will never take off properly. And we can do with a cheap buffet this part of town really.

HOWEVER what I'd really like to try is their LADIES NIGHT on Thursdays where there's a 50% discount on all drinks for women (actually they say ladies but to be honest might be difficult to define one ... !!!). They should throw in a Chippendale or two ...

FEELING SPICY?

THE SHANGRI-LA'S RASA SAYANG RESORT AND SPA invited a group of journalists and food writers/bloggers to try out their Spice Market Cafe's evening buffet last week, as they've just introduced a revamped offer; instead of the BOGOF offer (Buy One Get One Free) it's now buy TWO and get one free. Still a pretty good offer I think.

Unfortunately I couldn't make the press evening, but they did host me to one a couple of nights ago, and I was really delighted to see that they are now one of the most popular buffets in town - and I'm not just saying this because they invited me. Believe me, I've been known to give them my frank unadulterated opinion about the taste and quality (never quantity, which is always amazing) of the food there, and it's not always been positive, especially when they first started three years ago. However, they are well aware of one thing: my carping has always been with their interests at heart. For that price, BOGOF or not, they MUST give the best. And they ARE really now one of the best in town. Not many other places give you such good quality food.

And giving credit where it's due, they have taken my comments to heart, and I'm delighted to report that the other night was just as good. Their fresh seafood is second to none - stacks of prawns and slipper lobster, literally - and there is a good choice of sashimi, Indian, local, and western, not to mention their "Theatre Kitchen", where you can select whatever is on offer for your delectation and have it wok'ed or fried up in front of you, all washed down with freshly-squeezed juice (although this costs extra).

Their satay is not bad, and the northern Indian curries are quite authentic. Of course their desserts are outstanding, and it's even got a die-hard pudding fan like me beat, there's just so much of it! I'm delighted to be able to be so whole-hearted in my praise for them, and I think they have become one of those places Penangites head for when they want a really special buffet.

The Spice Market Cafe's Buy 2 get one free is available until 17 December at RM104++ per adult (RM52++ per child), 6.30-10.30pm Mondays to Thursdays, so take advantage of this while you can - we are! This is in conjunction with the Feringgi Grill and their poolside Pinang Bar where if you order two mains you'll get a third on the house.