Enter Aloft, the latest hotel in Kuala Lumpur under the Starwood group (another place for your points). This rather funky looking hotel is situated right next to KL Sentral (read: convenient) and has recently opened its door to the public. We got a little tour of the hotel last weekend, trying out their F&B outlets: Nook and Mai Bar.
Our first stop was of course to fill up our tummies at Nook, where the dinner buffet is priced at RM78++ (pork free but serves alcohol).
The buffet spread might not be massive, but it offers enough varieties to the diners, starting with some lovely cold starters.
Some seafood for you perhaps? Abundance of smoked salmon, huge king prawns and mussels for you to choose.
These tangy, refreshing salads compliment the cold seafood. And if you want more greens, there’s a salad bar right next to this.
Let me show you my very healthy first plate.
For a little bit of decadence let’s walk through the hot food sections.
I was excited about the cheese sticks, though they have turned cold and soggy sitting there for a while. Fish was cooked with an orange sauce which was provided that extra zest to my palate, also a bit cold but forgivable. I skipped the Chicken and Potatoes to save stomach space.
All the curries were pretty good, especially that Lamb Masala. Bit on the salty side so be sure to wash down with plenty of those fragrant biryani rice.
Interesting, the buffet spread features Sarawak Laksa (also available as Ala Carte option) where you pick and choose your own toppings and types of noodles (authentic Sarawak Laksa has rice vermicelli only though) then leave it to the chef to cook. A tip: forget about these tiny shrimps and add the big prawns from the cold seafood section instead.
Strangely enough the broth has a distinctive sweetness (excess sugar?), rendering it less than authentic. Another minus point for drowning out the rempah with too much coconut milk (santan). Though the basic flavours are there.
Nook also offers Ala Carte items and the beef burger was sent to us in all its meaty glory. The brioche bun was buttery and fluffy, however the patty was too tough for our liking, even though a nice smoky char-grilled flavour was achieved.
Their rendition of Nasi Lemak might be on the dry side but I love the aromatic rice, adding lemongrass was a nice touch. The chicken might have been in the deep fryer for longer than it should but the flesh remained juicy and tender. I would prefer a bit more sambal, and less of the rubbery squid.
Of course, there has to be some space for desserts and I’d say we made full use of the gorgeous spread.
These grabbed my attention first and I liked the airy sweet sponge, with a nice balance of cream frosting.
I’m not usually a meringue fan but these pairs really well with the tartness of the strawberry compote. Delicious. The banana tart was pretty good too.
We adjourned to Mai Bar on 30th floor for their signature cocktail, the “Out of this world” Mai Tai.
Trippy blue and red lights, with Tiki totems dotted throughout. It also features a breathtaking view of an infinity pool and KL skyline, though my camera failed to capture the beauty.
The Mai Tais are served in these huge grinning (or is that a grimace) Tiki Totem Mugs. Featuring rum as the main alcohol with mixture of fruity concoction, this is a drink for those with a sweet tooth. For those who are after a nicely chilled pint (or wine) they offers pretty good Happy Hour rates too.
We hung out at the bar for a little while, and went on our merry way after a few beers.
Kelly Siew Cooks 
love the cute tiki totems for the bar mugs! very distinctive 😀
Yeah! Bit heavy to hold but nice to look at. Hehe did you like the Mai Tai?
Must say that the Mai Tai was nicely cold though a tad too sweet for my liking:D Absolutely love the view!
Yeah I think maybe up the rum ratio or more ice would be nice. Hehe
Love thos emugs. Food looks great too.
The mugs are adorable indeed. The food was ok, decent though for the price of buffet.
I like them lights at Nook! Very pretty.
Yah I am a sucker for pretty lights. 😀
Hi Kelly! Sounds like a very enjoyable night out!
The company was good enough. 🙂
The rainbow cakes caught my attention too…. 😀
So pretty right? Rainbow cakes seems to be really popular now.
Haven’t had buffet for long time! Two of us normally won’t go for buffet since we can’t eat much; unless with a group of friends. hehehe.
Yeah, I had 2 plates (the hot dish i basically had one bite each dish) plus small bowl of laksa and I was full already. Hehe
love their bacon on the burger 🙂
I’ve missed the dining buffet scene in Asia. It never is quite the same here and the spread is really minimal! I can’t wait to eat hotel food!!
Places like Langham hotel does do very good buffet but of course, they don’t usually have good variety of Asian dishes. The Ramadan buffets here especially are crazy!
I missed this event cos I wasnt feeling well that day… looks really nice! I m visiting this tonight… lol…. looking forward to this… 🙂
Ooh. Just don’t have too high expectations ok? Let me know what you think about the Sarawak Laksa. We gave a feedback to hopefully they have taken it onboard.
Rainbow sponge looks so much fun! I want to make one now! 😛
Make one! 😀
Hi Kelly,
I’m attracted to the plate of bright and colourful cakes too! RM 78++ for pretty reasonable for such a good spread of food, despite that some of the food is cold and not as good as you expected.
Zoe
Yeah can always skip the not so good dishes for the better ones. 🙂
at first i was wondering why alcohol isnt served at nook..i then realised that they have a bar upstairs. The colours of the rainbow cake are so sharp!
They probably haven’t obtained their liquor license yet, but I heard they are willing to bring wine from another outlet over.
oh yes, i’ll always go for the seafood and salad too and I love capers either! 😛
Yeah! Best part of the buffet, it would be perfect with oysters too!
You have created a light refreshing and pretty salad, what is there not to like?
Hehe I knew this was for the noodles salad, Aunty Lucy! 😀
Oops the above comment is for your latest post. Hehe being “Aunty Lucy” again. LOL!