Eastern and Oriental Hotel, or commonly also known as E&O Hotel in Penang has always been a prestigious and elegant place for any event or occasion. Be it the dining experience or the hotel stay experience, the standard will be assured. To usher this coming Lunar New Year of of Fire Monkey, both Sarkies Corner and Sarkies at E&O Hotel will be hosting Chinese New Year Steamboat Buffet and Gong Xi Fa Chai Buffet Dinner respectively. For those looking forward to a simpler Chinese New Year rather than the hassle to prepare and cook, you can always rely on E&O Hotel.
Chinese New Year Steamboat Buffet Dinner will be available at Sarkies Corner from 7 February to 9 February, 7 pm-10.30 pm, priced at RM88 nett for adult and RM44 nett for child. Limited seats are available as it is only able to accommodate a maximum of 80 pax only.
There are 3 types of soup base to choose for the steamboat, the 3 options are Chicken, Tom Yam and Herbal soup. Among these 3 options my personal preference is the Herbal soup base as the soup was packed with flavours of Chinese herbs and the aroma of the soup was very nice. Although the soup was cooked with herbs, it tasted just nice and not too overwhelming. Not to mention that it is quite healthy in terms of replenishing our body’s nutrients and energy.
One of the highlights of this steamboat at E&O is the wide selection of sauces to accompany the steamboat.
Sauces: Homemade Special Chili Sauce, Coriander Oyster Garlic Sauce, White Radish Spicy Sauce, Sweet Sauce, Tomato Sauce, Chili Sauce, Peanut Sauce, Cut Red Chili, Chopped Garlic, Chinese Parsley, Garlic Oil, Dark Soy Sauce, Light Soy Sauce.
Meat/Eggs: Sliced Beef, Sliced Lamb, Chicken Meat, Sliced Duck, Fresh Eggs, Quail Eggs.
Seafood: Prawn, Brown Cutter Fish, Fish Maw, Sea Cucumber, Salmon Fillet, Baby Squid, Red Snapper, Flower Crab, Green Mussel, Crab Stick, Bamboo Mussel, Top Shell (can), White Promfret, Crab Claw, Sea Asparagus (can), Teochew Fish Dumpling, White Fish Ball, Stuffed Red Chili with Fish Paste, Stuffed Bitter Gourd with Fish Paste, Stuffed Egg Plants with Fish Paste, Vegetable Fish Ball, Stuffed Bean Curd Skin with Fish Paste, Sui Kaw, Bean Curd, Bean Curd Skin, Deep Fried Wanton.
Mushroom/Noodles: Shimeji Mushroom, Shitake Mushroom, Enoki Mushroom, Abalone Mushroom, Yellow Noodle, Koay Teow, Bee Hoon, Glass Noodle, Udon Noodle.
Vegetables: Tang Hao, Long Cabbage, Chinese Spinach, Nai Pak, Local Choy Sum, Iceberg Lettuce, Local Lettuce, Siew Pak Choy, Leek, Carrots.
No doubt the preparation of steamboat is easier compared to other types of cooking, the ingredients play an important role to determine the taste of the soup.
One of the tips to cook a delicious and flavourful steamboat is to place in meat, seafood and vegetables in the pot and let it boil for 10 minutes to get the best taste.
Desserts: Egg Tart, Chinese Tea Chiffon Cake, Semolina Almond Cake, Festive Cookies, Red Bean Glutinous Rice Ball Soup, Mango Pudding, Assorted Pastries (Selection of 6), Fresh Tropical Fruits.
Semolina Almond Cake – The taste of the semolina cake was packed with almond flavour while the texture of the cake was soft and fine. It was a great master piece.
Mango Pudding – The taste of this mango pudding was quite standard and nothing too fancy. The pudding was surrounded by fresh mango cubes and topped with peeled mandarin orange slices for an added tangy taste.
Chinese Tea Chiffon Cake – The chiffon cake was baked with Chinese tea as one of the ingredients, then topped with fresh cream, blueberries and mandarin orange.
Festive Cookies – The sight of these festive cookies in the jar which consisted of love letters and pineapple tarts always reminds people that Chinese New Year is just around the corner.
Egg Tart – The crispiness of the crust made this mini egg tart so special until you can’t seem to stop eating them.
Red Bean Glutinous Rice Ball Soup – This is my type of dessert. I love this dish as the red bean glutinous rice ball soup was served hot and together with this soup were some crispy yam cake. These two make the perfect dessert combination as the yam cake was crispy on the outer layer and soft with yam filling inside. When dipped the yam cake into the hot red bean glutinous rice ball soup, only one word can describe the feeling – divine!
Chinese Tea is complementary for the Chinese New Year Steamboat Buffet Dinner at Sarkies Corner.
On the other hand, Gong Xi Fa Chai Buffet Dinner is available at Sarkies from 7 February to 13 February,7 pm-10.30 pm, priced at RM133.30 nett for adult and RM60.95 nett for child. For free flow of wines and beers, just add on RM66 nett per pax.
Yee Sang is a must item in Chinese New Year banquets . For a table with minimum of 6 pax and above, you can request the Yee Sang to be prepared specially for your table (request upon booking). Baby Abalones will be available as an add on with extra charges.
The addition of baby abalones to this yee sang made the whole dish so unique as we hardly could get this exclusive add-on in other restaurants.
Braised Soya Chicken with Black Mushroom – It is a typical dish that will be available in the list of dishes during Chinese New Year. For this dish, it really reminds me of my granny’s cooking. It is a nostalgic and classical type of dish.
Individual Steamed Herbal Soup – Individual pots of herbal soup has been steamed for long hours and served individually. Each pot was packed with flavours and herbal aroma.
The rest of the dishes included in Gong Xi Fa Chai Buffet Dinner are listed below (clockwise):
- Lotus Rice with Chicken Meat and Mushroom
- Steamed Fish with Nyonya Sauce
- Sauteed Seasonal Vegetable with Two Treasure Mushroom
- E&O Roasted Duck
- Sea Treasure Seafood Soup
- Wok Fried Prawns with Oat and Butter
Overall, the quality and taste of steamboat and buffet at both Sarkies Corner and Sarkies is good and the options of food are aplenty. For those looking for hassle-free Chinese New Year meals, you can always rely on E&O for the quality and taste.
Editor’s Review (5 Stars Rank):
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Quick Facts:
| Family Friendly |  |
| Parking | |
| Pork Free | |
| Alcohol | |
| Credit Card | |
| Smoking | |
| Reservation | |
| Private Room (Private Area) |  |
| WIFI Available | |
Operation hours: 11:00am – 12:00am (7 days a week)
Contact: 604-222 2000 ext 3177
Address: Eastern & Oriental Hotel, 10, Lebuh Farquhar, 10200 Penang
GPS: 5° 42′ 33.46″ N, 100° 33′ 58.91″ E