Eat in Dewakan @KDU Glenmarie (Malaysia) & Driving Direction

Dewakan is one of the very few fine dining restaurants in Malaysia, opened recently on March 2nd, by Chef Darren Teoh, who wrote the book Redefinition. 'Dewakan' comes from two Malay words - 'Dewa' means God and 'Makan' means to eat. In Dewakan restaurant, they honour the bounty and blessings given by the God to the land. As far as I know, Chef Darren Teoh always makes use of local Malaysian ingredients, exploring each and every possible ways to make the best dish out of it.

First, when we were seated, we were greeted by this pot of plant. In fact, it is our first snack. The twigs were edible, dipped in budu mayonnaise. Budu is a fish sauce product from Terengganu.

Edible Twigs

Budu Mayonnaise

Next, we were served with 'cucur' or a Malaysian fritter very much in the shape of Takoyaki. The fritter itself has a mild flavour from the spring onion, sitting on the kerisik dust, sprinkled with spinach powder and grated smoked duck, adding bold flavours to the humble cucur. 

Cucur

The last snack was a very light foamy mango curry soup, served as a palate cleanser before we go for the next course.

Mango Curry

Now the 10-course meal begins.

1. Razor Clams from Pulau Ketam, Rose Apples, Cashew Nuts, Tenggek Burung and Rose Apple Snow 

This is by far my absolute favourite dish. It's like eating a shaved iced dessert, then you get the fragrance from the rose apple and 'tenggek burung' leaves as well. The chewy texture from the razor clam and the crunch from cashew nuts gave an interesting mouthfeel to stimulate the palate and mind because then my brain identified that it was not a shaved ice dessert, it's something else! It's playful refreshing dish to start the 10-course journey.

Pulau Ketam Razor Clam with Rose Apple Snow

2. Roast King Oyster Mushroom, Green Curry Paste, Yogurt and Dried Mackerel Flakes

Again the play of flavour boosts when you eat the mushroom with all the other elements on the plate.

Roasted Local King Oyster Mushroom, Green Curry Paste, Yogurt, Dried Mackerel Flakes

3. Black Glutinous Rice Congee, Thinly Sliced Super Tender Ox Tongue, Choy Tum, Soft Boiled Egg Yolk, Served with Mushroom Broth

Normally, I would imagine black glutinous rice as a sweet dessert, yet this dish utilises blacks glutinous rice in a savoury form. As a congee, I feel it gives a different texture, although it's not cooked until it's gooey soft, but the glutinous rice definitely gives a better bite if compared to a normal boiled rice. 

Black Glutinous Rice Congee with Ox Tongue, Choy Tum, Egg Yolk and Mushroom Broth

Before that, we were introduced to this vacuum brewer. It contains the mushroom broth, which was being heated through so that it goes up to the upper part of the brewer filled with a mix of aromatic ingredients such as coriander stem, spring onion, smoked garlic, mushroom stems and orange peel. This went for few minutes, letting the broth infused with all the aromatic flavours before it was poured to our congee. The best way to enjoy this congee dish is to mix everything together and eat it right away while it's still hot.

Mushroom Broth Infused with Aromatic Ingredients

4. Local Red Prawn with Prawn Tartar, Fiddlehead Ferns, Pegaga and Bunga Telang Oil 

This is my second favourite dish after the 1st-course razor clam. The star of the dish is the deep fried crunchy prawn head sitting on top of the prawn tartar mixed with the prawn head juice. Also the crispy fiddlehead ferns adds an interesting crunch while the pegaga leaves for the bitter earthy flavour. The prawn itself is cooked well, very lightly seasoned which is good. Also there's a blue bunga telang oil on the plate, but it's not very obvious.

Red Prawn, Prawn Tartar, Fiddlehead Ferns, Pegaga and Bunga Telang Oil

5. Charcoal Roasted Corn Fed Chicken Breast, Chicken Ragout Wrapped in Kaduk and Kailan Puree  

The lean chicken breast has a charred skin, eaten together with the robust flavour from the buah keluak sauce and kailan puree. What I like most is the presentation of the dish, it looks almost like the camouflage army pattern with the black color from the buah keluak sauce and the green from the kailan puree. The chicken liver ragout wrapped in kaduk leaves (very close to betel) is another exciting element of this dish.

Corn Fed Chicken, Kailan Puree, Buah Keluak Sauce, Chicken Liver Ragout wrapped in Kaduk

6. Steamed Pomfret over Tumeric Leaf, Chrysanthemum Garland, Water Chesnut, Salted Egg Yolk and Sweet Potato Crisps

Pomfret, a delicate fish usually seen in Chinese cuisine, finds its way to be presented on the Dewakan Restaurant's plate. The nicely steamed fish was elegantly sitting on the plate with the refreshing water chestnut foam which added a pleasant scent to it. The sweet potato crisps with the salted egg yolk puree, ulam and chrysanthemum garland is fun side to the dish.

Steamed Pomfret, Water Chesnut Foam, Sweet Potato Crisps, Salted Egg Yolk Puree

7. Confit of Lamb Breast, Spring Onion, Marsala and Onion Puree

The lamb breast confit is super tender and has a very strong lamb aftertaste. The sweet marsala onion puree, charred spring onion and purple spinach is a good balance to kill the strong lamb aftertaste. Personally I love it but I have to warn those who are not fond of lamb, this might not be the dish for you. 

Lamb Breast Confit, Spring Onion and Marsala Onion Puree

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• 8. Fro-yo, Rosselle Syrup and Daun Selom Oil

The 8th to 10th course of the meal are desserts. The 1st dessert course is Fro-yo, yogurt which was aerated and frozen, was a good continuation after the lamb dish. The sourness from the frozen yogurt helped my palate back on track to eat the next sweet course.

Aerated Yogurt, Rosselle Powder, Rosselle Syrup and Daun Selom Oil

9. Pulut Ice Cream, Gula Melaka Marquise, Sour Meringue

This is a very rich dessert I must say, the pulut ice cream is not overly sweet but it's got the gooey rich 'pulut' (made of glutinous rice) which gave an interesting mouthfeel and aftertaste. The sour meringue I find is good agent to tie the date biscuit sitting below together with the gula melaka (palm sugar) marquise.

Pulut Ice Cream, Gula Melaka Marquise, Sour Meringue, Date Biscuit

10. Smoked Chocolate Chantilly, Fried Banana Ice Cream, Nutmeg Syrup and Dill

I'm very glad to end the meal with the last course of dessert - fried banana ice cream with smoked chocolate chantilly which is my third favourite from the whole 10-course. The fried banana ice cream has the nutty fried banana flavour which I love. It tied well with the smoked chocolate chantilly and the crispy brick pastry. Dill and the nutmeg syrup added an interesting touch to it. 

Fried Banana Ice Cream, Smoked Chocolate Chantilly, Nutmeg Syrup, Crispy Pastry and Dill

Complimentary Coffee along with Dessert

With Chef Darren Teoh, Dewakan

I'm so glad to be one of the first guests to dine in Dewakan Restaurant on their first day of opening.

Dewakan is definitely a true fine dining restaurant in Malaysia that is worthwhile to check out. The 10-course lunch that I had is priced  at RM 175* which is a ridiculously decent price for this kind of fine food with all the very detailed preparation by the highly experienced team of chefs working in the kitchen.

*All info is correct at the time of this article was written although the pricing may change from time to time.

The Kitchen Team in Dewakan

The Dining Room

For more information on the menu and reservation, visit their website dewakan.my and more updates here Dewakan FB

Dewakan Restaurant

Lower Ground Floor

KDU University College, Utropolis Glenmarie (Google Map)

Jalan Kontraktor U1/14, Seksyen U1

40150 Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia

Phone: +603 5565 0767

Lunch: Monday-Friday, 12:00-2:30 pm
Dinner: Thursday-Saturday, 7:00-9:00 pm

The Dewakan Restaurant is located at the back end of KDU University College. Driving direction when you reach KDU:

1. Turn left to the KDU entrance gate. Then go straight and make a big L shape to the back of KDU.

 

2. When you see the green parking compound, just park there. Dewakan Restaurant is located at the very end of the establishment.