An exciting new venue for buffet lovers is KoChaBi Delights Buffet Dinner at Jazz Feast Restaurant, Penang, every Friday.
My octogenarian mom often complained that food nowadays has lost its KoChaBi (Hokkien for its original flavor). I couldn’t agree more.
Last week, I was in Kuala Lumpur. We had some nice grilled chicken, which looked perfect.
With one bite of the meat, I pushed my dinner away. Only the skin was seasoned, and the meat was tasteless.
KoChaBi Delight is the Jazz Hotel’s attempt to prevent the disappearance of local food cultures and traditions.
The Idea Behind KoChaBi Delight
General Manager of Jazz Hotel, Mr. Khoo Boo Lim, told our friends that he wants to coax Chef Bob out of retirement to showcase the lost KoChaBi flavors of our childhood.
I was delighted to hear the news last month. Mr. Khoo decided to name the Dinner Buffet KoChaBi Delight. What a wonderful idea!
Mr. Khoo said KoChaBi Delight is the Jazz Hotel’s attempt to prevent the disappearance of local food cultures and traditions.
What is KoChaBi?
Most of us can barely remember the original taste of Grandma’s food, which we took for granted. I, for one will feel that something is missing in the taste.
Yet, I am not quite able to pinpoint the missing ingredients.
The Slow Food Movement
This is what the Slow Food Movement, a global, grassroots organization founded in 1989, wants to counteract the rise of the fast life.
In the old days, food preparation takes time. Real cooking takes time.
This is not Grab Food when you key in your selection. The food takes 15 – 20 mins to prepare and another 15 mins to be delivered to your doorstep.
The KoChaBi Delights Buffet Dinner
You can find the selection of a normal buffet with highlights of traditional Hainanese Dishes prepared by Chef Bob Lee.
Soups
There are three selections for soups
• Slow Cook Chinese Herbal Soup
• Mushroom Soup
• Oxtail Soup
The Slow Cook Herbal Soup is rich with the herbal taste and is kept hot by steaming.
The Mushroom Soup is creamy and delicious.
I chose a full bowl to serve of Oxtail Soup.
The Oxtail Soup is a tasty, meaty soup with a strong beef taste.
It is hearty and deeply satisfying, cooked in bone broth with lots of carrots, potatoes, and celery.
I had the soup with crispy, crusty garlic bread.
This is a meal I would love to have on a cold rainy night in Penang.
Panggang Station
If you like seafood, the “Panggang Stall” serves freshly grilled squid, fish, kacang botol, eggplant, and corn straight from the grill. The sauce is spicy-sweet and tasty.
Hainanese Buffet Spread
These are the delightful Hainanese Classics with the traditional KoCharBi taste you won’t find in restaurants anymore.
• Char Har Lok (stir-fried prawns)
• Slow Braised Lamb with Okra
• Assam Pedas Fish
• Foo Yong Hai
• Loh Ark with Egg (Braised Duck with Egg)
• Stir-fried vegetables with Sliced Chicken and prawn Meat
• Chicken Pie
• Hainanese Chicken Rice
• Hailam Noodle
• Hainanese Chicken Chop with Sauce and Baked Potatoes
• Hainanese Spring Rolls (Chun Piah)
My all-time favorites that hit the spot are the Slow-Braised Lamb with Okra, Lor Ark with Braised Egg, and Chicken Pie.
Slow Braised Lamb with Okra
I first had Slow-Braised Lamb with Okra about 30 years ago at Penang Swimming Club.
The chef was Hainanese, and I remember the taste of this dish well.
This flavor-packed tender lamb and baby okra is a common dish in Malaysia’s Colonial period.
The secret to this recipe is the long, slow simmering that gently brings out the flavors.
The lamb is fork-tender and very flavorsome.
This is one of my favorites. Thank you, Chef Bob; it was quite a trip going back in time and remembering the old taste.
Slow Braised Lamb with Okra
Hainanese Chicken Rice
One of my absolute favorite meals is a lunch of Hainanese Chicken Rice.
Hainanese chicken rice is a dish of poached and seasoned rice served with chili sauce and cucumber slices as garnish.
Basic and simple, this poor man’s meal originated from migrant workers from Hainan province in Southern China.
Aren’t all Rice and Chicken created equal?
Actually no.
Chef Bob’s version of Hainanese Chicken Rice is a heavenly delight. The “White” Chicken is Perfectly poached and succulent.
I chose the “Gong Bak” (Meat for simpleton), as Chicken connoisseurs will call it.
The Chinese community would not eat breast meat as it is often too easy to cook it wrong, resulting in dry and miserably chewy meat.
The “Black” Chicken is deep-fried and encrusted with sesame seeds.
Both the Poached Chicken and Roast Chicken were perfectly cooked. The meat was moist, tender, tasty, and juicy.
The condiment, Garlic Chilli Sauce, accompanies Hainanese chicken rice and is mild, tangy, and garlicky.
Ginger Sauce is an important condiment. It is thick and yummy when you place a huge dollop on the chicken meat.
The Chicken Rice is cooked with a substantial amount of chicken fat, making the rice fragrant and flavorful.
It is delicious to eat on its own.
Hainanese Chicken Rice
Hainanese Chicken Pie
The Hainanese Chicken Pie is a dish unique to Penang.
It was invented by Hainanese cooks for their British masters in colonial Malaysia.
Most versions of Chicken Pie are made with a brown sauce, a mixture of soya sauce and Worcestershire sauce.
The Hainanese version is made in a white (Mornay) sauce.
This recipe uses only diced boneless, skinless, bite-sized chunks of chicken thighs baked with a puff pastry sheet.
The most delicious part of the pie is the baked puff pastry, which disappears very quickly.
Hainanese Chicken Pie
Hainanese Chicken Chop with Sauce and Baked Potatoes
This is a dish loved by kids and adults alike.
The Hainanese Chicken Chop is a deboned chicken leg and thigh, deep-fry until golden in an eggy batter.
This is served with rich orange gravy and littered with peas, corn, carrots, onions, and roasted potatoes.
Local Desserts
• Sweet Leng Chee Kang (Lotus Seed Dessert)
• Penang Famous Teochew Chendol
• Ais Kacang
• Bubur Gandum
• Bubur Kacang
• Mochi
• Sago Gula Melaka
Western Desserts
• Cakes
• French pastries
• Creme Brule
• Ice Cream
Chef Bob Lee is a Hainanese
Meeting the renowned Chef Bob is always a pleasure.
He is charming and jovial. He is coming out of retirement and working closely with the Jazz Hotel Chefs to treat us, Foodies, to great recipes.
Chef Bob followed with a cooking demo for Salt-Baked Fish, which is so easy to make and so funny that his cheerful banter had all the ladies in stitches.
He not only loves to surprise us! Chef Bob knows how to entertain with his comical live cooking demonstrations and sharing his memories of the good old days!
Chef Bob Lee
Review
As always, it is good to eat at a restaurant where the Chef knows how to cook the food right—from the selection of ingredients, cooking science to the taste, getting the essence of what makes good food great.
I’m very pleased to taste Chef Bob’s cooking.
I am sure Penangites who enjoyed their great buffet will make a beeline to taste the original taste again.
Do drop by for the promotion at Jazz Hotel every Friday until 31 October 2019.
If there’s a comment I will make about improving the buffet, it’s probably because I miss the old-style ice cream potong. Then again, I’m being wishful and greedy.
KoChaBi Delights Buffet Dinner Promotion
The buffet is priced at RM88 net per Adult while RM68 net for Senior Citizens (65 years old and above) and Children (4-11 years)
Latest Buffet Pricing structure:
3 years and below —> FREE
4 years – 9 years – 50% discount from the child price
10 years – 15 years —> child price
Senior Price – 55 years – 75 years
75 years and above 50% off Senior Price
Free Flow Beer
The promotion of buy 3 free 1 is valid until 31st October 2019
This Kochabi Delights Buffet Dinner is a great deal, so be fast and book your seat!
Jazz Feast Restaurant
Level 2, Jazz Hotel Penang, No. 1, Jalan Seri Tanjung Pinang 1
Tanjung Tokong, Penang
Telephone: +604-375 3333
Promottions : https://www.jazzhotel.com.my/promotions.html
