Monday, April 30, 2012

EST Steaks @ The Intermark

KL's latest steakhouse, EST, marks The BIG Group's unmistakable foray into fine dining; everything from the food and prices to the service and setting here strives to be taken seriously.

This small, sealed space beside Estate features barely 10 tables. It'll probably be polarizing _ some might call it intimately elegant; others may consider it intimidatingly elitist.

Meals here begin with what could become EST's famous complimentary signature starter _ empanadas _ hot, buttery and flaky, filled with ricotta cheese and broccoli.

The selection of steaks is compact but commendable. We sprang for two Australian rib-eyes, starting with this Ralph Meat Company grass-fed, 21-day-aged slab of succulence, satisfyingly bold in flavor (RM136++ for 310 grams).

Greg Norman rib-eye, marble score 5, 30-day aged (RM228++ for 325 grams). Teething troubles might be evident; our steaks came out medium instead of medium-rare, but the second time around, EST's maitre d' had no hesitation returning it to the kitchen and bringing us bloodier beef.

Other bovine beauties here include bone-in AACO Tomahawk Wagyu that could cost many hundreds of ringgit, but wine lovers will be relieved to hear that EST's list is wide and well-priced. A simple bottle of Beringer Stone Cellars Merlot costs a fair RM99++.

Smoke Boulavardier (RM58++; maker's mark, campari, martini rosso, lagavulin 16-years, lemon) and Gentleman's Cobbler (RM58++; hendricks, tio pepe, pineapple, lemon, orange, sugar).

Dessert drinks: Rum and Port Flip (angostura 1919, lbv port, egg yolk, sugar, nutmeg powder) and Tiramisu (ron zacapa 23, patron xo cafe, espresso, mascarpone cheese, chocolate sauce).

Beef-haters, take note: EST also serves everything from crab salads to scallop ceviches, barbecued calamari to beech wood-smoked salmon.

Meats here are seem to be char-grilled Latin American "asado" style on open fires for a smoky flavor. Servers offer a choice of sauces including chimichurri, horseradish and more.

EST @ The Intermark
Jalan Tun Razak, Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: 03-2163-5731
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45 comments:

  1. Heheheh Ulric and I were saying that you would be here on opening day (Sat!). Guess we were right!

    I saw the photo of the tomahawk that they posted.. looks great! The Ralph MC rib eye seems reasonably priced.

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    1. Baby Sumo: haha, good guess! ya, i think EST would be closed on Sundays, unfortunately, just like Estate and Tate. and i'm not sure if it's open for lunch =) i really did wanna try the tomahawk, but i think it would have cost at least RM800, for about one kilogram. too much for our budget! so had to settle for the Ralph MC rib-eye instead, heh =)

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    2. haha we were at Intermark on Saturday too, and were wondering if we would bump into you if we took a look at EST! Eh too much for your budget? I didn't know you had a budget! =D

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    3. Dropsofcontentment: drats, if only we had each other's phone numbers, we could have maybe texted each other and said hi in person :D heh, my budget totally rules out a steak that costs nearly RM1K. no matter how much i'm lusting after it! =)

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    4. Hahaha...looks like we were spot-on! :D

      If u wanna scalp with d RM8++ tomahawk, invite us to share the barbaric ritual with u lar :P

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    5. Ulric: heheh, will keep that in mind! just not sure if it's worth it for now =)

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    6. RM800 for a steak???? OMGGGGGGGG

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    7. Baby Sumo: i have the same reaction =) painful to pay that price...

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    8. Baby Sumo's reaction...classic :P

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  2. Empanadas = spanish karipap. hehehe

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    1. Michelle: exactly! curry puff culture rules around the world! :D

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  3. How were the steaks in comparison to like Prime or Gobo upstairs or the other older 'players?'

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    1. Timing: i think most folks will still stick to Prime for their ultimate steak fantasies. the cooking style here is interesting though. the steaks feel more barbecued. i'd place EST among KL's top five steak restaurants for now =)

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    2. Who r the other three?...if u dun mind me asking =)

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    3. Ulric: oops, i'm probably the wrong person to ask to rank steakhouses, since i normally don't splurge on the really pricey ones. but i think Dish at jalan tun razak is somewhere up there too =)

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    4. Ahhhh...shall try Dish soon =)

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  4. The Ralph MC rib-eye's price is pretty decent. Good, another beefy joint in town!

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    1. Pureglutton: beef is this year's pork! maybe, heh =)

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  5. Tiramisu in drink form, I'm liking that.

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    1. The Yum List: oh yeah, a lovable beverage indeed! :D

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  6. hmm i could opt for the seafood then .....
    n wine...

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    1. Simple Person: true, and there's chicken and lamb too :D

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  7. I always find that the tiramisu we had before aren't alchoholic enough. This one, though, sure pass! LOL

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    1. CK: hahah, true. and you don't need a spoon to eat this 'tiramisu' :D

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  8. I'll just drown my meaty sorrow in swine! LOL

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    1. Qwazymonkey: but just be sure you don't have a cow, man :D

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    2. I is monkey. I is no hap the cow.

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    3. Qwazymonkey: i is rabbit, so i and cow can live peacefully together and share the grass. and if you be turtle, at least you can say cow-abunga :D

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    4. But i don't wanna have "Lembu nak jaga"

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    5. Qwazymonkey: it's OK. you can just moo like jagger. unless you have udder things to do :P (and btw, dude in that video was cute)

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    6. Cute? That's udder nonsense. He was no more cute that the cow in the kandang.

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    7. Qwazymonkey: i'd rather milk him than milk the cow :P

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    8. That's why you should not be allowed anywhere near that calf

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    9. Qwazymonkey: as long as he's reached a certain age, i'd be happy to take the bull by his horns :P

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  9. Replies

    1. Bangsar-Babe: full of brilliant B vitamins and other vital nutrients! :D

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  10. I am liking what I see with the meats! And its good that they rectified their teething problem by promptly giving you another. Estate is very much a gem in the Intermark.

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    1. Missyblurkit: oh yeah, it'd be a shame to be eating meat that feels a little too overcooked. i think Tate is still the most popular hangout here, but here's hoping that EST and Estate and After Ate will all survive in the long run! :D

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  11. The place is really pretty. But they didn't get the doneness right for me....in fact, it ended up on the other end of the spectrum. :-S Anyhow, service was very good, and we had no problems getting the meat cooked right on the second try. However, I'm not sure how forgiving we should be considering the prices they charge.

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    1. Lemongrass: the kitchen does need to get its technique right. it's quite a shame if customers keep returning their steaks, both in terms of wasting good beef and cutting profitability. wonder what exactly is going wrong, but I think it's inevitable that they'd fix it eventually (cross fingers!) :D

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  12. Dish, EST, Rils, Prime.
    Where else for good steaks? :D

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    1. Tng: I almost forgot! Mandarin Grill at mandarin oriental! :D

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    2. Gotta try Dish first...hehe =)

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  13. wow the colours are pretty refreshing for a fine dining restaurant> girls should love it.

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    1. Eiling: yeah, it feels feminine! somewhat strange, for a steakhouse :D

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