29Bar could easily be missed amid the many bars in Sri Petaling, but this is one of the neighbourhood's more interesting hangouts, with a menu that offers incredibly hearty creations with East Asian flourishes. If your focus is on food as much as liquor, this new bar could be worth bookmarking for your next night with your buddies.
We could munch for hours on the parade of temptations that emerge from 29Bar's kitchen. If protein is your prime pleasure, the meaty marvels here include princely platters of fried chunky chicken wings made savoury with shrimp paste, saucily baked lamb rack that's extra-aromatic with black truffles, and Beijing dumplings plumply packed with minced pork, served in a style that befits a full-blown banquet, not merely a bar.
You could definitely have dinner at 29Bar even if you're not drinking - fried soft-shell crab and crispy baby crabs form a dynamic duo of crunchy crustaceans to order, while fried yuba with a Japanese-inspired sauce and enoki mushrooms with salt and pepper make up the fibre to round out the feast.
Like any modern bar that's worth its whisky, 29Bar boasts all the bottles you'll need, spanning Cognac to Champagne for Martell-fuelled merriment and Hennessy happiness. We appreciate how the bar has a chilled-out vibe that's free of overly loud music, so you can still enjoy conversations with your companions while sipping your premium blended Scotch.
29Bar is the sister outlet of Shun De Cuisine, a Chinese restaurant just one floor above the bar, so you can start your evening at the restaurant before heading downstairs. This is an interesting restaurant with seven elegantly outfitted private rooms of varying sizes, comfortable with conveniences such as karaoke facilities, ideal for intimate dinners in your own enclosed space.
Shun De Cuisine specialises in sumptuous cooking that's crafted to make a mighty impressive. The Hong Kong-style typhoon shelter lobster is a striking creation, a visually impressive upgrade from the conventional typhoon shelter prawns and crabs.
Fish also surfaces with a flourish - the dragon tabby is a great grouper, fashioned in two flavours, one with cereal and the other with salt and pepper.
Pan-seared ostrich meat with black pepper cream sauce is served in a humorous style, with a side of vegetables spilling forth from an empty wine glass. Pork is also a solid order, ranging from the classic crowd favourite of braised belly meat to Spanish iberico pork that promises the meat at its purest.
From the land to the sea, Shun De Cuisine's repertoire is comprehensive. Complete your exploration with Bawei chicken, baked cod fish with honey, and scallops in a golden-hued cream - something for everyone, with a special touch to every recipe.
All in all, 29Bar and the freshly revamped Shun De Cuisine, which both launched in early August, look like worthwhile additions to Sri Petaling's increasingly crowded F&B landscape. Many thanks to the team here for having us.
29Bar & Shun De Cuisine
1-1 & 1-2, Jln Radin Bagus 7, Sri Petaling, 57000 Kuala
Lumpur. Daily, 2pm-12am (29Bar)
Tel: Bruce 013-369 6688 / Joe 014-951 6461 (29Bar) or 03-90543908 (Shun De Cuisine)
