Au Jardin @ Penang

Michelin unveiled its Penang list in Dec 2022 and awarded two restaurants the coveted star – Restaurant au Jardin became one of the two recipients.

Inside a bus depot-turned art space sits this distressed building clad in corrugated metal panels. Restaurant au Jardin, a white table cloth French fine dining, became its occupant. However, the interior is miles apart from the exterior, boasting a modern and sleek look. 

Owner/Chef Su Kim Hock was named Tatler Dining’s Chef of the Year in 2023 and one of Malaysia’s first recipients of a Michelin star in 2022. Based in Penang, Su enjoys championing local artisans and farmers, aiming to empower these producers. He recognises the importance of nurturing the next generation of chefs and remains committed to Penang’s food industry, readily offering assistance to peers and sharing culinary knowledge.

Strolling into the anteroom, a bright and airy atrium, this is just about as close as you’ll get to a garden here, with some various plants and small trees set about in the attractive and minimalist entry. This is where you’ll be met by the staff, who will then welcome you into the intimate dining room. With only four immaculately set tables and a marble bar flanking its open kitchen, seasoned diners will intuitively know they’re in for a special treat before they even take their seats. 

There’s also a dress code: Diners are expected to embrace smart casual attire at a minimum, with a notable step up at dinner time. This is very different from casual smarts that most of Penangites are used to in this relaxed and tourist town.

Diners have but one option: the chef’s superb dégustation menu. The artisanal menu developed by Chef Kim Hock is built around passion in showcasing the freshest ingredients through simple but beautiful dishes that reflect both culinary tradition and creativity.

Amuse Bouche

The first of the three one-bite amuse bouche was a chicken liver parfait sitting on a sugarless meringue, topped with white wine vinegar gel and a wafer of crispy chicken skin with edible flowers from the gardens. Delicious.

The second bite was a croquetas of red capsicum topped with sea grapes. The smokey pepper in the deep fried, creamy croquettes was balanced with the umami from the umibudo.

The final bite was a tartlet of home cured duck with droplets of emulsion of anchovies oil and monkfish roe. A busy mouthful and the most intense flavours among the three.

Bread Service

The homemade Thosai bread with tomato chutney butter is always a highlight. The bread was made with a starter that is used for Thosai that has been cultivated since the start of the restaurant.

The bread has that sugary flavour of a Thosai. A crisp crust holds a spongy dense middle, paired with what seemed to be an unassuming heirloom tomato but was actually tomato chutney butter.

The chutney butter was ingeniously fashioned in a mould to assume its shape and then dipped in refined curry leaves blended with coconut oil for a punch of zesty flavours.

If that chutney butter was too much for you, the local churned butter was equally delicious.

The Humble Cabbage

Charred, Crisps, Lacto Fermented Cabbage Foam, Aquafaba Emulsion, Pulled Hericium Mushroom

The Humble Cabbage is everything but humble! The red and white cabbage has been subjected different cooking techniques – charred on fire, fermented, turned into a foam, made into a sorbet, and transformed into a crisp. A creamy white cabbage anglaise topped with a refreshing and slightly peppery cabbage sorbet, finished with smoked cabbage and red cabbage foam. 

The main attraction was hand-pulled Hericium Mushroom (also known as Lion’s Mane mushroom 猴头菇) in aquafaba emulsion. Hericium mushroom has a tender texture that mimics crab meat. Aquafaba is the liquid produced from cooking legumes which can be used as an egg white substitute. You have see it in action earlier – in the sugarless meringue.

The crisp was provided as a scoop to pick up the emulsion and foam. Very busy course but quite forgettable.

Cured Wild Caught Prawn

Braised Local Beets, Seaweed, Nasturtium, Fish Roe Emulsion & Horseradish Emulsion

Local prawn with fermented beetroot jelly strips, cold fish roe and horseradish emulsion with chopped chives, bits of seaweed and nasturtium for some peppery taste.

A nice little cold appetiser, would be perfect if the prawn used is sashimi obtain ebi or lobster 😉

Smoked Penang Cultivated Mussels

Charred Stink Beans, Ice Plant, Kaffir Lime Foam, Green Curry

This is the first time I had petai in a French fine dining restaurant. Stink beans, or locally known as petai, are an acquired taste. They have a pungent smell (that lingers for days after), but the flavours and texture are totally worth it.

This course took inspiration from Penang’s neighbour, Thailand, for some of the flavours and ingredients. – Charred Stink Beans, Ice Plant, Kaffir Lime Foam, Green Curry. You can almost imagine eating a Thai green curry with locally farmed mussels. The petai provided the added dimension to this innovative course.

Envínate ‘Benje’ Blanco, Canary Islands, Spain, 2021

The winemakers’ philosophy is simple: let each parcel fully express itself through traditional farming and wine-making methods. Right now there are four different projects under the Envínate umbrella: Lousas overseen by Alfonso Torrente in Ribeira Sacra, Táganan and Benje by Roberto Santana in Tenerife, and Albahra in Almansa by Laura Ramos and José Martínez. Planted at over 1000m altitudes, this expression of Listan Blanco has racy acidity and a zippy olive brine palate. A fascinating volcanic white.

While chatting with the chef about his inspiration of the mussel dish, he was sharing about the great produce they are getting in Penang, including fresh oysters that can be shucked and eaten raw. I was surprised, and to prove his point, he asked his crew to shuck one for me.

No, this is not Belon or Gillardeau from France. This is a locally farmed oyster from Penang. Warm water oysters are usually not used for shucking as they are prone to bacteria contamination. These oysters are breed under controlled environment and controlled diet, and go through a process called UV depuration processing where impurities/debris are removed before they are safe for consumption. Very delicious, good bite and satisfying liquor.

‘Our Penang Heritage Food’ Chicken Congee

Jasmine Rice Espuma, Chicken Skewers with Black Vinegar Glaze & Crispy Shrimps

The humble chicken congee gets a fine dining revamp. The different components of chicken congee are deconstructed in this modern take of the comfort food.

The first part of this deconstruction was a “chicken congee” espuma sprinkled with bubu arare. The espuma is made with Jasmine rice cooked in the style of a chicken congee and blended into a smooth consitency. It has the comforting chicken congee taste, but has baby food mouthfeel.

The skewer was made with a chicken feet. Minced chicken meat was packed around the bone and grilled like a tsukune using a black vinegar glaze. Crispy shrimps 虾米 were encrusted on the surface of the chicken meatball. Every bite was like a mouth of Hainanese chicken rice.

There’s a hidden surprise at the bottom of the “congee”, a raw egg yolk for you to dip the chicken into like a tsukune. This really brought me back to a yakitori-ya.

Cognac & Hay Aged Duck

Lapsang Souchong & Passionfruit, Pomme Purée, Yuzu Split Jus

A special note on the main course of hay-aged duck, of which hopefully some iteration is retained for future menus: the whole duck is aged, roasted, and then smoked in a wooden box with timothy hay. After the impressive smokebox presentation, the duck was whisked away for further processing.

After that, the sliced and plated smoked duck breast was presented with pomme purée, Lapsang Souchong and passionfruit gel. And then a stunning jus maison was poured alongside the duck, a reduction painstakingly made from 60 litres of duck bone and yuzu stock, simmered over three long days to yield just three litres of precious jus. To say this is a flavour-packed jus would be an understatement.

The herb rub on the duck skin was burnt and turned bitter. Although it could be compensated with the powerful sauce, the mouthfeel was something to be desired. The duck breast was tender and juicy and smokey, as it was properly infused with the hay smoke.

Trimbach Cuvée Frederic Emile Riesling, Alsace, France, 2015

This wine reveals a great aromatic complexity. Citrus, white flowers, ripe yellow fruits. The expression of the wine is large, rich and precise. This vintage is characterised by its power, richness, voluptuous volume and finesse. Perfect with oysters, langoustines, lobster, grilled fish or fish in white butter sauce as well as roasted poultry, dishes with chanterelle mushrooms and vegetables.

Magnum Sorbet

Watermelon & Beets, Pickled Watermelon Rind

Next up the palate cleanser called Magnum Sorbet, the ingredients to made these popsicle vary from time to time. Tonight it was made from watermelon and beetroot. Watermelon and beetroot were used for the sorbet that was dipped in coconut oil to form a thin crust to slow down the melting. A piece of pickled watermelon rind was decorated with edible gold provided the sparkle.

Underneath the popsicle was popping candy. The popsicle was accompanied with a compressed watermelon that has been infused with a bit of cinnamon taste.

It was quite fun to eat. The sorbet was really refreshing – I loved the frozen watermelon feel as well as the popping candy crackling away.

Aged Local AA Graded Dairy Cow

Jus Maison & Grained Mustard, Pomme Purée

Inspired by European — especially Spanish — culinary traditions that prize meat from older animals, fine dining chefs in the United States are now presenting the meat from retired dairy cows as a delicacy. Here in Malaysia, Chef Kim How worked with local dairy farmers to fatten these retired cows before they are slaughtered for meat. The meat is then aged in-house to get the right tenderness and flavours.

The resultant beef was delicious, tender and packed with flavours. While the marbling was not tip-top, the meat compensated with flavours. Try it to believe it, it’s the closest you can get in these parts of the world to naturally old cattle. The jus maison was made from reducing stock of chicken and ox bones from 60l to 3l, in the same painstaking process as the duck jus. The sauce was rich and smoky.

The rest of the plate was delightful as well. The pomme purée (mashed potato) was so good I couldn’t help but asked for more. Finished with pickled radish, Lapsang Souchong & passionfruit gel and a quenelle of mustard grain. Lapsang Souchong 正山小种 is a smoked tea from Wuyi region that gives a refreshing sweet aftertaste.

Envinate ‘Albahra’ Castilla, Spain, 2021

Meaning “small sea”, the Albahra from cult producer Envinate is a remarkably pure and bright wine bursting with fresh red fruits and incredible minerality. A blend of Garnacha Tintorera and the rare Moravia Agria, this is the perfect partner for a lunch of charcuterie and grilled meats.

Celeriac

Sablée Cluster, Fresh Celery, Goats Milk, Lemon Pâté de Fruits, Meringue, Celery Crisps

Emulsion of goat milk formed the base, followed by sablée crisps, topped with a quenelle of celeriac sorbet, and crowned with a beautiful crisp made from celery, surrounded by bits of calamansi fruit pate.

Firstly, it’s very pleasing to the eyes and that’s important for desserts. You eat with your eyes first. And that exactly that, the celery taste was pronounced and if you didn’t like the grassy taste of celery in the first place, this would not be the dessert for you.

Petit Four

I was hoping for a second dessert, but we came straight to the petit four. Jus like how we began, three small bites to round up a very satisfying dinner.

At first glance, it looked like any other dark chocolate wafer in a wrapper. The secret? The wrapper can be eaten too.

The next bite looked like a curry puff.

The “puff” was made with cotton candy. The filling included some sweet and savoury stuff. Literally candy crush.

Finally a sour hawthorn fruit pastille.

One More Course

Like all good fine dining restaurant, au Jardin also gives you a take-home gift to extend the dining experience, some to indulge in the next morning as an intentionally upcycled breakfast that kickstarts your day right.

Embracing their commitment to minimising waste, Hock’s Dog in the Box is a marvel of sustainability, crafted from flavourful meat or vegetable off-cuts. Savour this conscious snack tomorrow as a thank you for joining them on this journey to minimise waste and maximise flavour.

Elevating each bite with a medley of assorted pickles and lingering mustard remnants, Hock’s Dogs are unique to the mains that you ate the night before. The tomato brioche bun accompanying your dog undergoes a meticulous lacto-fermentation process, utilising the essence of surplus vegetables that might otherwise go to waste.

There you have it, one more bite from au Jardin. Rosie was eyeing on the hotdog the moment we took it out of the packaging. The sausage was really delish, I wished they would come up with a take-home version for the sausage.

Though not an everyday sort of price point for most diners, it is unquestionably solid value for money, considering the amazing quality of the food and service you’ll be receiving. Seasonal, local ingredients feature prominently, and the focus on the wellbeing of the staff translates directly to the personable, professional service they render. The skills of the kitchen team are, suffice it to say, on full display with every dish presented. A second star beckons.

Restaurant au Jardin
The Warehouse @ Hin Bus Depot
125 Jalan Timah, George Town, 10150, Malaysia
Tel : +60 12-428 9594

Visited May 2024

Michelin Kuala Lumpur and Penang Guide 1 Star 2023 (inaugural) – 2024