At the New Rebung

Restoran Rebung had moved. They were no longer located at Lorong Maarof. Since the New Year Day, they are now located on the roof of a car park block right opposite the main entrance of the Police Headquarters in Bukit Aman, right in the middle of Tasik Perdana.

At least that solved their parking problem!

The unmistaken image of Chef IsmailThe logo and theme remained the same, but notice the particulars has changedCertainly parking is not going to be an issue from now on ...My Mum was leaving for Sungai Petani with my Aunt this afternoon and I was asked to sort out their transport to KL Sentral. So, we decided to have lunch as well, and knowing how fond my Mum and Aunt for Chef Ismail, we called the restaurant number only to be told that they have moved.

Determined, we went on to find where the new venue was. It turned out to be rather straight forward. We drove towards the Police Headquarters and looking around, we stumbled on a huge banner of the restaurant. True enough, it was on the fifth floor of a new car park complex - so new that they have yet to start charging the entrance fee yet.

I think the new space is more spaciousMy Aunt making her selectionMore room outsideAnd of course, there was space for karaokeAfter parking, we took the lift to the roof where the restaurant more or less occupied the whole floor. They have a huge kitchen, both indoors and outdoors seatings - indoors was better since it can get really balmy in the bright sun at a roof of a carpark - complete with a stage where the chef was known to belt a tune or three!

We sat down for a buffet lunch, and they had selections - the mains - in the indoors as well as tit bits at the stalls outdoors. I was sure that there would be green shrubs and herbs lining the whole restaurant as time goes by. There were also private rooms which I was sure would be popular in the future.

His signature on the platesThose were not for take-awaysDetails of the new placeThe food items more or less remained standard and as usual of high quality. And Chef Ismail himself was on hand to welcome the guests when they walk in or left, turning on his charms. Despite being in operation for less than a week, the place was full when we there this afternoon. Definitely will be coming again in the future. The cost? Anita paid today, so I wouldn't know ....

Restoran Rebung

Photo with the owner, Chef IsmailIt was my Mum’s birthday yesterday. She wanted a nice Malay restaurant to have dinner at and after much pondering, Anita came up with the idea of booking a table at Restoran Rebung. The one owned by a celebrity chef, Chef Ismail and the Angkasawan, Muszaphar Shukor. The hotel is situated at a couple of bungalows at Lorong Maarof in Bangsar, just round the corner from Bangsar Village. Lorong Maarof actually run parallel to Jalan Maarof, so getting there was easy. The hard part was getting a parking spot as there was no designated parking area for the restaurant.

It was raining heavily and getting there was rather slow as Julia - my sister - was driving the other car with my Mum and her children. Got there around 8.30 in heavy rain. With the earlier booking, we were given a room - a nice comfortable one I must add.

We were lucky as the owner, Chef Ismail was on hand to look after us, and he was at his charming best. Spending some time chatting with my Mum - she is a big fan of his - singing Happy Birthday to her and we were looked after very well indeed. The restaurant does buffet in the evening, although we a la carte was also available - at least to my boys. And the spread was authentically Malay and tasted like home-cooked meals. Very nice indeed.

The restaurant was only half full, that being a Monday evening and with the heavy rain outside. The ambiance was simple but cozy and homely. The restaurant itself was a couple of converted single story bungalow houses. There were sets in the lawn I an open garden concept - that was where the buffet spread was, and indoor dining, with air conditioning. There were function rooms inside which can easily seat at least 80 patrons.

The pick of the food was the satay, with a gorgeous peanut sauce. The sambal tumis that I had was not bad either. There were nice selection of Malay kueh and the bubur kacang was the best I had ever tasted. If you want and authentic Malay buffet in a nice cozy restaurant, nice food and frindly hospitality, I would recommend Rebung, no doubt about it. And there was an incident as well.

Irfan being all excited meeting his cousin went on to vomit out his dinner right in the middle of the room. Far from being rude, the waiters just came in with the napkins and mops, showed us where the wash area was. We got Irfan cleaned up and by the time we got back to our table, everything was cleaned up. I did not even have to say anything but apologise. The Chef then came over, brought Irfan some drinks and asked if he was feeling OK. Irfan proceeded to gobble down more satay and up and running before we knew it!

After an hour or so, the rain had subsided and it was time to go. Chef came over with some pulut for my Mum’s birthday and obliged for some photos. The price was also very reasonable. And my Mum really enjoyed the dinner and the hospitality.

Restaurant Rebung Chef Ismail, No 4-2 Lorong Maarof, Bangsar Park, 59000 Kuala Lumpur (Landmark: Dataran Maybank). Tel: Tel: 03 22832119. For more information, head to http://www.rebung.com.my/