Maria's SteakCafe 1 Powerhouse x Wholly Spirits

Maria’s SteakCafe 1 Powerhouse x Wholly Spirits

Words: Monica Tindall
Photos: Han Sen Hau

Maria’s SteakCafe 1 POWERHOUSE in Bandar Utama offers views unlike any of their previous outlets. Located on the top floor, Skyforest, of the building, a curved floor-to-ceiling window provides panoramas of the city, literally offering an elevated dining experience. Besides having a reputation for serving affordable quality steaks, the steakhouse regularly spices up the menu with seasonal promotions and wine pairings. However, tonight, we’re exploring a different culinary avenue with a five-course meal partnered with boutique liquors supplied by Wholly Spirits.

Wholly Spirits Paired Steak Dinner 1 Utama — Maria’s SteakCafe 1 POWERHOUSE

Maria’s SteakCafe 1 POWERHOUSE x Wholly Spirits

CEO of Maria’s SteakCafe, Angeline Tan, welcomes us and shares her excitement for their first-ever spirits pairing session. The menu is a line-up of their signature and most-loved recipes, matched with boutique liquors carefully selected by the Wholly Spirits team.

Amanda Wan, ace mixologist and consultant for Wholly Spirits assures us that each serve will be tasting portions rather than full serves. She jokes that this way we’ll enjoy and remember the meal instead of ending up on the floor halfway through. All of the spirits featured are exclusively available from Wholly Spirits, and on the night of the dinner for the public, October 20, will also be available at a special price.

Starter

Two Scallops from the USA are served with a rich tomato salsa cooked with olive oil, garlic and green olives. The scallops are plump specimens, golden on the edges and tender inside. Isle of Harris Gin makes a fantastic pairing, mirroring the maritime flavours of the food in the glass. It’s an organic label infused with sugar kelp (the label and the gin itself), is crystal clear and has a delicate nose. In the mouth, we find even more florals, a nicely balanced palate and a lovely long finish.

Mains

Seafood Aglio Olio sees spaghetti tossed in olive oil, garlic and chilli flakes. It’s a tasty balance of oil and spice, given a protein boost with calamari, prawns and mussels. The pasta is accompanied by a Sesame Sour, a signature Maria’s SteakCafe cocktail. The sweet bourbon base tempers the light heat of the chilli in the pasta. We also find an enticing butteriness in the glass enhanced by the vegan egg replacement, creating a foamy top. A peanut brittle garnish is both nostalgic and a sweet and cheeky little sweet crunch between courses.

We move from the sea to the land with the N.Z. Lamb Cutlet with mint sauce. With every bite, we understand why it’s been a signature since opening. The lamb has a tasty crust, and the mint sauce is an excellent balance of sour and herbaceous. The Irish Redbreast Lustau Whiskey is known for its soft, approachable elegance. A finishing in sherry barrels adds complexity to the flavours, which do well with the meatiness of the lamb.

The last of the mains, grilled Australian Wagyu MB7 Ribeye, lives up to its reputation with its dry rub and caramelised crust. The slightly sweet rub has served to create two camps of customers: those who adore it and those who detest it. Fortunately, those who are enamoured by its mix of sweet and savoury combo remain at the top and repeatedly return just for this order. Simple companions of sliced potato on creamed spinach and crispy onion skin add some veg to the meal.

We turn to a glass of Ardnamurchan AD/10.22 Madeira Cask Whisky for the beef. The spirit spends the first five years in Bourbon barrels and its final year in Madeira casks. Only 5781 bottles were produced of this particular drop, and the very last ten bottles have been reserved for Maria’s SteakCafe 1 Powerhouse x Wholly Spirits pairing dinner for October 20, 2023. The remaining bottles will be available for purchase at a special price on the night of the dinner itself. So, if you’re a whisky lover and looking for a unique opportunity to secure a rarity, book your seat!

Dessert

To end, Maria’s SteakCafe at 1 POWERHOUSE presents their beloved Prune Cake. It’s moist, gently sweet, and is a partner to my favourite pairing of the evening, Samai Kampot Pepper Rum. Former students of Escuela Campo Alegre, where I worked in the late 90s in Venezuela, are the producers of this Cambodian rum! Personal connection aside, it’s an incredible drink with a soft thread of the famous Cambodian pepper, adding interest to the mildly sweet, dark rum. Partnered with the prune cake, it gains in complexity, turning what couldn’t have been just a pleasantly sweet conclusion into something we will remember for years to come. If you’re a planner, consider making the duo this year’s Christmas dessert. They’re fantastic together.

Maria’s SteakCafe 1 Powerhouse x Wholly Spirits Dinner

The exclusive pairing dinner event will take place on October 20, 2023, at 7 p.m. at Maria’s SteakCafe’s 1 POWERHOUSE in Bandar Utama and is priced at RM 380++ per person. For reservations and more information, visit www.mariassteakcafe.com or contact Maria’s SteakCafe at +6012-902 0869.