buffet at taman sari brasserie

My department recently had our annual dinner at Taman Sari Brasserie, Istana Hotel. Each of us were given a budget of RM 50 (nia!) but we still managed to enjoy a buffet dinner at a 5-star hotel, thanks to Groupon! ^^ 

We were there right when it opened at 6.30pm sharp, hence there wasn't a bustling crowd in sight yet.

While their steamed mussels and prawn were delightfully fresh and sweet, it was kinda depressing i didn't get to eat any raw oysters that night. Not to mention, the only sashimi they served were those smoked ones and even those were extremely salty for any sane diner.

 They do have a little seafood BBQ corner by the poolside where we got to choose what we wanted for the chef to grill on the BBQ pit.

Gaik Bee was my trusty BBQ pardner.

 Wanna check out what i ate....? Here's a look for when my plate was a full one.

Variety wasn't much, and it was mostly Asian cuisine.

little glass contained salmon mousse which tasted like pink whipped cream

Doesn't my BBQ platter looks mouth-watering? You got that right, it's got just the 'look' part right.
Fish was so called ikan merah but turned out to be really rubbery!
Of all the rich seafood i selected, only the two la la were the sweetest and tastiest.
Could improve on its sauces too, which were all watery and bland.

I went Indian as well...

Desserts were my favourite part of the dinner. Their chocolate mousse and i were a match made in heaven! Creme brulee was just plain sweet.

 Then came our favourite time of the night where we did the thing we do best...posing for the camera.

This is one wacky and health- business-conscious pack of medical underwriters! Minus the boss who went off early and the camera-shy camerawoman.

Our 2 new SYTs, Charmagne and Vivian who just joined us about 2+ months ago. Glad to have the gals onboard!

The girls are seen attacking Danny. Guess they have had enough of him as he always seems to butt in into every single picture. hehe.

Don't ask why this awkward pose, but Moon here seems to be real happy about it.

Something else caught my eye at the dinner table - while AXA's tagline is 'Redefining Standards', this hotel is looking into 'Redefining Refinement'. Hmm, as profound as that sounds, i certainly hope they don't forget to revamp their food standards, especially when they're charging RM 90++ for a buffet ticket.

Just my two cents' worth. *_*