By Carmel Dominic

When foodievstheworld was invited to review Ante’s brand new high-tea menu at their One Utama branch, we were expecting a three-tiered stand of cakes, assorted finger sandwiches, pastries, scones with jams and maybe some in-house baked cookies accompanied with a pot of tea. But, to our pleasant surprise, this spread was entirely different.

There were only 3 plates in front us and for a fraction of a second, I was skeptical about the menu. One plate held French croissants, the second had several cubes of smoked duck and slices of Cured Spanish Ham complemented with a bowl of fresh roasted baby tomatoes and black olives. The final plate had two varieties of cakes. And of course, a steaming pot of Earl Grey tea to tie up the menu.

Calvin Khan, the restaurant manager at the 1 Utama branch, walked us through the menu and I asked him why the croissant did not come with butter. He assured me that the croissants were buttery enough. Apparently, this is how the French make them; keeping the buttery moisture on the inside of the pastry.

The moment I took a bite out of the croissant, I was transported to food heaven. Calvin did not lie. The croissant was buttery on its own and I could taste the butter in every mouthful.

Traditionally, meats are not served for high-tea sets, but at Ante, they aim to please. Ante, known for its divine pork dishes (having been awarded TimeOut KL's best meats!), and as such, they decided to add the Cured Spanish Ham in the high-tea menu.

To complement the slices of ham, is the smoked duck. This is a winning and successful marriage of meats for a high-tea set. The duck was succulent and seasoned to taste, and thoughtfully cubed into bite-size pieces.

The two cakes were Strawberry Shortcake and Lemon Poppy Seed. At this juncture, it has to be said, (because, it would be unfair of me not to mention) that the shortcake is made in-house and the recipe belongs to one of Ante’s own. The smooth and fluffy vanilla cake, the light cream that lovingly holds in place the two layers of sponge cake together and the sweet, sweet slices of strawberries that is between the layers of the cake, mashed together with the cream makes this cake nothing short of magical. My fork went through the cake in one smooth scoop, which means the cake itself is fresh and light.

There really isn’t much to say about this cake except that it was perfect. An absolute must-try.

The Lemon Poppy Seed cake was equally good (though I am very biased towards the shortcake). However, the lemon cake did not have an overbearing taste of lemon and the sugar glaze on the top was just right. It wasn’t too hard and still held on to the cake though I had sliced the piece apart. A very good sign, I must say, because I like every bite to have some glaze. This cake plays off very well with the shortcake. Another worthy combination by the passionate people at Ante.

Patrons should be aware that this high-tea menu is only available at Ante’s branch in the 1Utama shopping mall. There are two sets available for this menu; a set for one (RM30) and a set for three pax (RM108).

Ante also has a Happy Hour promotion that begins at 3PM available at its 1 Utama outlet. What goes well with the high-tea set and is pleasantly refreshing is the Hoegaarden Rose, which is not easily found in Kuala Lumpur just yet.

But if beer is not up your alley, I would recommend trying their Sangria. Ante’s Sangria is made with Chilean red wine, ice cubes and slices of oranges and green apple and finished off with a healthy dash of lemon juice. The alcohol content is not heavy particularly if you’re going to consume alcohol in the afternoon and it’s a great beverage to have on a hot day. A glass of this fruity goodness is priced at RM15 (during happy hour) and if you are meeting up friends, you can choose to have a jug at RM52.

Ante One Utama Lot F346, First Floor, Rainforest, New Wing, One Utama, Bandar Utama, Petaling Jaya, Selangor. Open Daily from 10AM-10PM

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