Garden Cafe

Special thanks to Golden Sands Resort for extending this food review invitation.

Garden Cafe is one of the two main restaurants in Golden Sands Resort; the other is Sigi's Bar & Grill. Set in an open air setting, Garden Cafe serves Chef's Seafood Buffet Dinner every Friday and Saturday evening.

Grilled seafood is the main attraction in the buffet. Most diners are unashamed to go for second helpings of slipper lobsters. Other marine delicacies from the sizzling griddle are flower crabs, mussels, squids and fish.

As for diners who enjoy chilled seafood, there are cooked prawns, mussels and yabbies on ice. Meanwhile, guests who wish to make their own salads will find a variety of fresh produce and dressings.

Deep-Fried Soft-Shell Crabs are served with Thai-style chili sauce, which carries a hint of sweetness. I cannot recommend this dish highly enough.

Other cooked dishes include Wok-Fried Chicken With Black Bean Sauce, Pan-Fried Fish Fillets With Dill Cream Sauce, Braised Tofu With Minced Chicken, and Roasted Baby Potatoes With Herbs. These dishes are kept warm in cast iron pots.

The pasta station is where pasta dishes are sautéed to order. Pasta choices are fettuccine, fusilli, capellini, conchiglie and penne. Available sauces are carbonara, bolognese and arrabbiata.

Seafood Curry is served at the Asian noodle station. Diners can select ingredients like fish, squids, prawns, eggplants (brinjals), okra (lady's fingers), tomatoes and shallots.

The buffet spread covers deep-fried items like chicken nuggets, samosas, fries, calamari rings and onion rings. Condiments such as barbecue sauce, tartar sauce, horseradish sauce and Dijon mustard are provided.

Soup choices this evening are Crab Meat Soup and Seafood Bisque. The former contains mushrooms and eggs. Artisan bread and bread rolls are provided to go with the soups.

Moving on to pastries, one's sweet tooth is satiated with confections like marble butter cake, strawberry sponge cake, cheesecake, apple crumble tart, coffee Swiss rolls and cream puffs.

Other delectable desserts are rainbow sponge cake, chocolate fudge cake, crème caramel, pandan panna cotta, mango pudding, fruit jelly and more!

Finally, cleanse your palate with cut fruits like watermelon, pineapple, honeydew and oranges. Ice cream is available too.

The Chef's Seafood Buffet Dinner is priced at RM128.00 net per adult and RM64.00 net per child. For each paying adult, one child below the age of 6 dines for free! This promotion is one of Golden Sands Resort's initiatives to provide family-friendly hospitality.

Name: Garden Cafe
Address: Golden Sands Resort, Jalan Batu Ferringhi, 11100 Batu Ferringhi, Pulau Pinang
Contact: 04-886-1911
Business hours: 6:30am-10:00pm
Website: http://www.shangri-la.com/penang/goldensandsresort/dining/restaurants/garden-cafe
Coordinates: 5.47657 N, 100.25110 E
Directions: Driving from George Town and upon arriving Batu Ferringhi, Golden Sands Resort is located on the right at the first traffic junction. The main entrance to the hotel is located slightly after the junction. Garden Cafe is located on the west wing just beside the lobby.