Wembley Cafe

This article is part of my Christmas 2019 compilation.

Special thanks to The Wembley for extending this food review invitation.

After a month-long hiatus from Penang, my next Christmas preview event is at The Wembley in George Town. To welcome the joyous holiday season, the hotel lobby is decorated with a Christmas tree and a reindeer sleigh to take photos in.

As for festive dining, Wembley Cafe is serving Merriest Christmas! buffet dinner on Christmas Eve. The price is RM145.00 net for adults, RM73.00 net for children, and RM102.00 net for senior citizens. Customers enjoy free flow of selected cocktails and mocktails.

Starting with appetizers, the Asian tapas section has quick bites such as money bags, sesame balls and satay.

The main highlight is obviously Roasted Turkey, which is served with sweet potatoes, chestnuts, vegetables, cranberry sauce and giblet gravy. As per tradition, the Roasted Turkey comes with chestnut stuffing and Yorkshire pudding.

One of the chafing dishes is Slow-Cooked Beef Ribs. Served au jus, the ribs are stewed for 12 hours until they become delightfully soft.

Meanwhile, Grilled Salmon is paired with citrus and herbs salsa. The salsa is simply tantalizing; its tangy taste complements the salmon's oily texture.

There are several Asian dishes at the buffet line too. For instance, Steamed Fish is flavored with aromatic Nyonya sauce.

Another scrumptious delicacy that should not be overlooked is Wok-Fried Mantis Prawns. The dish is cooked with dried chili for a hint of pungency.

Diners can help themselves to delectable slices of salmon, tuna and octopus sashimi. There are also several types of sushi at the Japanese section.

The pastry corner is endowed with a colorful assortment of Christmas confections. The Gingerbread House is meant for decoration, but diners can also sample bite-size gingerbread men. Other familiar cakes during this yuletide season include Christmas Stollen, Yule Log Cake, Christmas Fruitcake and Panettone.

The Black Forest Cake is given a personal touch with intricate icing on the sides. As the icing is made by hand, the cake is quite time-consuming to prepare.

French pastries come in several flavors like chocolate and green tea. Other festive treats are Christmas Cupcakes, Christmas Pudding and Cheesecake.

Crème Brûlée is prepared at à la minute counter. The vanilla-flavored custard is topped with a layer of caramelized sugar, and then garnished with strawberries and gooseberries.

Should customers prefer to celebrate Christmas at home, The Wembley offers Roasted Turkey for takeout. Christmas confections are also on sale at the Lobby Lounge.

To spread the joyous spirit of Christmas, The Wembley will be hosting Christmas carollers from Pusat Kebajikan Jiran Baik on Christmas Eve. In addition, Wembley Cafe has additional buffet sessions on Christmas Day, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.

Name: Wembley Cafe
Address: 183, Jalan Magazine, 10300 George Town, Pulau Pinang
Contact: 04-259-8123
Business hours: 24 hours
Website: https://www.stgileshotels.com/hotels/malaysia/penang/stgiles-wembley/wembley-cafe
Coordinates: 5.41311 N, 100.32989 E
Directions: The Wembley is located at Magazine Road (Jalan Magazine), within a stone's throw from 1st Avenue Mall. Wembley Cafe is located at Level 2 of the hotel. There is a multilevel parking garage at the hotel. Patrons to Wembley Cafe can get their parking tickets validated for free.