Annual Dinner 2009

At the end of every academic year, it is customary for the Staff Club to organise an annual dinner at a local hotel. When I found out about the venue of the dinner earlier in the week, I had a lot to say. Why? It was the same venue where we held our convocation earlier on. The food and service were both not impressionable at all. Disappointing. Even the P said, "Hopeless!"

The President of the Staff Club assured me that they'd lodge a complaint about our previous function, and the hotel promised us that they'd provide better food and service this time. It was a slightly more expensive package than previously. RM5.00 difference per pax. That was not much of a difference. So, how good could they be? Hmn. I was still doubtful. I had even wanted to eat my dinner first before attending the event.

Ok. So were there any improvements this time? Well, I must say that there were. First up, the spread of food at the banquet table looked better than previously.

The salad

The desserts

The food? Well, for appetisers, I had Vermicelli Salad, Fern Salad, and Gado-gado.

My platter of appetiser

One spoonful of the vermicelli and the fern will make you jump up. Why? It's too spicy. Many of my colleagues left them uneaten. Well, I like the taste a lot. It's just that it's spicy beyond words. The soup, on the other hand, is ordinary.

Fish maw soup

One of the mains was Mee Goreng Ala Thai.

From the dome serving set, I had these : Nasi Goreng Kerabu, Indonesian Lamb Curry, Xian Tofu, Assam Ikan Pedas Ala Penang, Chinese Style Mixed Vegetables, and Vietnamese Fried Chicken with Pineapple and Peanut. Sounds very international, right?

The food was alright, I guess. Of all the food, I liked the Nasi Goreng Kerabu and the Indonesian Lamb Curry the most. The service for the VIP table also improved a lot. There were waiters and waitresses serving every course. And they served correct! Previously, what happened was that they served according to convenience, when in fact they should have served the VIP first and foremost! To me, it was really embarrassing for their part as they did even know the basics of waitressing! Common sense told me that it's only courtesy to serve the VIP first! Oh yes and this time, plates were also changed after each course.

For desserts, we were served creme caramel and a cake, which were too sweet for my liking. I liked the mango pudding a lot, though. There were also fresh cut fruits.

Creme caramel

Mango pudding

Cake

Overall, I think there has been vast improvement in the food and service, compared the previous function. I'm happy to note that the hotel management took our complaint into consideration and worked at improving their weaknesses. This morning, I heard some of my colleagues still complaining about the food. But then, we can never satisfy everybody, right?