Topshelf TTDI — Restaurant in Kuala Lumpur

After hearing numerous glowing reviews about Topshelf, my partner and I eagerly chose it for our Valentine's Day dinner. Despite being informed that à la carte options wouldn't be available and a five-course meal would be served instead, we were open to the experience.

Our evening began with a bit of a stumble. Upon being seated, we found ourselves waiting for the attention of a waitress, despite having pre-selected our mains via WhatsApp as requested. It felt like an unnecessary delay given the exclusive menu for the night.

The pacing of the five courses, two of which were meant for sharing, left much to be desired. It took over 2 hours for the all 5 courses to be served, marked by noticeable tension among the wait staff and intermittent commotion from the kitchen which could be heard by all outside. This left us feeling uncomfortable and not something we'd like to experience on a "special" night.

Disappointment set in further with the lukewarm soup and the chilly and extremely dry dauphinoise potatoes accompanying the beef main course. As a fan of dauphinoise potatoes, I had built up anticipation for my partner to enjoy them, only to find them cold and unappetizing. As for the soup, by the time the accompanying bread came for the soup, the soup had turned cold.

Portion sizes were equally underwhelming. A lone broccoli floret alongside the beef, a scant few cherry tomatoes, and minimal strawberries adorned the burrata "salad." The shared dish concept fell short, leaving us questioning its classification as a salad.

The one course that truly delighted both of us was the dessert course. In fact, we found it so delightful that my partner quipped, "Maybe they should consider transitioning into a dessert shop!"

As the main waiter inquired about our dining experience, I voiced my concerns regarding the service. While apologies were offered, citing a fully booked restaurant and an upstairs event, it felt more like an excuse than a genuine explanation. Deposits were taken at the time for the booking, so we are sure that restaurant was well aware of the number of pax dining for the night.

Topshelf, you need to raise the bar. The evening's meal, far from inexpensive, left us feeling unsatisfied and hungry. Thoughtful menu planning, adequate portioning for shared courses, and improved staff training are essential. The lack of professionalism we encountered that night was deeply disheartening. It became increasingly apparent that the staff were woefully inexperienced and ill-prepared to handle both the size of the crowd and the demands of a multi-course dinner setting. This was also extended to the point of how the tables were cleared after a course.

For my partner, who isn't keen on multi-course meals, this experience has left a bitter taste. While I may entertain the idea of exploring your à la carte offerings, regrettably, you've lost his interest as a...

We had high expectations when we were recommended to Topshelf by a friend, but unfortunately, the experience was deeply disappointing. While the ambiance was pleasant, the overall service and food quality did not justify the premium price we were paying at about RM200+ per pax with drinks and all.

We preordered our five-course meal as requested by Topshelf and arrived promptly at 7 PM as per our reservation. The evening started reasonably well with the appetiser, but issues became apparent during the first course which was the soup. The soup took longer than expected to arrive, and to make matters worse, two out of six in our group had to wait significantly longer for their portion.

The pacing of the courses didn’t improve, and the main course wasn’t served until 9 PM—two hours after we arrived. At that point we were questioning the need for us to preorder the meal as walking to the next restaurant to have our dinner felt like it'd be quicker. To add insult to injury, we noticed other tables that arrived later were served their meals before ours. Somehow felt like were being punished for daring to take a chance at their Christmas special.

While the wine was fine, the food itself was mediocre at best. Which really was a surprise when you think about how hungry we were. Being Christmas Eve, it felt like their kitchen simply couldn’t handle the festive season demand. For the amount we paid, the entire experience felt frustrating and poorly managed.

The staff were barely apologetic, especially the one serving us. Been a while since I saw a face that black. Merry Christmas to her too I guess.

I can't say for certain as I would have no way of knowing, but overall it felt like their key staff were absent for the holidays as it seemed like the other reviewers and my friend had a good experience themselves. The dishes they were serving for this special menu felt like the restaurant required a lot more resources especially during festive seasons for the overall experience to be comparable to other places that are charging the same.

Something that we also found funny was, at a certain point we were asking what the dish was when we were being served the 2nd course but the server was completely clueless on what she had in her hand and was as quiet as a mouse as she was serving us. Guess we should've known to refer back to the menu ourselves.

After my experience, I personally wouldn’t recommend risking coming here, especially during festive seasons, unless they make significant improvements to their service and kitchen efficiency. Or if you're patient enough to wait for 2.5 hours to be served your entire meal, by all means help yourself.

Started taking pictures the way I did when we started noticing the pacing of the dinner being the disappointment...

been patronising this restaurant for more than a decade & d food quality is always good. d tastes hv matured over the years n certainly more refined & adventurous.

the decor hv recently been upgraded & d interior is even more cosy, w prive rooms upstairs & watching d chefs preparing ur order thro a glass wall. service crew is outstanding, attending to every details & super gentle & helpful.

tried d grilled cabbage w truffle oil for d 1st time n it was good n flavourful. d cabbage was soft n crunchy d same time n each mouthful was like a journey of trying to identify d ingredients. we had this w foie gras on toast as well as hamachi ceviche on toast. the combination was a good start to d meal.

this was followed by a entre portion of grilled octopus potato salad & baby lamb racks which was marinated v well. the charr on d outside provided an extra kick as if d racks were fresh off bbq. d base sauce on which d lambs were served provided a balanced taste too. d potato salad was not wot we expected, but a grilled/baked version which when paired w d octopus was amazing. dat plate was pretty clean by d time we devoured it! 😅

next to follow was d seafood bouillabaise which was swallowed in happy silence, as all were busy soaking up d thick bisque w toast n munching on d seafood d same time. it was dat good...

a special seasonal mud crab steamed w sake was served next, n d sweet n firm crab meat was so succulent. we even drank up d clear steamed sauce!

our 1st main course were a must have favourites - rich mushroom risotto and a carbonara w poached egg. both r done super well n always ordered each time!

finally d meats were served - pork jowl & grilled atlantic cod fillets. d creamy jowls were fabulous as each bite into d sliced meat brings a bounce to d texture, n d taste is superb. the cod fish was served w a rice-like pasta grains (forgot d name) & d sweet fish meat went well w it. crispy on d outside & moist in d inside, d fish tasted v yummylicious!

overall, another great dining experience. thanks chris & ur team for putting together a...