Chinese seafood dining at its finest is at none other than Atlantic Seafood Restaurant.

Located in Tropicana Golf & Country Resort, Atlantic Seafood Restaurant is a full-service fine dining restaurant that serves premium pork-free Chinese seafood placing emphasis on freshness and flavour. Having just opened its doors in March, the restaurant can already boast a guest profile comprising mainly of highly distinguished customers and gatherings of office folk on the weekday with families dining in on the weekend. The restaurant itself cannot be missed as one walks into the main clubhouse with a clear view of the restaurant signage immediately in front of you. 

Walking through large glass sliding doors, you will be greeted by the star attraction of the restaurant and that is the Aquarium, strategically located facing the main entrance across the restaurant. Featuring a spectrum of tanks of varying sizes, it is almost like walking through a commercial aquarium. On view are live fish, prawns, lobsters, crabs, clams and abalone flown in from all around the world. There is a wide range of local fish and prawns available on the menu too. Diners can make their choice from the selection of live fish and seafood here to be prepared to their liking by the Master Chefs. 

The other sight to behold in the restaurant is the chandelier that hangs above the center court of the restaurant. Many little chrome fish hang down from the blue strip lights in a wave pattern casting a beautiful array of fish shaped shadows on the floor and on the tables while the ceiling mimics the sea. The rest of the restaurant is elegant and zen with a modern minimalist fit out and light wood paneling accented with chrome and gold fish placed on the walls as hanging art. 

I was warmly welcomed by one of the four directors of the restaurant – Abby Wong Mun Yee, who handles the Sales & Marketing for Atlantic Seafood Restaurant. Other directors are Yew Kong Chee who handles Operations at the restaurant alongside Alex Wong Yuen Lek while Low Yong Hui handles general operations. 

Abby did divulge that the formation of Atlantic Seafood Restaurant was while Tan Sri Dato Tan Chee Sing- Founder of Tropicana, reflected upon the last 3 decades of Tropicana Golf & Country Resort’s operations. She said, “Tan Sri had run many kinds of restaurants in that location when it suddenly come to him that maybe we could operate a seafood restaurant in the club as he believed the seafood business is gaining even more popularity and is the preferred cuisine by most of the members and guests”. Abby added that, that was when her parents, the Founders of Unique Seafood - Datuk Wong Keong Fook and Datin Kok Yoke Sim entered into a partnership with Tan Sri and the rest, is as they say, history.

On that happy note, I was politely ushered into a private room. Abby shares that the restaurant has 5 private rooms all of which are fitted with KTV facilities and are available for the comfort of guests hosting business and leisure gatherings or for families who wish to celebrate in private. Banquet menus for private functions as well as weddings are also available. 

Behind the scenes, Chef Low Chee Yeow and Chef Lew Chee How are responsible for the flavourful dishes that you will be served. The former is the Banquet Head Chef with several decades of cooking Chinese seafood and banquet dinners under his belt. The latter, although younger, is highly skilled and was the head chef for a famous Chinese restaurant chain for over a decade. He is now the restaurant's Head Chef.

Lunch time at Atlantic Seafood Restaurant is of great value especially with the lunch sets available. Priced at an extremely reasonable RM55++ per pax for a 4-course meal, the dishes consist of fish, prawns and chicken cooked in a variety of styles. There is also a flash deal this May where upon submitting a 5-star google review with a minimum spend of RM388, you will immediately receiving a RM38 instant rebate and a RM50 voucher to be redeemed at your next visit. Dim sum is also available for lunch every day from 11am to 2:30pm.

And now, it is onto my favourite part and that is the food review. With seven dishes to sample from, I am keen to see how the food matches up to its’ beautiful and impressive interior. The first dish served was oysters and being a superior Chinese seafood restaurant, it was not served raw but baked. One would be hard pressed to find good “French style Cheese baked Canadian oysters” and it was to my utter delight to chance upon them here at Atlantic Seafood Restaurant. Using Canadian oysters, the size of the shellfish wasn’t too large nor small seeming the perfect size for a single bite. Served hot, the cheese is soft and stringy without being too liquid and had that perfect burnt crust on top. The shell was warm to the touch, easy enough to be picked up after a few minutes allowing the cheese to fuse with the oyster, lending more flavour. With a flick of the fork separating the oyster from its shell, it is easily lifted and eaten. Not too milky nor sea-like in flavour, the soft mouthful of oyster paired seamlessly with the chewy cheese and was certainly a heavenly teaser indicating the party my palate was to embark on during this food review.

The next appetizer to follow was the “Peking duck”. Roasted to perfection, its’ skin was so glossy and shiny that it was almost reflective. Served alongside it were sliced cucumber fingers, strings of green onion, sweet bean paste and thin pancake sheets. The duck, presented whole was then sliced off the bone and presented again later on a platter in perfect bite sized portions of duck meat with crispy thin skin atop. Requiring assembly, Peking duck parcels are usually put together with a light thin smearing of the sweet bean sauce across the thin pancake. The cucumber fingers and green onion slices are then placed in the middle. Finally, a piece or two of the duck is placed on top of the vegetables and wrapped up revealing a neat little package ready to be eaten. A quick bite of the wrap and it is immediately a sensory and textural delight. The soft pancake envelopes the crunchy cucumber and green onion while the chewy duck meat and crispy skin are heady with the scent of the meat. The sweet bean paste brings all the senses together creating an unrivalled match of flavours.

Visually tantalizing, the ‘Steamed King Grouper fish in slices with soy sauce and beancurd’ was a burst of colour and fragrance. Placed in position from head-to-tail on a bed of green onions and beancurd soaked in soy sauce, the body of the fish was deconstructed as the fish was sliced into sheets thin enough to eat but thick enough to hold its shape. The silvery skin of the fish was soft and glistened as it was placed on the table. Sampling this Cantonese seafood dinner main course, the meat of the steamed fish was taut and firm while remaining soft and possessed a clean flavour profile. The soy sauce lent a sweet saltiness to it while the sharp spice from the green onion cut through the “heavier” flavours of this delightfully light dish making is a harmonious symphony with every bite.

The “Steamed tiger prawns with minced garlic and vermicelli” was the first shellfish dish to arrive. The prawns were lined neatly in a row atop the vermicelli while a fragrant layer of garlic gravy was drizzled heavily across the center on top. Juicy and plump, the steamed tiger prawns were a treat to de-shell and eat indicating true freshness. The garlic sauce dripped down and drenched the vermicelli allowing every bite to be a savoury delight without being too heavy on the palate.

It knew it was time to get a little more hands-on when the “Indonesian meat crab in ‘Atlantic’ chili sauce with mantou buns” was served. It was brought out as was two whole crabs, carefully sectioned and placed back together giving the illusion that the crabs were whole. Visually pleasing as it arrived swimming in steaming hot and spicy chili gravy, its’ fragrance was intoxicating and bewildering at the same time. Two sets of buns, also known as ‘mantou’ buns, were placed beside the crabs. One of a steamed variety and the other fried, the bread had the sole purpose of being dunked into the gravy to soak up it up and then eaten allowing the diner to enjoy the full experience of the gravy. Of course, I digress. The shell of the head of the crab peeled off easily revealing the body and claws and fragments of crab meat. With the help of a nutcracker, the harder shell of the crab claw was cracked open revealing the best mouthful of crabmeat. A swift dribble of the chili gravy over it and the dish peaked with a burst of flavours! The spicy, sweet and tangy sensations paired flawlessly with the savoury crabmeat indicating freshness and a true mastery of marrying flavours.

My eyes widened when the “Braised Boston lobster with e-fu noodles” was brought out next. It isn’t every day I get to indulge in a great seafood lunch and one that had Boston lobster on the menu! The noodles glistened and it was easy to notice that it was cooked to perfection. Not overly soft nor undercooked, each noodle was lightly coated with gravy. A large lobster tail that was halved was placed like a crown above the noodles creating what was truly a majestic sight. Managing to slice through the lobster, I took half a tail while already anticipating the other half and quickly swirled my fork in the noodles taking a bite sized amount to start. The e-fu noodles, that is typically made from egg and wheat flour, was a slurpy, savoury thrill. Its’ flavour was so distinct and heady with a seafood broth base that I was hooked. Looking to the lobster, I released the meat from its shell and cut it down to bite size. It was juicy and firm and soaked up the thick broth base that remained from the noodles. Truly the piece-de-resistance for me, my seafood review culminated with this mouthful as the lobster meat was soft and chewy and fragrant with flavour.

Nothing like a great big serving of greens to cleanse the palate and it was certainly a delight to see that the staple to every Chinese meal – the Hong Kong Kailan, was served in not one, but two ways. Famously known as “Hong Kong Kailan in two varieties”, I was familiar with the first style which was the garlic stir fried version of the vegetable but it was the second variety that was truly a wonder. Small, light and crispy, it was the leaves of the vegetable and it was lightly fried to a crisp without compromising its fresh green hue. Adding texture to any bite, it was a great and welcomed addition to the meal. The garlic stir fry was flavourful and crunchy and it was indeed so fresh and delicious. Being sourced from Tropicana Golf & Country Resort’s organic farm, it was pleasing to know that ingredients are direct from farm-to-table and that efforts to be sustainable were in play too.

As sure as it began, the seafood feast had to conclude but not for Atlantic Seafood Restaurant as you may call 03-7803 8274 or visit https://unique-seafood.com.my/Restaurants-Atlantic for more information or to make a reservation.