We had a wonderful stay at the Tanjung Rhu Resort recently, and there was so much to write about I decided to do it over several articles. The first was a special feature about the resort itself. Now let’s look at the dining options.
There are several restaurants at the resort:
The Rhu – this is the resort’s fine dining restaurant with both indoor air-conditioned areas and al fresco dining. The Rhu is open for dinner only. Smoking is not allowed at this restaurant but you can nip across the path and sit on the verandah underneath the Reading Room and the staff will happily bring your wine over for you too. Children are not allowed on the upper floor of the restaurant. There is also a dress code and smart casual clothing is required. There is no dress code anywhere else on the resort – pretty much anything goes (within reason).
We sat outside upstairs and enjoyed the beautiful view of the Andaman Sea waves lapping gently onto the resort’s long white-sand beach. (Hint: book early and nab a table at the front overlooking the beach.) The food is excellent and beautifully presented. Have a look at the menu and see if it whets your appetite. This is a great place for a special occasion or even just to treat yourself because you’re on holiday.
There’s lots of fish and seafood on the menu as well as prime steaks and various other options. Both of us chose fish for our main courses. I had the pan-roasted ocean trout with roast cherry tomato, haricot beans, salmon roe, and citrus beurre blanc. David had the pan-fried kingfish with eryngii mushrooms, parsnip pure, toasted pine kernels, and raisin butter with chives. Despite already having had two delicious starters, we both scoffed it all up. (It’s very unusual for me to clean my plate.) In a way, I’m sorry that we left it to our last evening to dine at The Rhu, otherwise I would most certainly have gone back.
The Saffron – this is open from 11am to 11pm so you can have lunch, dinner, or whatever you fancy in the afternoon. The restaurant has indoor and outdoor dining options and a Mediterranean flavour. They serve salads, pizzas, pastas, fish and seafood, breads and dips, tapas and lots of other things.
The Sands an all-day dining venue. This is where we had breakfast every morning, choosing from a wide selection of buffet items. There is something for everyone here, with Malaysian, Western, Thai, Indian, Chinese, and Japanese cuisine. In addition to their la carte menu, they also do a set dinner every evening, Indian one night, Thai the next, Chinese the next and so on.
Both the Sands Pool and the Sunset Pool have bars which serve a variety of mouth watering snacks and a full range of cocktails and other drinks.
The Reading Room – this serves speciality teas and coffees as well as snacks and cocktails. They serve an English-style high tea in the afternoons too.
Private BBQ – if you want a special romantic occasion you can order a private BBQ. You can choose either a mixed BBQ or a seafood one and your personal butler will cook and serve for you whilst you sip Champagne.
There is also the option of in-room dining where you can eat restaurant-style food even if you don’t feel like going out. We found that our room’s balcony was a comfortable place to eat.
The menus for all these are on the Tanjung Rhu website’s dining section.
And now for an insider tip, which I didn’t find anything about on the resort’s website. The Saffron also has a variety of picnic options which you need to order the day before. These picnics are then delivered to Reception or your room at the arranged time and you can take them with you on your excursions (or eat them on your balcony). These come beautifully packaged in a large wicker basket and include absolutely scrumptious food and soft drinks. (Hint: menu 3, which in our opinion was the best foodie option anyway, also includes beer or wine.) We were amazed when we received our picnic hamper. This was quite unlike any picnic I’d ever seen before. It was a feast!
So, there you have it. If you’re planning a visit to Langkawi, and I recommend you do, the Tanjung Rhu Resort offers some excellent dining options.
