Review - The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur

We took a quick Grab ride from Subang Airport and arrived at the Ritz Kuala Lumpur a little past 2pm. If you’re in a club level room, you could use the first drop-off entrance, as it led directly into the club lounge, where check-in/out could be performed. Asia is probably the last continent where executive lounge check-in tradition is still consistently upheld. Interestingly, I stayed here back in 2014, and I could pretty confidently say the rooms weren’t refreshed at all…

Check-in:

Guests staying in regular rooms could access the lobby via the second entrance. Since it was Christmas Day, the lobby was quite bustling.

Check-in was efficient, and we were on our way to our room in a matter of minutes. The agent didn’t elaborate much on benefits provided for Marriott elite members or bookings made on Amex Fine Hotels & Resorts, but he did give us a very handy pamphlet detailing such.

To get to the rooms, you first had to walk through the mezzanine level with some vacuously arranged seating.

Unpack:

Our junior suite was located on the 6th floor, which meant there was no view of the city. It didn’t bother me too much given we were just there for one night.

Upon entry, a small half bath was to the left.

The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur Junior Suite Half Bath

There was a small living area in the suite. As you can see, the décor was rather drab and tired. Like I said, I don’t think much was done to the rooms since my last stay almost 10 years ago.

The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur Junior Suite Living Room

For a Ritz-Carlton, the absence of Nespresso machine and pods was noticed.

The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur Junior Suite Minibar

An honor bar was underneath the TV, which was sparsely stocked.

Between the living and sleeping space was a transitional area with a vanity.

The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur Junior Suite Vanity

The bedroom featured a standard king size bed. The linens were slightly scratchy.

The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur Junior Suite Bedroom

While it was marketed as a junior suite, it was technically a full one-bedroom suite. The master bathroom certainly wasn’t the most glamourous I’ve seen…

The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur Junior Suite Bathroom

I mean, not even a dual-vanity..?

Last in the room was a small walk-in closet.

The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur Junior Suite Closet

Due to the age of the property, the room was far from impressive. By just looking at the pictures I’d probably think it’s the Ritz-Carlton in Philadelphia, and that’s not intended to be a compliment…

Refuel:

What this hotel exceled at was a solid club lounge offering. Shortly after check-in, we came down to the lounge to plot out our day. The facility itself was stuffy if not even solemn.

The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur Club Lounge

The lounge served afternoon tea. Rather than a buffet, each table was served an individual set. To start, I asked for some earl grey. Disappointingly, Dilmah was served, which didn’t really scream premium.

The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur Club Lounge Afternoon Tea

Then the traditional finger sandwiches and scones were presented. I was elated to discover the clotted cream.

The sandwiches were quite well made and tasted fresh.

Early in the evening, hors d'oeuvres were on offer. In earnest it was a proper dinner. We didn’t eat here, but the menu included salmon, sliders, stir fried dishes, salad, sushi, fruits and desserts. There was even a guy carving porchetta.

The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur Club Lounge Dinner

We did have dinner at the hotel’s Li Yen restaurant. The bar was completely abandoned on Christmas Day.

The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur Li Yen Restaurant

The restaurant itself wasn’t too happening either. I guess the Malaysians prefer to have western food on Christmas.

It’s a reasonably nice restaurant, though nothing stood out as remarkable.

For starters, we shared the seafood soup with bamboo pith and Li Yen’s signature golden prawns.

The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur Li Yen Restaurant Dinner

For main course, we order a few dishes to share, such as the braised scallops and conpoy with oyster sauce, garlic, mushrooms and vegetable, signature house-crafted bean curd with shimeji mushrooms and spinach, slow-cooked soft bone ribs with black sugar and stir fried Cantonese egg noodles with crab meat.

We left with plenty of leftovers. I’d say the food was tasty, though again, nothing too exciting. It’s funny how the restaurant had Michelin posters at a few places, but it had no star, lol.

The next morning we visited the Cobalt Room for breakfast, which was thoroughly overrun. We waited in line for about 10 minutes to be seated, during which we contemplated having breakfast at the lounge.

Once seated, we found the buffet to be largely underwhelming. Crowding issue aside, the variety and quality were rather mediocre.

The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur The Cobalt Room Restaurant Breakfast

We just nibbled on a few things and quickly left. If you have access to the lounge, I’d recommend avoiding the Cobalt Room altogether.

Depart:

The Ritz Kuala Lumpur was sufficient for our quick overnight in the city. The location can’t be beat, as it’s steps away from Bukit Bintang. Coming from the Ritz in Langkawi, the f&b was undoubtedly a material step-down. For a city business hotel, though, I think the Ritz was a decent option. That being said, the rooms were definitely in need of a renovation.

Review - The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur

The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur

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