There´s a new man at the helm in Halia´s kitchen. Executive chef Zainuddin Abu Hassan has brought with him a wealth of experiences garnered not only from the kitchen but also from his travels.

Yep, this chef is one big biker, brudder! Zainuddin loves nothing better than taking off on his bike and, with a group of regular biker buddies, he´s even ridden all the way to Cambodia.

"The best part of the journey is stopping at all the off-the-beaten track places for food. Some of these places offer surprisingly good food and these give me ideas that I test out when I´m back at work," he says with a huge smile.

"I never tell the eatery operators that I´m a chef. Instead, I will humbly ask them to tell me how they prepare a certain food that I find interesting."

One of the inspirations he found in Thailand´s Koh Samui, is sitting on ice in the dessert corner of the Ramadan buffet spread at Sime Darby Convention Centre.

Coconut jelly looks pleasantly mundane. No rainbow colours to awaken the eyes. No strong aromas to titillate the nose. Nothing but strips of snowy white coconut flesh embedded in a translucent wobbly jelly. And it´s not even very sweet though that´s not a bad thing these days.

But it´s a perfect thing to start or end the berbuka puasa repast with. It´s nicely chilled and so slippery soft it slips easily down throats parched after a day of fasting.

And the little strips of young coconut flesh offer bite without you having to work your jaws too hard.

But coconut jelly´s not what the Ramadan buffet is all about. You can also start with fresh dates and iced syrup or a hot teh tarik before moving on to soups, bubur lambuk and cold appetisers. Kerabu, ulam, sambal, keropok and pickles rule while in keep-hot cauldrons, there´s soup to go with thickly sliced bread.

Zainuddin has a collection of six menus offered on a rotation basis. There´s rice, of course, both plain and flavoured like biryani and lemon rice with raisins which Zainuddin says is most appetising with its citrusy aroma.

You may want to stick with the plain to complement the various curries and dishes.

Many are heartily spiced and will go best with plain rice. Go for the ayam golek, perfectly roasted with just a tinge of red in the bones. "If the marrow is black, it indicates that the chicken is over-roasted and thus will be dry," says the chef in charge of the stall. The chicken is served with a smooth, fragrant sauce.

Then there is itik lado hijau, Zainuddin´s pride. "I don´t know why Malays don´t appreciate duck. It´s a lovely bird and I´m hoping they will learn to love it with this Indonesian recipe which is a definite must-try," says Zainuddin.

The duck, made with green chili, is somewhat similar to rendang.

Then there is sotong sumbat percik. The squid, stuffed with minced seafood and daun salam, is served with a sweet percik sauce.

I love the kambing malbari. Dark as night, the pieces of lamb are tender and well spiced. "This is a Kedah recipe that´s a must for kenduri. It´s a recipe that has been passed down the generations in the family of sous chef Usri Abu Bakar," says Zainuddin. "It is of Arabic influence and is best eaten with nasi minyak."

Zainuddin is from Penang, so his culinary skill smacks of northern influences. Laksa Utara and murtabak filled with minced chicken or beef. Then there are items like grilled beef tongue, grilled fish and satar and curries cooked in a kawah (big kuali) that includes salmon fish head, beef and lamb.

But it´s not all local dishes. There´s a whole roast lamb on the spit and you can dine on Italian dishes like chicken picatta, stirfried mushrooms Chinese style, steamed dim sum and bao, roast beef medallions with black pepper sauce and sweet and sour clams.

As for dessert, apart from the coconut jelly, there´s a whole range of cakes, cookies, pastries, pengat, bubur pulut, bubur kacang merah, tapai, mousses, fruit rojak, freshly cut fruit, strudels and bread and butter pudding.

Those who love durian will adore the durian cheesecake. The smell of durian is not overpowering. Instead, it somehow manages to strike a delicate balance with the aroma of cheese.

Oh, there´s ice cream too, including a stall offering fried ice cream.

Sime Darby is offering an early bird price for its Ramadan buffet. The normal price is RM68 but vouchers purchased between July 1 and July 31 will be RM55.