Don't We Just Love Hokkaido Ichiba?

31 March 2012

You might be sick of sashimi already, but we are not! And we just love the sashimi at Hokkaido Ichiba... For the price we pay, the value is superb. This time, we ordered the Hotate Dama Okinomiyaki, also known as the japanese scallop pizza. Here is how it looks on the menu:

Here is the real thing. The portion is rather big, it is most suitable to be shared among 2-4 people.

The pizza is made from flour and not bready, which gives it a more soft and gooey texture rather than the hardness of a Western pizza crust. The scallops were baked into the flour, which gives you a pleasant surprise every time you find a scallop while chewing the pizza. It is topped with Japanese sweet sauce, mayonnaise and fish flakes, which gives it a rainbow variety of taste and texture. Personally, I loveee mayo and fish flakes, which makes this one of the ultimate pizzas. If you have tried the Takoyaki in Jusco supermarkets and night markets, this pizza is a giant version of it and waaaay tastier.

This time around, we also ordered the Ebi Gyoza (prawn dumplings) but somehow they served us with Chicken Gyoza instead. We raised the mistake and after checking for a few times, a waiter came back to tell us that there was no more prawn and they forgot to tell us that they switched to the Chicken Gyoza. He offered to take away the Gyoza and not charge us for it, but we thought it was fine so we kept the dish. Anyhow, considering that it was before 8pm when that happened, having no more prawns is rather unlikely... giving Hokkaido the benefit of doubt, there is nothing much that we can do. But it does make me like the place less.

Nevertheless, the Salmon Sashimi is just as satisfying as ever. The slices are consistently thick at Hokkaido Ichiba. You would never have to worry about being shortchanged on the Salmon Sashimi here. Unfortunately, I can't say the same for some of the other places that we have visited.

Verdict

Details:

Hokkaido Ichiba @ The Gardens (Facebook)
Lot T-201, 3rd Floor,
The Gardens, Mid Valley City
Lingkaran Syed Putra, 59200 KL
Contact: 012-612 1060

For other reviews of Hokkaido Ichiba, read here:
The Food Ninja (here and here)
It's All About Foods
Niche
My Fatty Journey
Mindy's Corner
Maro^gal Food Paradise

Saturday Dinner @ TGI Friday's (24 March 2012)

On the same day after we went for the salmon sashimi spree at Hokkaido Ichiba, we were quite full and didn't feel hungry again until around 8 pm, so we decided to have something to share in T.G.I. Friday's. There was a queue when we got to the restaurant in The Gardens, but we didn't have to wait very long until we got a seat. This is in contrast to the insane no reservation policy at Chili's which has a waiting time of up to one hour sometimes. 

We ordered the Sizzling Chicken Fajita to share. Previously, we had fajitas from Las Carretas and wrote about it here before.

Our food was served rather fast, and there is definitely no false advertizing on the sizzling part. The sliced cajun chicken on top of grilled peppers and onions was served on a hot plate. The picture does no justice to the presentation as taking a whiff of the fragrant cajun-laced aroma coming from the steam is simply mouth-watering.

The sizzling chicken came with the bunch of sides - shredded mozzarella cheese, guacamole dip, pico salsa, and sour cream. Yum... The colorful combination just makes me drool.

The dish also came with four pieces of warm tortilla. Mexicans like to mix all their food when they eat. The general idea would be to stuff as much as you can into the tortilla before you dig in. So, we placed a few pieces of chicken slices on a piece of warm tortilla, add the whole bunch of good stuff into it and wrap them all up. For some, such a diverse mixture would appear to be gross. I don't know how, but the Mexicans seem to get it just right.

The meal was not too filling, just sufficient for the 2 of us who wanted to have a light dinner. The restaurant was quite dark, but the staff were extremely casual and friendly. It is a good place to have a birthday celebration with a bunch of crazy friends (their staff will help in singing), but not so conducive if you are looking for a quiet and romantic dining place.

Verdict

The sides in TGIF is a little bit better compared with Las Carretas but the grilled cajun chicken from Las Carretas is simply better. All in all, it is not easy to separate them and will depend on the person eating and probably the chef's mood on that day.

Details:

TGI Friday's (Facebook)
Lot F226B, 1st Floor, The Gardens Mall
Mid Valley City, Lingkaran Syed Putra
59200 Kuala Lumpur
Contact: 03-2287 7611
Other reviews of TGIF:

Eat Your Heart Out

Eat Now!

Malaysia Food, Travel & Tourism Blog

Lunch Delight @ Hokkaido Ichiba (24 March 2012)

It was a Saturday afternoon and we decided to go to Hokkaido Ichiba again to fulfill our need for sashimi. We were given a more private area surrounded by "bamboo sticks", giving us more privacy during our meal.

It was the first time we got to see the Lunch Set Menu. We found out that during lunch hours, the Salmon Sashimi Lunch Bento is actually the same price as the Salmon Sashimi ala carte - RM22! The Salmon Sashimi Lunch Bento also has 7 pieces of salmon sashimi, and it comes with a small appetizer, rice, chawanmushi, miso soup, and fruits. Needless to say, we went for the lunch set.

Once again, the sashimi slices were thick and juicy with a smooth texture. I'd say that the salmon sashimi at Hokkaido Ichiba is one of the best value-for-money sashimi deals.

Besides that Salmon Sashimi Lunch Bento, we ordered another bento with diced beef and stir-fried vegetables, which is also cheaper during lunch hours.

The bento comes with a small appetizer, a bowl of garlic fried rice, chawanmushi, miso soup, and fruits as well. The garlic fried rice was very aromatic (thanks to the garlic) and more or less ruined normal fried rice for me. I just didn't know that fried rice could taste and smell so good.

Judging from the picture, you'd think that the huge chunks of diced beef would be hard and chewy, but we decided to get it medium-rare and it was cooked to perfection. The meat was very tender and filled with teppanyaki flavor with some hint of butter and is absolutely delightfull for beef-lovers.

We were also craving for some green food, so we ordered the edamame ala carte. Our initial impression was that RM7 for a small bowl of peas seemed somewhat exorbitant but when the bowl arrived, it was definitely far from being small. In some other places, the edamame can be somewhat inconsistent as it could either be too salty or too bland. But Hokkaido Ichiba seems to be able to get it just right.

Overall, the meal was more than satisfying and we were pleasantly surprised by the lower price at lunch time. We will definitely try to visit more often during lunch hours.

Read here for our previous comments on Hokkaido Ichiba.

Verdict

Details:

Hokkaido Ichiba @ The Gardens (Facebook)

Lot T-201, 3rd Floor,
The Gardens, Mid Valley City
Lingkaran Syed Putra, 59200 KL
Contact: 012-612 1060

For other reviews of Hokkaido Ichiba, read here:
The Food Ninja
It's All About Foods
Niche
My Fatty Journey
Mindy's Corner
Maro^gal Food Paradise

Farewell Dinner @ Yuzu

After frequenting Hokkaido Ichiba and Sushi Tei, we decided to check out Yuzu with a bunch of other people to see what all the rave was about. Located on the same floor as Hokkaido Ichiba minus the super long line, it does seem like an attractive place to have Japanese food.

Based on the menu, the bento sets appear to be good deals. Nonetheless, not all of us ordered the bento sets. We tried the Unadon - grilled unagi with white rice (RM29). It came with a small bowl of appetizer and a bowl of miso soup.

Surprisingly, as a fan of unagi, the grilled eel tasted rather normal. I wouldn't say that it was bad, but there was nothing special about the unagi.

 

We also ordered the Yuzu Gozen (RM48), which comes in a huge tray, which I must add, is more hype than it appears.

It comes with assorted sushi, which I thought was sub-par. The rice was a little too damp, and the texture of the sashimi was a little too dry for my liking. The pieces of seafood were nowhere near as appetizing as those at Hokkaido Ichiba. 

The Yuzu Gozen also comes with sides of assorted tempura, which you can't really go wrong at. Pretty much the only thing one can say about it is that it isn't oily. The tofu was not too bad, while the appetizer was also below expectations. If you don't know what I mean, try Hokkaido Ichiba's bento set. 

The side of salad is also nothing much to shout about.

Apart from the sushi, the set also comes with several thin and small slices of sashimi. Once again, the sashimi slices were a bit too dry for my liking.

Pretty much the only good thing I can say about the Yuzu Gozen is about the beef. The medium rare texture was juicy and tender enough, while the accompanying gravy seemed to complement it well.

Of course, as with any new Japanese place that we try, we must check out their sashimi. Given the special occasion, we decided to experiment with something that appeared to be more exquisite. We tried the moriawase that comprised 3 pieces each of salmon, salmon toro and tuna (RM60). I suppose credit should be given for the presentation, but it does not hide the fact that once again, the taste was slightly disappointing. First, the slices were nowhere near as thick as expected, and the term imported sashimi should not be used for salmon from Norway. As much as that is still technicall imported, I think it would have been fair to assume that it should have been fish from the Japanese seas.

We visited the place with a bunch of people so here's some of the food they ordered. Can't comment much on the taste since we didn't get the chance to try them.

You may think I am being a little unfair to Yuzu, but the fact is, the food was disappointing. The staff were not entirely friendly, which did not help their cause as well. The only plus side was that they gave us a private room, so I gave them plus points for ambience.

 

Verdict

Apparently, some of the other food reviewers disagree. Check out the list below. But if you ask me, there is a reason why there is a long line at Hokkaido Ichiba and Sushi Zanmai, while there isn't any at Yuzu.

Details:

Yuzu Japanese Restaurant
T236, 3rd Floor
The Gardens
Mid Valley City
Kuala Lumpur
Tel No: 03-2284 7663

Other reviews:

Malaysia Travel, Food & Tourism Blog

Have You Eaten?

Feast

KY Speaks

Jo's Sanctuary

Bangsar Babe

Eat Only Lar

My Story (Ai Wei)

Sashimi Spree @ Hokkaido Ichiba

While I was only introduced to this restaurant recently, I can easily say that it has become one of my favorite places to visit. I would not go so far as to say that the food is the best, but it is one of the best value for money places that is economical enough to allow me to indulge myself as often as I would like. 

That said, I would like just point out that I did not have my regular camera with me on that day, so I had to rely on my not so trusty cell phone camera. This explains the poor quality of the shots. 

Nonetheless, that was not going to stop us from enjoying our food. As usual, the go-to dish for me is the salmon sashimi. I don't know if it was a new chef that day, or just my luck, the salmon sashimi was cut into very thick slices, more so than the usual, as you can see in the picture below. That, and also the freshness really brought out the taste in the succulent and juicy fish. You could even eat it without the soy sauce and wasabi and enjoy the taste.

Normally, I would order the Kaisen Dama (Seafood Japanese Pizza), but that ends up being too filling most of the time. So we decided to go with something lighter. So I thought, what better time to try to sashimi moriawase. It turned out to be a very pleasant surprise as the sashimi was just as thick as the salmon, and the taste, just as fresh. It contained two slices of toro salmon, kampachi, and maguro each, and a small serving of sliced octopus as well as scallops. I can't say I know what the rolled up, white thing in the middle is, but honestly, it is not something I would miss.

And the final dish is also a usual. We had already mixed it up, so it looked a bit messy in the picture. But that is how salads are supposed to look. I can safely say that this is one of my favorite salad dishes of all time. It combines Hokkaido Ichiba's "special" dressing with salmon and maguro sashimi. The salad dressing tastes sweet and tangy and is stirred with some ebikko to give it a unique texture.

So there you have it, a simple meal with simple dishes. Definitely a lot more sashimi than normal people would like, but it is my favorite food, so I just can't help myself. 

Verdict

Details:

Hokkaido Ichiba @ The Gardens (Facebook)

Lot T-201, 3rd Floor, 

The Gardens, Mid Valley City

Lingkaran Syed Putra, 59200 KL

Contact: 012-612 1060

For other reviews of Hokkaido Ichiba, read here:

It's All About Foods

Niche

My Fatty Journey

Mindy's Corner

Maro^gal Food Paradise

Christmas Eve Carbonara @ Italiannese

During the busy Christmas season, Italiannese trimmed down its menu to but a few items. Given the fact that pretty much everywhere else was packed to the brim, visiting Italiannese was a good decision. Even if you had not made any reservations, you would still have made the cut. Of course, the sacrifice is the relatively poor selection.

I was not able to order the usual stuff that I ordered, which is the Salmon Fettuccine or the Sicilian Chicken Salad. Both come highly recommended. The Fried Calamari Salad is also pretty decent if you can take squid.

Nonetheless, here is the only dish we ordered this time. 

The carbonara comes with beef bacon bits and a piece of garlic bread. Despite the fact that the menu says fettuccine and even though I am not an expert on pasta, I am pretty sure the pasta was not fettuccine. This is what fettuccine looks like:

It is slightly narrower. Don't know what I was served. Nonetheless, it is one of the better carbonaras that I have had.

Verdict

Details:

Italiannese
Lot S209, Second Floor, The Gardens,
Mid Valley City, Lingkaran Syed Putra
59200 Kuala Lumpur.
Contact: 03-2283 3675