The Food Ninja

Sunday, April 29, 2012

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

Monday, April 2, 2012

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

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

More Sashimi @ Sushi Tei

I have time and again heard many people swear off Sushi Tei, saying that the food there isn't quite as good as some other Japanese places. One of the other comparable names that come to mind is Sushi Zanmai. While I do admit that Sushi Zanmai does have some dishes that are better than those at Sushi Tei, I must say that Tei is no slouch in its sashimi. And that to me, gets bonus points. Again, on that fateful day, I did not have my trusty DSLR with me, so I had to settle for iPhone pics.

Our first order is something that you can't get at Zanmai. Fried salmon skin. This is served with mayonnaise. It's a great appetizer and great as finger food. Hot and crispy, just enough to get your taste buds warmed up for the main meal. Fair warning, this dish is not on the menu, so you have to just order it from the waiter/waitress.

As usual, I am not an expert on what the dishes are called, but the next dish was a maki wrapped around spicy salmon and topped with grilled unagi. The maki was also peppered with seaweed and sesame seeds on the outside. The combination of tastes was pretty funky as the spicy salmon was rather spicy. I mean, it is not cili padi kind of spicy, but it was definitely more spicy than most of the Japanese food that I have had. But I did wish that they had used raw salmon instead of the minced spicy salmon, but that's just me.

Of course, no visit to any Japanese restaurant ends without sashimi for me. I was feeling famished, so I went for the five-piece Asama. That means that you get five pieces each of salmon, maguro and hamachi. This is the largest set of Asama that Tei has. It also comes in three and four pieces each. The price for a five-piece Asama was not too bad, damaging my pocket by about RM33.80.

While some may prefer Zanmai, for some reason, I like the sashimi that Tei serves a lot more. Partly because the slices are way bigger and more consistent. You never really know how good the sashimi is at the Zanmai in Gardens. Sometimes it's big and succulent, sometimes it's thin and totally unsatisfying. But this was so good, I just have to put another picture.

As it was pretty late, we did not want to have too heavy a meal, so we settled for three items and luckily, I did not feel too bloated after that.

But we did indulge in all the fine wine that they had. These are just some of our victims that night.

Just kidding. I don't really drink alcohol. It's just part of the decoration (as if you didn't already know that).

Verdict

And here are the details:

Sushi Tei (Facebook here)
Lot G-16, Ground Floor,
Tropicana City Mall,
3, Jalan SS20/27,
47400 Petaling Jaya.
Contact: 03-7728 4299

And here are other reviews of Sushi Tei:

JasonMumbles
Motormouth From Ipoh
Feed Me Lah!

Monday, March 5, 2012

Mexicana @ Las Carretas

Back in the day, when I was out West, Mexican food was pretty much a daily thing for me. The US is in the west. Sue me. It's either that or I have it every other day. I have always enjoyed a good burrito or a quasadilla (pronounced kay-suh-dee-yah). People think Mexican food is crazy because they basically throw everything (rice, beans, salsa, guacamole, sour cream, chicken, beef, cheese, roasted peppers) into a tortilla bread and then wrap it up in many different ways. You can even toast it.

I have been hunting for good Mexican food for a while ever since I came back from the West. The closest I have come to Mexican is probably at Chili's. But recently, I stumbled upon what is apparently the best Mexican place in KL.

The food even comes with detailed descriptions of what each of them are. Awesome for those who have not tried Mexican before.

After reading a couple of the descriptions, we decided to go with the Chicken Fajita (pronounced fah-hee-tah) because I was attracted to the fact that it is served with cajun-styled chicken. It comes with a serving of "Spanish rice" (which actually does not originate from Spain), a side of salad, pico salsa, sour cream, guacamole, and shredded mozarella cheese.

Here is a close-up of the cajun-styled chicken. The cajun-styled chicken was amazing. The aroma was captivating the moment it was served. We could probably smell the cayenne pepper from a mile away and it was sauteed with a mix of onions (I happen to love onions), and bell peppers. The only thing that was probably missing was some mushrooms.

And here is a close-up of the sides. The rice was actually pretty good, also sauteed with a mix of chopped vegetables and red beans. It tasted a bit tangy, which is sort of what you would expect from Mediterranean cuisine. But then again, as I said, Spanish rice is not from Spain. The guacamole and sour cream were what you would expect from a genuine Mexican place, but I must say that the salsa was slightly disappointing. It felt like it was one of those bottled salsa that you could buy at a typical hypermarket. It tasted a bit like tomato paste.

Those of you who are wondering, here is what real pico de gallo should look like (picture is not mine).

And of course, a fajita is always served with hot, steamed tortilla (pronounced tor-tee-yah) bread, which is used to wrap all the stuff you can throw in it. The tortilla bread was about six inches in diameter, which in my opinion was a bit small. I would have preferred a slightly bigger one, perhaps about ten inches in diameter. But that doesn't really affect the taste.

Along with the Chicken Fajita, we ordered Mushroom Quesadillas, just because we both love melted cheese. The quesadilla was also served with the same side dishes of rice, salad, salsa, sour cream, and guacamole. The quesadillas was pretty amazing. I mean, it is not very hard to go wrong with a quesadilla because you simply throw a handful of shredded mozarella cheese (or two) in a huge tortilla bread, along with any other topping that you may like, fold it in two, and toast it lightly until the cheese melts.

The ambience was pretty funky. They have a fountain right in the middle of the main area, and the walls were colorfully decorated.

One of the walls even had a collection of car plates, which are presumably Mexican, but from what I gather, most of the plates are American. I don't know what's up with that.

All in all, Las Carretas is a great place to have a party because it is totally not crowded, it serves great food, especially if you're looking for a change from the local scene, and it is a great hangout place (even for those who are alcoholly-inclined). And the food is pretty well worth the price you pay for in this day and age.

Verdict