Thursday, September 27, 2007

Japanese Food @ Izakaya Ichiban, Hartamas Shopping Centre, Kuala Lumpur


Tempura Roll

No Ramadan Bazaar post for today - sorry! I reckon I'm approaching the end when it comes to these bazaars since I've covered almost all of them which is relatively easy for me to access. There are some new ones which I do want to explore like Datuk Keramat, Taman Melawati, Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman and etc but those will be for the weekends only when we have the time. In the meantime, for a change here's some Japanese food.


Wagyu Beef Don

The
El Presidente of the Japanese Food Kawan Association may be away for some R&R (rest and relax) but the quest for Japanese food continues. Here's a place which I tend to end up for dinner. It's not too fancy a place but serves pretty decent Japanese food. Having tried quite a few items on the menu, I reckon they do two things best - Wagyu Beef Don and Kaki Mayo Yaki.


Unagi Don

This place used to be at Desa Sri Hartamas but relocated to the shopping centre which is more accessible. Aside from the regular menu, they also do board specials so do check with them what's good. Run by a Japanese fella who you will see behind the sushi counter, this place attracts locals and the Japanese expatriates. I reckon they also get quite a lot of spill over customers from Rakuzen which is forever packed with people.


Kaki Mayo Yaki

Let's start with lunch - they do a Combo Set Lunch whereby you pick and choose items from a menu with choices for sashimi, teppanyaki, tempura and pan fried items. Prices range from RM18++ to RM33++ depending on how many items you picked. Although you get a nice variety bear in mind this is a set lunch so portions can be tiny. For instance, the salmon sashimi item will be 3 pieces and if I remember correctly the deep fried scallop, they'll only give you one for the set. All the sets come with rice, miso soup, chawan mushi and fruits.


Sashimi Set


Their dinner sets are also pretty decent. I usually try their Sashimi Set which is served with a selection of raw fish. Can't remember how much it is but it should be in the RM20 to RM30 range.


Salmon Sashimi - Set Lunch

They serve a selection of makis which are farly decent. The Tempura Roll is kinda like the Groovy Sushi items as the maki is coated in a tempura batter and deep fried. The Dragon Roll which we tried has avocado, prawn tempura and unagi which was not bad.


Mentaiko Spaghetti


Since we tend to frequent this place for dinner, it's always a simple rice or "don" items. I've tried the Unagi Don (it's abt RM26 if I am not mistaken) which was not bad - shredded omelette and juicy unagi which topped a portion of rice. The Tendon is also pretty decent with a selection of deep fried tempura items. However, the best and our all time favourite is their Wagyu Beef Don - juicy pieces of tender wagyu beef lightly coated with their special sauce topping white rice. It's a must order for us when we dine here.


Other items we have also tried - Asparagus Cheese which is asparagus sticks with cheese powder and deep fried. Not much of a cheese flavour and the asparagus they used had woody or hard bits. I've also tried their Lamb Miso Steak - lamb shoulder with a miso sauce served on a hot plate. There's deep fried onion rings on the side. A bit salty and the cut of the lamb was a bit tough. A favourite of mine is the Mentaiko Spaghetti - it's a bit different here and kinda reminds me of the Chinese style of cooking pasta sauce. The salted cod roe coats the spaghetti strands which gives it a slight bite that is nice.


Another must have is the Kaki Mayo Yaki - oysters which are pan fried with sliced mushrooms and green peppers. It's placed back in the shell and topped with mayonnaise which is then grilled. Absolutely delicious!! Do give it a try and remember to order the Wagyu Beef Don (RM28) and Kaki Mayo Yaki (RM15) which never fails to dissapoint us. The restaurant also issues a frequent customer card where you accumulate points based on the bill you spent. Once you hit a certain limit, you're entitled to free food. Takes some time to achieve this as it's a lot of points to accumulate so don't expect free food straight away.


Izakaya Ichiban
Lot P-3M
Plaza Ground Floor
Hartamas Shopping Centre
Jalan Sri Hartamas
Kuala Lumpur

Tel No: 03 - 6201 5905


(Pork free. To get here, from the ground floor of Hartamas Shopping Centre where Paddington House of Pancakes is located, go up the escalators till the top. Walk straight towards the glass doors. Turn left and you will see Starbucks, Bagel Station and finally Izakaya Ichiban.)


*Disclaimer: The opinions expressed here is entirely based on my personal tastebuds and may vary for others. The reviewer also declares that she has not received any monetary or non-monetary compensation from the restaurant for writing this review.

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14 comments:

Precious Pea said...

The Sashimi set is priced at RM25. Yumz..the baked oyster is really good!

boo_licious said...

Thxs Precious Pea. Yup, we always order that too!

daphne said...

that sashimi-good value!! Goodness me, that place looks like a good find.

Unknown said...

whoa affordable japanese food is my cup of tea :D

tankiasu said...

How much is their Unagi Don and Wagyu Beef Don?

ling239 said...

Kaki Mayo Yaki
Kaki Mayo Yaki
Kaki Mayo Yaki

must remember this for my next trip ~ ^_^

"Joe" who is constantly craving said...

waitin to try this ar..was at plaza damas around 3pm during the wkends..didnt expect them to be close..i thought they would be open throughout..went to rakuzen instead..

myCoffee said...

That mentaiko pasta reminds me of one particular wan tan mee that my friend brought me to at a char chan teng in HK. It's like a dry wan tan mee and topped with very generous sprinkles of prawn roe. Apparently very famous with the locals.

teckiee said...

I miss unagi suddenly...

Tummythoz said...

Arrghhh why the wagyu beef don picture doesn't load? My saliva can't possibly have short circuited my pc, could it?

wmw said...

Yumz! Love the wagyu Beef Don here....sigh...

Junkgirl™ said...

Mmmm...I'm drooling all over your blog, boo_licious. Some of the dishes aobve reminds me of the meal i had at Benten no Yado in Miyajima, Japan. The wagyu beef-don you had looks really tasty.

boo_licious said...

daphne - yum, one of those finds in Hartamas which always surprises u.

kampungboycitygal - give it a try one day.

tankiasu - prices added already

ling239 - hee hee, 5 pieces for RM15. Yum!

joe - I guess they took a rest which is what most restaurants do.

mycoffee - sounds very decadent. Think I saw they have fried rice with prawn roe also in HK.

teckiee - go eat some quickly? I exchange with durian puffs ok?

Hi Jeena - welcome to food blogging.

tummythoz - think it was scared u would chomp it off the screen hence it ran away from u?

wmw - hee hee, now u know why we rave on abt it.

junk girl - oooh, sounds good and Japan food always can beat our local stuff hands down.

Unknown said...

Wow! looks fantastic! I'll be heading down to KL this weekend, looking forward to try some of their resties...when you guys have time, come check out the best restaurants in singapore

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