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Thursday, November 15, 2012

Revisiting Sumi-Ka Yakitori Bar @ SS15, Subang Jaya

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liver yaki sticks

I'm slowly easing back into blogging and rather than await for the next best thing, I guess I should take a more practical approach and just document what I've been eating. This means I guess revisits to places, like this yakitori bar I visited in 2010.

intestines with yuzu kusho
braised intestines in vinegar served with yuzu kusho on the side

The funny thing is even though these places are considered off the radar, being opened for so long, I realised not everyone has been. Hence one night, we decided to make a visit here for some smoky charcoal grilled sticks.

yaki onigiri
yaki onigiri

I've been eating at yakitori bars these past few weeks and throughout the years, I did not realise, lots of places have sprouted around the Klang Valley. It's slowly growing albeit not as fast as ramen shops. The latest one to join the grill club is Kushiyaki Kuni at Plaza Damas that is run by a former Rakuzen chef.


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pork with oba leaf

Since there was four of us, we ordered a fair bit of sticks that kept coming until we realised, we had over ordered in a fit of hunger. Top on our can order again list was definitely the perfectly cooked chicken liver, the poor man's foie gras. Strangely enough, the pork liver was a tad too overcooked hence we prefered the chook's liver instead.

mentai riceball inside
mentai riceball

The beef ribs (RM9) came highly recommended. Even though they were juicy, there was a slight chewy taste to the beef. Instead, we focused on the chook, in its glory - crispy chicken skin, juicy chicken thighs and the crispy chicken wings. While the wings were juicy and rather nice, I still prefer Ri-Yakitori's super crispy chicken wings, always sold out before you know it.

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beef ribs

Supplementing all that meat, was the carbohydrates in the form of rice balls. We ordered the mentai stuffed rice ball or onigiri (RM6) that was yummy since it came slightly warm, with a slightly spicy cod roe filling. another favourite was the yaki onigiri (RM5), the grilled rice ball with its crusty grains. There was also mashed potato and baked sweet potatoes (RM8) with butter to fill our tummies.

grilled sweet potatoes with butter
grilled sweet potatoes

Other good eats was the grilled pork with aromatic oba leaves,  large juicy scallops (RM15 per stick) and the shiitake mushrooms (RM4 per stick) . If you prefer, order from the specials and you will strike lucky, like we did with crunchy intestines in vinegar. 

The place is perpetually packed with people, so book ahead to avoid being turned away. You are also given "free-flow" cabbage doused in soy sauce and vegetable pickles. 

Sumi-Ka
No. 19, Jalan SS15/4
Subang Jaya
Petaling Jaya

Tel:03-56329312

(Non Halal. Open from 6.30pm to midnight. read about my previous experience in March 2010 by clicking on this link. You can also see the Flickr set for the yakitori-bar.)

*Disclaimer: The opinions expressed here is entirely based on my personal tastebuds and may vary for others. This review is time sensitive; changes may occur to the place later on that can affect this opinion. The reviewer also declares that she has not received any monetary or non-monetary compensation from this place for writing the review.

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Le Creuset Party


Pomegranate Salad
celebrate with colour - pomegranate, avocado, mango and spinach salad

Malaysians are a darn lucky lot with the numerous holidays peppered all throughout the year. And the best thing about holidays is the parties! This Deepavali, we decided to get together to cook up a feast with all our Le Creuset tableware, all in different colours - orange, blue and even purple!

Whacking the pomegranate
whack that pomegranate

Like all get togethers, it is more fun when everyone works together. Take for instance, this glorious burst of colour in a salad. It's a simple one but darn tasty just tossed together - spinach leaves topped with freshly cut mangoes, avocados and the ruby red jewel-like pomegranates. The best way to extract those glistening red jewels is to cut them into half and whack the back hard with a wooden spoon. Expect a satisfying clunk, as each pomegranate hits the salad bowl.


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smoked salmon

As we all worked, we nibbled on smoked salmon on toast bread. There's all kind of dips - wasabi, chives and a capers and dill one that keeps our tummies happy as we work on lunch.


smoked salmon appetizer
keeping our tummies happy

Soon lunch is ready to serve as delicious things pop out from the oven. First, there's roasted duck confit legs with mushrooms made by K, and a delicious roast thyme and garlic chicken from WP. Both in Le Creuset pots of course. I covet the light blue Le Creuset casserole!

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the spread

Joining the table was the rainbow-like salad, red cabbage with lemon and puy lentils. We also had roast potatoes, all golden brown and fluffy in an orange Le Creuset casserole.

rhubarb crumble
rhubarb apple ginger crumble

As our tummies are satisfied, there's always room for desserts. We start off with these dreamy creamy pannacottas topped with a berry compote made by M. They're made in Le Creuset ramekins. The slightly tart berries go so well with the milky puddings to undercut any richness.

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pannacotta with berry compote

Next is my contribution to the party, the rhubarb apple and ginger crumble. I must admit I've gotten rather attached to rhubarb. It's always been my favourite since university days, when I had to endure horrible meals in my halls of residences. Things always seem to perk up when the crazy kitchen served rhubarb crumble. I love this particular one with a hint of ginger eaten with lashings of creamy custard.


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assorted cupcakes

Last but not least, there were these divine cupcakes from Plain Vanilla Bakery. Specially brought back from Singapore by K, these tiny cakes were excellent. The flavours were all spot on and the crumb of each cake was moist even though we had kept it for three days. Our favourite was the salted caramel, cocoa nibs and the passionfruit mint cupcakes. Next time you visit the red dot, make sure you drop by this small bakery as the cupcakes are so worth the queue.


With our tummies sated, we plan the next party and hope it'll be a great success like this one. So how did you spend your holidays? Hope it was as fun as our celebrations! For more pictures, see my Flickr set.