Whenever hubby and I try to narrow down which restaurant type to go to on weekends, he knows that I will only have 1 answer in mind : Japanese! Sometimes he says I am very "makulit" (that's a Tagalog word, if you translate into English I think you can say I am redundant or always repeating the same thing)
I can't help it but I really love Japanese food. Even back in Manila.
Anyway, this entry is all about my latest Japanese escapades for the month of April 2010. I will make it brief and direct... no beating around the bush on food reviews !
1. Kirishima Japanese Restaurant
Their lunch bento box are so worth it! The quality of food is good and service is great. I would highly recommend to Japanese lovers. I discovered this place only lately thanks to my expat friend Tram. The prices are also very reasonable for the quality of food. Do make sure to visit during lunch time where prices are cheaper than dinner time. Their bento box selection is very, very impressive!
Kirishima Location and Details:
Lot 1.2, First Floor, Dua Annexe, 211 Jln Tun Razak
Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-2162 8127
Of course, when we visited I didn't have time to take photos. Baby Alex was with us, and we had lunch with our friends. We really enjoyed the speedy and attentive service. Easy to get parking at that location and very easy to bring little baby with us. I would definitely go back.
2. Xenri D'Garden Terrace
We tried their buffet lunch on a Sunday. First of all, you will need to book reservations due to the popularity of their buffet which was offered at RM 55++ per person. First impression: the venue was nice because of the greens around. It was surprising especially as it was located inside a building at the heart of KL.
Food: I wouldn't say it was top notch but quality was okay for that price. They had good refill timing for shrimp tempura so that means you don't need to wait forever before you can grab your share. They also had good steak and yakitori as part of the buffet. Downside: the sukiyaki guy manning the booth gave me such a small bowl and not enough soup.. maybe he was under pressure with the number of people?
Downside: the place is very tight if you want to bring a small baby with stroller. I would say that the place is bordering on "cramped" becuase you would literally come face-to-face with some customers or waiters as you stroll through the buffet spread. Also, after we had our meal we were too stuffed and full. Hubby and I will not go back for the buffet anymore... it's very bad for the health! I think we over-ate, and we admit it's purely our fault. Anyway... from this point forward we will favor sit-down Japanese meals than buffet!
Service: it was good, they had a lady waiter who was attentive to our needs. They also allowed me to order ala carte for my maid who tagged along to help take care of baby.
Xenri D'Garden Terrace details:
Lot 2.04, Second Floor The Podium Menara Hap Seng Jalan P Ramlee Kuala Lumpur Tel: 03-2078 6688
3. Rakuzen Plaza Damas
Because this Japanese restaurant is very accessible from Mont Kiara, we would go to visit often. One thing I learned over the months is to book a reservation because they are popular and they are always full! That is what I would usually do to avoid disappointment. Many locals told me about Rakuzen's popularity and they have been riding the success over the past few years. Lately some of my friends told me about the detriorating food and service quality. And now I believe them. When my family came to visit from Manila I brought them to Rakuzen. The ambience was still nice. Service was bad, you had to literally get the attention of the waiter just to get green tea refills. And the worst of all, we had to eat our food one bento box at a time... meaning the food didn't arrive all at the same time. The timing gap was too long. I told the waitress about their bad service, which she said she would tell the manager.... though it didn't seem sincere. I guess they don't really care because they have so many customers! Plus during my last visit, they delivered the last bento box without the chawan mushi. The waiter said it would follow. And we eventually had to follow up (after successfully catching a waiter's attention), and when it came it was really too late already.
Well... despite having visited that joint at least 20 times already since we lived in Malaysia... I think that will be our last visit. Service was bad. Food quality declining. I will just have to look for other alternatives for my Japanese craving.
RAKUZEN JAPANESE RESTAURANT @ HARTAMAS
Lot P17 Plaza Ground Floor, Hartamas Shopping Centre,
60 Jalan Sri Hartamas 1, Sri Hartamas, 50480 Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: (03) 6201 2060 (03) 6201 5060
4. Sugimoto
The lunch box at this place really impressed me during my last few visit. Simply because the price was so, so affordable! You could also build your own bento box selection, which was great because you had the freedom of choice. But during the last visit this April, well, sad to say the quality has declined. Imagine, they even told my husband he couldn't have sushi in his choice bento because they were running out of fish and can only serve it for the sushi orders ala carte. That fact aside, we still stayed to eat and unfortunately I think their quality has gone down... or could my taste have changed after the pregnancy? I asked hubby if he agreed and he said yes.
It was also a pain to bring baby there as you need to take a small elevator to go up to the restaurant. The place is a bit old. Service is okay. There used to be a very attentive lady waiter and I didn't see her anymore. Maybe she left?
Sugimoto is located at 36-1 & 38-1, Jalan 27/70A, Desa Sri Hartamas, KL.
36-1 & 38-1, Jalan 27/70A, Desa Sri Hartamas,50480, Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: 03- 2300 1102 or 03-2300 1202
That sums up my April Japanese restaurant adventures... just my honest opinion. Hope this helps out some people who are looking for japanese food! In case you have great places to share, do leave a comment so I can check it out next time :)
