Ω over the moon: October 2013

Desa Sri Hartamas is an area that I hardly venture into, when I clearly remember the first time I’ve been there was for a part time job. Still vivid in my mind was quite a number of Japanese restaurants existing when I made rounds around the shop areas, albeit like a maze for me. Parking can be quite a hassle here during weekends, the roads became even more narrow when folks double park their cars.

This time, Nomsterads brought us to this unique Japanese restaurant that serves Japanese fusion food, emphasizing on MSG free as well as continuous innovation to come up with new dishes, definitely something unique compared with the usual fix like basic tempura or sashimi. Talking about customer satisfaction, I’ve read a number of positive reviews and glad to see the chefs’ effort in creating brand new dishes to give Japanese food a whole new ‘fresh look’. They also practice ‘made from scratch’ or homemade concepts in some of their dishes or dessert. Check out the food served to us on the lovely Saturday afternoon.

Just a simple yet calm interior setting with yummy food and bunch of lovelies will do just great.

Alcoholic drinks in glass display as you enter the restaurant.

Four Seasons (RM15 for mini size)- (clockwise from top) a cold dish combination comprising jelly fish, baby octopus (Chuka Idako), tako (squid) wasabi and sebugai (shellfish).

No complaints as all of them were pleasantly fresh and decent. A rather unique pick will be tako wasabi- A gooey mixture of squids and wasabi that provides a hint of kick from wasabi, not too overpowering that will make you tear. Just nice for those who can’t take too much wasabi.

Ko Ebi (RM10)- An irresistible and addictive appetizer that is a must order item. The mini prawns were very lightly coated with kaarage powder then deep fried till golden crispy perfection. Love the slightly salty taste that does not make it just a boring flat shrimp taste. Once you pop, you can’t stop!

Wakazaki (RM6 for half portion)- Essentially ‘ikan bilis’ imported from Japan. Since it is a seasonal dish, it is not in the menu so you will have to ask its availability during your visit. It definitely did not disappoint us, just like the earlier appetizer- crunchy, not greasy and addictive!

Special salad (RM28)- comprises two different types of salad

Suzuki fish + jelly fish + goma (sesame) sauce

Salmon sashimi + salad leaves + pinenuts

Reasonably fresh that left us feeling contented with the raw fish affair. The goma sauce is partly mixed in house, with just the right consistency and amount to go with the elements in the salad. Definitely can’t go wrong with the nutty and fragrant dressing.

Oki Ebi Teppan (RM58- market price)

First impression on the presentation already vowed us to dig in immediately. Super big river prawn head sitting on top of chawanmushi, with super succulent and sweet prawns served beside it. Noticed the fine grounded salt placed beside also? Just dip the prawns with small amount of sodium to enhance the overall flavour. The smoky teppan flavour that coats the super fresh prawns indicates it has been well executed- not overcooked that will affect its texture, also controlling the cooking temperature carefully.

Although the steamed egg custard was ultimately smooth and soft, it was a tad too salty. The smooth gravy that resembles sharks fin soup texture was very flavourful, perfect to go with steamed rice.

Fusion Tuna Plate (RM50)

Wagyu tomato beef (RM48)- wagyu beef cubes, foie gras and shiitake mushrooms

Again, the very flavourful sauce that taste much like Chinese style oyster sauce gravy is suitable to go with steamed rice. We can hardly find the foie gras as the ingredients really look alike. That aside, the bunch of foodies were satisfied with the tender beef cubes. Again, cooked until the right doneness that did not affect its texture. Of course, the presentation also scored extra points from us.

Hisuji steak (RM22)- essentially lamb burger with egg on hot plate

Upon arriving to our table, the dish immediately attracted us due to the fragrant grill aroma. The patty is made from mixture of minced mutton, lamb, chopped onions, corn flour, salt and pepper. Some katsu sauce and mayonnaise is drizzled on top of the cooked patty. The mixture of 2 different meats is on purpose to achieve firm texture, just simple ingredients with chef’s effort will result in a favourable dish.

The egg is poured only when the dish is served to your table. The slight lamb smell did not put us off to enjoy this dish, we also liked the resulting texture as well as just the right savoury taste.

Celeste Maki (RM28)

Lobster salad and tempura prawns wrapped in blue rice made from blue pea flower commonly used in cooking up Nyonya dishes. Now that’s a fusion Japanese food that I’ve first came across.

Volcano Maki (RM22)

Kani (crab) stick, Japanese cucumber and tempura flakes- deep fried then drizzled with special in house Volcano sauce made from tobacco sauce, Shichimi powder and chilli paste. We felt that the spicy and tongue-numbing sauce has overpowered the taste of ingredients inside the maki. Spicy food lovers like me and Pancake can easily polish off the sauce from the plate. The chilli paste is also made from scratch by using lantern shaped chillies from Cameron Highlands, with Aoyama carries the pride that many customers who likes spicy food will request for this chilli paste to be added in their dishes, also applicable to the following dish.

Kyushu Shoyu Ramen (RM28)- spicy and non-spicy versions, only 10 bowls available per day.

Spicy version- with addition of homemade chilli paste

Non-spicy version

The broth being boiled for at least 20 hours made from chicken bones, radish, onions, leeks and Konbu seaweed was light yet pleasantly sweet, just nice to pair with al-dente ramen, chicken roll, sweet peas, corn, seaweed slices, shredded wooden ear fungus, sesame seeds, Japanese green onion and egg.

The chicken roll is rolled then steamed beforehand to maintain its round shape. When customer places an order, the roll will be grilled then coated with Teriyaki sauce. You can request this to be served separately from the ramen instead of letting it soaking in the broth. The rolls were decent, nothing much to shout about. There was one piece that had a rather dry texture while another tasting portion of mine was just fine.

Spicy versions are essentially added with homemade chilli paste, quite spicy for me I would say although I have highly tolerance to spicy food.

Feel free to increase spiciness level

Homemade Ice Cream- (RM16- 1 set of 4 scoops)

Ocean Blue- made from sea salt and blue pea flower to achieve blue appearance. It is interesting to note the slightly salty taste, but not something that I fancy.

Macha Red Bean- easily one of the best I’ve tried. Bitter yet filled with strong matcha that appeals to tastebuds, also topped with homemade red bean paste, exactly what I’m finding for in a perfect macha ice cream. Give me 5 scoops and I will happily enjoy it :P

Vanilla Yuzu- added with Sakae to provide alcoholic boost. I can barely taste the citrus sensation from Yuzu, but the fragrant yet not artificial vanilla fragrance made up for it.

Goma- another typical Japanese ice cream that can’t go wrong if you like the toasty and nutty flavours from sesame. Again, this is another perfect scoop of heaven- the mixture of white and black sesame seeds and groundnuts (extra nutty flavour that other places do not usually add in) really guarantees more than one thumbs up.

Not to mention, all of us love the smooth, creamy yet thick texture of ice cream- I wouldn’t mind treating this to myself once in a while despite of its pricetag.