Fukuya, One Bangsar

fukuya

1.

Turning on my computer at home is like being in a new relationship.  “Will I get lucky tonight?” sums it all up.  And right now, it looks like my hymen is going to stay intact for a while longer.

The recent elections has taught us one thing – more power to the people.   With flexed muscles, bulging biceps and a boost of foolhardy egocentric power, I now propose a vote against my broadband service provider

I apologize for the lack of updates.  Blame it on them.  I’ll be glad to give you their number.  I hope you like elevator music.

2. 

When I travel, I rarely buy souvenirs for myself.  But wherever I go, I can’t resist one thing – hats.  I am not talking about the kind of hats those high society women wear to Ascot.  No, no, absolutely not.  My hats are far more eyecatching, I assure you and I’ve learnt to wear them with more finesse than an elephant can muster (which isn’t saying a lot, but I never did claim to be graceful).

Naturally, my green hat which I bought at the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin came in useful on St. Patrick’s Day.  I need to find more “green” events to parade this hat, but for that day, we maximised the 10 Euros worth by rotating it among ourselves.

Anyway, there were a lot of Irish folk at Mont Kiara last Saturday as Malaysians renounced their nationality for the sake of a free beer.   The St. Patrick’s Day celebration, hosted by Guinness, saw lots of food, drinks and leprechauns with chinese accents.

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For more stories, check out Boolicious’ take on the event.

3.

Just hours before the partying, we were having a more subdued affair at the newly opened Fukuya at One Bangsar.  I must say that I went there with some apprehension.  When it comes to Japanese food, my first criteria is always freshness, and a close second is creativity, like in the pairing of foods and their presentation.  How can I not have high expectations of Japanese food, especially taking into account the extravagant prices we pay?  My first time at Fukuya (at Jalan Delima KL) was when we celebrated Paprika’s 23rd birthday.  A sweep of the billowing black curtains at the main entrance revealed a restaurant akin to a rich man’s home complete with  courtyards and secret rooms. But the food was so ordinary that we felt a little shortchanged. 

However, I do believe that everyone deserves a second chance.  Boo had tried the lunch kaiseki and had given it a glowing review.  Affected by her enthusiasm, I agreed to have lunch with her and Splashie Boy at the Bangsar outlet.  I ordered the Mini Kaiseki which seemed quite a steal at a little over RM50.  The appetiser came beautifully presented.  A delicately flavoured sea-urchin tofu that literally melted in the mouth, a grilled clam, a couple of rather chewy pieces of squid and plum-simmered ice fish made up the first course.  The soup was a very clear, subtly flavoured clam soup with a hint of flavour derived from the thinly sliced leeks.  My sashimi platter was a generous serving of thickly cut pieces of fish, and I thought the most outstanding one was what appeared to be white tuna which had a nice creamy taste.  The next serving was a beautifully paired combination of grilled salmon with pickled young papaya which resulted in a combination of sweet and savoury with a bit of crunch.  I loved the simmered dish – beef that literally melted in my mouth as I took every bite.  The tempura was crunchy and a delight to eat.  And the shokuji dish of noodles made for a simple ending to a meal that got me gasping with delight at every bite.  The dessert that day was fresh fruits and a lime sorbet that was very refreshing.

Fukuya is now a firm favourite for me as far as kaiseki lunches go.

Fukuya
One Bangsar, 63B Jalan Ara,
Bangsar Baru 59100 Kuala Lumpur.
Tel : 603 2282 1111
Fax : 603 2282 5959

Operation Hours
[ Lunch ] Noon – 2.30pm
[ Dinner ] 6.30pm – 10.30pm

Also see SC’s review here.

appetiser

No. 1 – Appetiser

  plum simmered ice fish

Plum simmered ice fish – woooooo look at the eyes

soup

No. 2 – Soup

sashimi

No. 3 – Sashimi

grilled dish

No. 4 – Grilled dish

simmered dish

No. 5 – Simmered dish

fried dish

No. 6 – fried dish

noodles

No. 7 – Noodles

dessert

No. 8 – Dessert

Kampachi @ Pavilion KL

sushi & sashimi bentoIt was one of those spontaneous moments when JFKA wannabe, Nipples, asked me to join him for dinner at the latest mall in town and I said yes. I wanted to eat at Kampachi, and he didn’t mind eating at Kampachi again, so it was an easy decision to make. After all, I never say no to Japanese food.

Seasoned baby octopus

Getting a table wasn’t very difficult on a weekday night, but we chose to sit at the sushi bar instead, hoping to catch a glimpse of some of the action behind the counter. We were not disappointed. 2 little plates of seasoned baby octopus were placed in front of us. I loved the sweet and savoury dish which went down in an instant.

cold soba with dried nori tsuyu with condiments - raw quail's egg and chopped spring onions

Since Nipples didn’t get a chance to eat soba on his first visit to Kampachi, this was his obvious choice. His cold soba served with crisp nori came with a tsuyu broth with raw quail’s egg and chopped spring onions.

grilled fish tempura

His set also came with tempura and grilled fish. If I’m not mistaken, it cost a little over RM30. He seemed quite pleased with his meal.

sashimi

I took the sushi and sashimi bento (RM40). What I like about the sashimi is that they were generous portions – thick cut and very fresh.

unagi

It also came with grilled unagi (eel). Aaaah. Despite the unadventurous orders, this was comfort food for us. The food’s good. The prices are reasonable. The ingredients are fresh. Definitely worth a second visit.

sushi

Also see Lots Of Cravings and Masak-masak for reviews of other good stuff.

Kampachi @ Pavilion
Level 6, Pavilion, KL.

Tel: 03-2148 9608

7 Years of Surprises…And To Many More, Darling

1.molten chocolate cake My life has always been about 3 guesses. For 18 years of our lives (7 spent married), we’d been playing the guessing game.

“What’s for dinner tonight, dear?”
“I’ll give you 3 guesses.”

“What movie are we watching?”
“3 guesses before the next ad comes on!”

“What car are you buying?”
“Guess lah.”

Well, you get the idea. However, sometimes, the guessing game backfires.

“Where are we going tonight?”

“Guess.” He keeps me in the dark.

I make my guess, and dress in a nice smart casual outfit and meet him after work. That’s when I spy loads of elegant looking people dressed to the nines in Choo and Blahnik, dripping with jewels.

“Fock man. You could have told me!! The fockin’ Queen is here, and I’m dressed in……focking’ office clothes??!!?!”

He eased up on me for a couple of months, but resumed his impish ways soon after. A leopard never loses its spots.

2.

Bald Eagle It was our wedding anniversary and we were going out for a romantic dinner. The usual charade ensued.

“Where are we going?”

“It’s a surprise. I’ll give you 3 guesses.”

“Give me a hint, at least.”

“Fine. I’ll give you 2 hints. It’s connected to The Gardens (Mid Valley), and it’s Japanese,” he offered graciously.

That seemed simple enough. “Yuzu,” I proclaimed. “We’re definitely going to Yuzu.”

“Wear something nice,” he winked, neither affirming nor denying.

3.

Since he was buying, I offered to drive (after all, marriage is a 50-50 deal, isn’t it?).

I was soon driving past Mid Valley straight on to the roads leading to the American Embassy. As we drove into the carpark at MiCasa, I still couldn’t figure out his clues. (I really should have paid more attention to Fatboybakes’ blog entry on Cilantro last week instead of merely gawking at the stupendous amount of foie gras he had consumed.)

“Ok. Explain yourself,” I demanded. “What has Cilantro got to do with The Gardens or Japanese?”

“Cilantro will be opening a branch in The Gardens,” he paused for dramatic effect, “and Cilantro is a French-Japanese fusion restaurant!” Did I imagine the “ta-da!” at the end?

Bald Eagle = 1, Lyrical Lemongrass = 0.

4.

freshly baked bread truffle butter As we sat down in the plush semi-circular seat, we were told that the bread would take another 15 minutes. “Freshly baked bread!” I exclaimed. And what a magnificent treat it was to eat the bread spread with the most delicious truffle butter! We loved it so much that we actually finished up all the bread on the table, only to be asked politely if we wanted any more. I blushed and mumbled that the truffle butter was glorious, and the kindly looking lady nodded knowingly, probably used to the same reaction from all her guests.

IMG_2067 A tiny bit of chicken sausage served with a gelatinous topping came with the chef’s compliments. I never thought chicken sausage could taste so good.

unagi and foie gras My starter was a Pan-fried Unagi with Foie Gras (RM68). The grilled eel was layered with foie gras, then coated with flour and fried. Cut horizontally across the layers, pop it into your mouth and feel the sweet richness melt in your mouth. Along with cream coloured ponies and crisp apple strudels, this must definitely be one of my favourite things.

truffle souffle The appetisers list was extensive, and it was a tough choice. How does one choose from 6 hot and 6 cold appetisers, all carrying names with at least 5 words in each? He, being the more decisive person in our relationship, took only 2 minutes as compared to my 10 to decide on the the first dish. His Baked Truffle Souffle with Parmigiano Reggiano (RM48) came with a creamy truffle sauce that was utterly decadent. Another melt-in-your-mouth experience.

palate cleanser In between courses, we were served a white wine granita to cleanse the palate. It had a nice granular texture.

lightly smoked salmon

I’ve always loved fish. But this time, I made sure I spent 15 minutes scrutinising all the items on the Main Course list before I made my final decision. My Lightly Smoked Salmon with Confit of Beetroot, Truffle Soy Vinaigrette (RM68) was perfect. The outer layer of the slab of salmon was lightly cooked, and as the layers progressed to the centre, it was almost raw. The musky scent of the truffle mixed with the distinct salmon flavour together with the generous portion of salmon roe created a rather salty combination, but mix it with the sweet creamy sauce and a perfect balance of flavours is created. Every bite was ecstacy.

wagyu cheeks

He was equally enraptured with his Wasabi Crumble Crusted Wagyu Cheek with Roasted Mushrooms (RM68). The flavour of the wasabi very lightly caressed the tender slab of wagyu cheek. Another recommended dish.

green tea souffle Desserts are priced at RM32 each, but a group can opt for 4 choices (dessert platter) at RM98. Although I was initially keen on trying the dessert platter, sensibility prevailed as I accepted the reality of the situation. I was stuffed. And so, reluctantly, I chose the dessert which I felt would be the lightest – the Home-made Souffle in Green Tea with Green Tea Ice Cream. It was a great choice as the eggy smell wafted into my nostrils like a temptress after her diamonds. I loved the souffle as it wasn’t too sweet thanks to the green tea which added a hint of bitterness to the overall flavour. The green tea ice cream was definitely homemade.

molten chocolate cake Bald Eagle went for the bold and brazen choice of Dark Chocolate Cup Cake with Earl Grey Ice Cream. Ah…what is there not to like about a molten chocolate cake!

I hear that the restaurant will be undergoing renovations come March 2008, so if you’re keen to visit this place, do so before then. Also, rumour has it that the new outlet at The Gardens will be serving predominantly Mediterranean cuisine, so expect a different menu.

Cilantro
Restaurant and Wine Bar
368B, Jalan 1/68F, Off Jalan Tun Razak
50400 Kuala Lumpur

Tel: 03-21798000 or 03-21798048 (DL)

Operating hours: 6.00pm to 1.00am Mon to Sat; 12.00 noon to 2.00pm every Friday. Closed on Sunday.

The good people of Abu Dhabi who are unable to view my flickr pics may view pics here.