When work gets me down and I need some comforting, the only way to go is Japanese. I have two favourite restaurants (friends, take note :-P), Zipangu at Shangri-La KL and Iketeru at KL Hilton.

As it turned out, I was working on Thursday (a public holiday) and feeling sorry for myself, and that is how I magically found myself in Iketeru…looking scruffy and woebegone but excited at the prospect of soon savouring comfort food.

Scouring the menu, I zeroed in on happy food…nothing out of the ordinary, nothing exciting, just plain, simple, delicious Japanese food. From unagi kabayaki to sanshina sashimi to ebi tempura to chawan mushi.

Only one dish was not my usual order. Fugu sashimi. I’d read enough about fugu to know that it may be one of the most dangerous meals in the world, but I had faith that I’d live to tell the tale. The fugu fish was sliced very thinly to the point of being semi-transparent and was served with vinegar, finely chopped radish and spring onions. The key is to dip it, very lightly, into the tangy concoction, and not soak it in the vinegar or you’ll end up wondering what happened to that expensive slice of fish. I found it very chewy, the texture being a cross between a fish and a squid.

After that lovely meal, I ended that perfect evening watching our Malaysian girls win The Amazing Race Asia, and watching Talha and Nicholl find out that they are not what women want, or at least not what Marina, Nivi, Nadia and Aishah want.

Iketeru at KL Hilton

3 Jalan Stesen Sentral

Kuala Lumpur Sentral

50470 Kuala Lumpur

Tel: 03-2264 2264/Fax: 03-2264 2266