A couple of weekends ago, feeling tired (and a little lazy) and not wanting to cook dinner (encouraged by Rob's and Honey's "Let's eat out tonight!"), we headed to the nearby Triton Square in search of an Indian restaurant that one of my Japanese mum friends had recommended. I wasn't given the restaurant's name, but a short search on the internet yielded Bombay Cafe. We really ought to try out more restaurants in the neighbourhood, but we suffer from the 'It's-in-our-backyard-we-can-go-anytime' syndrome. The restaurant is managed and run by Japanese staff, but the chef is Indian, so we know the food is authentic. It is a popular choice for families with young children, and even a baby as young as our 1-year-old enjoyed the Indian bread and mildly spicy dal (mind you, I have already introduced curry into his diet from when he was 9 months).
We had a "drink service" coupon downloaded from the internet, which entitled each of us to have a free drink each, including alcohol (valued at least 480 yen each). Rob got the standard Mango Lassi, Honey the Mango Lassi Cocktail and I ordered the Peach Lassi Cocktail. Rob's non-alcoholic lassi was the nicest because I don't think yoghurt combines very well with alcohol. We ordered some Stuffed Kulcha, which contained a filling of chicken and cheese, and this was quite nice for Zak to munch on so that he didn't feel like he was missing out on Indian food.
Lassi Drinks: (left to right) Mango Cocktail, Mango and Peach Cocktail; Stuffed Kulcha with chicken and cheese:
 
We got some Keema Puffs and Spicy Fish, both of which came fresh out of the oil and piping hot. They were tasty and spicy, but a little bit too greasy for my liking.
Keema Puffs and Spicy Fish:
 
For mains, we enjoyed some Dahl and Lamb Rogan Josh with Garlic Naan. The dahl had a buttery taste and was only mildly spicy, mild enough for little Zak to tolerate (in fact, he loved it more than the chicken porridge I'd packed from home!). The rogan josh was spicier, and Rob and Honey both thought this was the best dish of the dinner, but I thought the lamb 'fragrance' was a bit too strong. I'm not a fan of lamb meat though, so I'm sure most people would agree with my husband and sister that the rogan josh was delicious. The naan was deliciously garlicky, not unlike garlic bread, and resembled closer to the traditional style (charred and crusty) than the soft, fluffy and chewy naan served at our favourite Indian restaurant. Strangely, I found myself thinking that the soft, fluffy naan would have done a better job at mopping up the dahl and rogan josh than the more traditional one we had.
Dahl and Rogan Josh with Garlic Naan:
 
We had some Kulfi for dessert, which was flavoured with honey and a hint of almond. The texture was unexpectedly crumbly and a little dry, but not unpleasantly so. Rob and I prefer the one served at Nawab.
Kulfi:
Bombay Cafe is a nice restaurant, but it still can't beat our favourite.
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My birthday celebrations continued the next night with the rest of the family and my friend Kim, and we went to K-town for some Korean food at our favourite Korean restaurant, Kanton no Omoide. As always, Kanton was very accommodating to having a 1-year-old diner, which always helps when dining out with a baby. And as always, the complimentary banchan set was also delicious.
The banchan:
Since it was both my sister's and Kim's first time to Kanton, we ordered favourites such as the Chapchae (cellophane noodles), Chijimi (seafood pancake) and Possam (steamed pork with leafy vegetable). As previously noted, these dishes were delicious. We also ordered Ddeokbokki (cylinder-shaped rice cake) which was served with boiled eggs (chicken and quail), sweet potato cellophane noodles, and vegetables. The ddeokbokki was good, but not as nice as the other dishes. (Photos are courtesy from my sister Honey.)
Chapchae; and Chijimi:
 
Possam; and Ddeokbokki:
 
It was a good birthday meal with family and friend, and after dinner, we went to the hoddeok (sweet Korean pancakes) vendor (same as before) for dessert.
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On the night after my birthday, Rob took me out to a Michelin 2-star-rated restaurant for dinner, having arranged with Honey to babysit Zak. I had no idea where we were going until we walked up to the door of RyuGin. Chef Yamamoto serves up Modern Japanese cuisine done kaiseki- or dégustation-style (read: a multi-dish dinner with lots of dishes!), and there is only one course on offer at this exclusive restaurant: the Gastronomy Course. The food is highly seasonal with the chef preparing dishes based on his inspiration for the ingredients he obtained earlier in the day at the markets. This means that what was served tonight would most probably not make an appearance in tomorrow's menu. When dining at an acclaimed chef's restaurant, I am more than happy to let the chef decide what would be in my meal, as I have the assurance that the chef would have given a lot of care and effort into preparing each and every dish the chef has chosen for the day.
The embroidered oshibori:
 
I haven't had as much experience with kaiseki dining as I would have liked to (they are notoriously expensive, after all), but the two occasions that I previously did have, I enjoyed the experience and food very much. I love sampling small portions of a variety of the chef's specialty dishes, much like the dégustation dinner we enjoyed at Loose Box earlier this year.
An artpiece on the wall - ink painting of a dragon:
We were given very professional service from the moment we stepped through the door. Our waiter spoke English quite well, and used appropriate vocabulary when describing the beverages, which is no small feat considering that there were 40 types of champagnes, 80 variety of white wines, 120 red wines - and this isn't including the Japanese brands and alcohol! The interior has been tastefully and artistically decorated, with an unsubtle emphasis on dragons. 22 gorgeous ceramic plates hang on the wall, and the centerpiece ink painting of a dragon dominates one wall. I appreciated the understated and simple colours which lended to the classy atmosphere. And the food! I loved the attention to detail given to each dish, the artistic presentation in gorgeous wares, and the fact that you can taste excellence in the top quality ingredients that were used. All 12 courses were exquisitely prepared, and I enjoyed every single bite.
For apéritif, we chose some Torotoro Umeshu, on the rocks, which was gorgeously fruity and not too sweet.
1st course: Vegetable Amuse of Two Clams and Okara - this was the perfect start to the meal, smooth creamy texture interspersed with slightly crunchy carrot and bursts of citrus flavour from bits of yuzu.
 
2nd course: Warm Appetiser of Steamed Abalone and Fried Potato - the abalone was cooked for 6 hours, and the result was the most tender abalone I've ever eaten! The croquette had prawns in them, and I loved the textural contrast of the crunchy coating and the soft creamy centre.
3rd course: Cold Appetiser of Two Crabs with Apple Vinegar Jelly - the sweet flesh of the blue swimmer crab was topped with the kani miso (literally means "crab brains", i.e. innards) of the Shanghai crab and finished with a mildly sweet vinegar jelly. Eating crab guts may sound gross, but it didn't taste like I was eating innards of a crustacean. I honestly do think that it served quite well to emphasise the sweetness of the crab meat. And it was pretty nice on its own too, with complex crab flavours, and not as pungent as other kani miso I've had.
 
4th course: Chef's Autumn Specialty of Clear Soup with Grilled Snapper and Matsutake. Made with ichiban dashi (first brewed soup stock) and the famously expensive matsutake mushrooms, this was a real treat to eat. The crispy skin snapper had been grilled to perfection, and was succulent and delicious. I really liked the lacquerware that held the soup - the gold dragon on the inside of the lid was a pleasant surprise.
 
5th course: RyuGin Assorted Sashimi with Red Snapper, Tuna and Japanese Lobster. I love sashimi, and this one was excellent! I savoured the raw lobster meat slowly, and had the first piece of the other items on its own without any wasabi, soy or other condiments. I had fun with this course as I squirted the second piece of every item with Japanese lime juice, dunked them in salt and topped with wasabi. Simply delicious.
6th course: Autumn Special (seasonal dish) of Ankimo (monkfish liver). Our waiter was accurate in his description of 'Japanese fish foiegras' - it was every bit as fatty and delicious as its duck or goose counterpart, and it was so rich that I could only have half of my portion (Rob happily helped finish off the rest). The liver patty was served in a shallow broth of grated gobo (burdock root) and a type of bright green bean.
 
7th course: Char-grilled Sea Perch - the fish had a coating of crispy fried (or popped?) rice, topped with a mound of fluffy grated chestnut and finished with a grilled matsutake mushroom. This was another excellent dish, a treat for all the senses: visually appealing, soft tender flesh contrasted with the crispy coating, and wonderful flavours.
8th course: Meat of the Day with Iwate Wagyu, Shiitake and Figs. The wagyu was cooked rare and every bit as fatty and tasty as wagyu ought to be, served with a relish of onion and chestnuts. A cube of sweet marinated persimmon, nut-coated fried shiitake and a juicy fig segment were creative accompaniments to the beef, and so delicious that I wish there were more of them. Dare I say that I enjoyed these accompaniments more than the wagyu itself? They were that good.
 
9th course: Seasonal Rice with Miso Soup and RyuGin Pickles. The grilled anago (seawater eel) was perhaps the best I've had, and the yuzu-seasoned rice that the anago laid upon was quite refreshing. The pickles were gorgeously presented in a nori wrap.
 
Rob had an additional optional Special Rice course because he still had room in his belly for more food (I was well and truly full at this stage!). This course was a small portion of seasoned rice with fish and ikura (salmon roe). I didn't have a taste of this, but Rob said it was pretty good.
10th course: First Dessert of Orange and Fragrant Olive Sorbet - I love the colour, and if bright could have a flavour, this sorbet would describe it. Excellent palate cleanser.
11th course: Second Dessert of Warabimochi with Coconut, Kinako and Genmaicha Flavours. The warabimochi was prepared like a mousse, and each little cube would burst in the mouth, releasing an explosion of intense flavour on the tongue. All three were good, but our favourite was the kinako (roasted soybean.
 
12th course: Third Dessert of Baked Chestnut Cake with 2 Types of Cream (Chestnut and Sweet Potato with Lemon). One word: divine.
To finish, we enjoyed a bowl of perfectly prepared Matcha. I love anything matcha-flavoured, so drinking the real thing is always a nice treat.
 
I really enjoyed this birthday dinner, and I left with a very full and happy belly. It's our second real dinner date (i.e. without baby) since Zak was born more than a year ago, and our last dinner date was more than 6 months ago! We both love our son very much, but it felt good to enjoy each other's company on an actual date.
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The other weekend, the three of us, with the baby in his pram, took the short walk into Tsukishima for the local specialty, Monjayaki as well as Okonomiyaki and Yaki soba. We went to Bambi on Monja Street where Rob had been twice previously with family and friends.
On Monja Street:
My sister took plenty of photos, but since I've previously given a pictorial on how to cook okonomiyaki and monjayaki on the teppan (hot plate), and cooking yakisoba is quite straightforward, I'll just show the "before" and "after" photos of these dishes here.
Monjayaki with Cheese and Mochi - the cheese gave a lovely bottom crust and the mochi (glutinous rice cubes) gave a chewy contrast of texture:
 
Okonomiyaki with Ebi (prawns) and Hotate (scallops):
 
Yakisoba Gomoku (with five ingredients):
 
For dessert, we got some delicious Chocolate Crepe, which Rob kindly cooked for us. In fact, Rob cooked most of the other dishes too, and did a great job (I was happy to sit back and not cook for once!).
Chocolate Crepe - the ingredients; and pouring the batter on the teppan:
 
Spread the batter thinly; then placing the chocolates on the thin layer:
 
Folding the batter to your desired shape:
 
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I mentioned previously that my sister Honey recently arrived in Tokyo to stay for a while. Naturally I've been taking her to our favourite eats, including to our favourite sushi restaurant at Sushi Zanmai in Tsukiji.
On our first visit, Honey and I shared an order of the Sashimi Set as an afternoon snack (we had the 1 year old with us, so we chose a table instead of sitting at the counter). The set included kohada (gizzard shard), maguro (tuna), ikura (salmon roe), ika (squid), akagai (ark shell) and botan ebi (spotted shrimp). All were fresh and delicious. On our second visit only a week later with my friends visiting from Australia, we left Zak at home with Rob so that Honey and my friends could have the counter experience. As always, the quality was excellent, and everyone enjoyed the variety of sushi that is not available back home in Australia, such as uni (sea urchin roe/gonads), ama-ebi (sweet shrimp) and joh-anago ('top quality' sea eel).
The Zanmai Sashimi set; and Joh-Anago (grilled sea eel), which is one of my favourite sushi items at Zanmai:
 
After our sushi brunch, we headed into Ginza on foot, past the Kabuki theatre, and by pure chance we arrived on the main street (Chuo-dori) at 12pm on the dot which is the the time when the street becomes a "pedestrians paradise" (only on weekends). We watched as the police waited for the nearby clock to start chiming and then set up road blocks to cordon off motor traffic for pedestrians-only access on the street.
With Honey on Chuo-dori in Ginza:
I brought our group to Pierre Marcolini Chocolatier where we indulged in delicious (but pricey) ice cream (I've had ice cream from this chocolatier twice before).
Poring over the ice cream menu in front of the ice cream cafe section of Pierre Marcolini (next door is the chocolate cafe); Honey's 2-scoop ice cream cone:
 
The display case inside, showcasing cakes and eclairs as well as ice cream;:
 
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I'm not a big fan of ramen (too reminiscent of instant noodles), but I must admit that I wanted to try some of these noodles after reading this blog about tonkotsu ramen last year. Mind you, I was pregnant with Zak at the time, and although I had no cravings for any particular things, my huge appetite had grown even bigger. For some reason or another, we never did get around to visiting one of those ubiquitous ramen shops that satisfy many a sarariman ("salaryman") and oeru ("office lady") in search for a quick, filling and cheap (albeit unhealthy) meal during and/or after office hours.
My younger sister Honey recently arrived in Tokyo, and was told by a friend that she must eat the tonkotsu ramen at Ichiran (coincidentally - or not - the same one I'd read about last year). This past weekend, Honey and I were in the area near the Roppongi branch of this Fukuoka-based tonkotsu ramen shop, and that was where we headed to for lunch that day. It was an interesting experience. There's a vending machine near the entrance into Ichiran where customers order and pay for their ramen, and the machine will spit out tokens. We took the guessing game out of how to order, and instead requested English order sheets. There is also a lit display of the restaurant layout indicating empty stalls, which makes it easy to find a seat quickly. The whole process was very efficient, that I felt I was lingering a bit too long in my little booth while waiting for Honey to finish her bowl after I had eaten mine.
The ordering sheet gave us the options to choose our desired flavour strength, richness (fat content), amount of garlic, amount of green onion, with or without roast pork, amount of "secret sauce" and noodle's tenderness. We could also order extra noodles, boiled egg, extra pork and a range of other ingredients to have with our ramen. I ordered my ramen with medium flavour, light richness, regular garlic, strong green onion, with roast pork, half "secret sauce" and medium done noodles. I also got a ni tamago (boiled egg) for 100yen extra.
So how was it? Well, I thought it tasted just like instant noodles (and I'm no fan of those packets either). Honey loved the ramen, so maybe it's just me. I honestly don't understand the ramen craze, and could quite easily live without it. This ramen experience may have been lost on me, but ramen fans would love these tonkotsu ramen at Ichiran.
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I'm still catching up on blogging about our trip, but this is the last post relating to the trip. We headed to Sydney after our Malaysia trip for another wedding, where we enjoyed a more relaxed itinerary to recover from our busy (and gluttonous) schedule in Malaysia. We enjoyed more 'home' time with my immediate family in the suburbs than going out, but we did make the trek out to the city a few times where we enjoyed good dining experiences.
Zilver Restaurant
Since my immediate family had gathered in Sydney for my sister's wedding, we decided to have an early celebration for Zak's 1st birthday so that my family won't feel like they missed out on his actual birthday two weeks later when we're back in Tokyo. I wanted a banquet-style setting that would be comfortable for a baby, and my Sydneysider sisters suggested a rather swanky Chinese restaurant called Zilver. The restaurant was quite full despite being a week night, and I took this to be a promising sign that the food would at least be good. Dishes are quite pricey for Chinese cuisine, but the food were delicious made from good quality produce.
To start with, we got a BBQ Tasting Platter with barbecued pork, roast suckling pig, roast duck, soy-sauce chicken and jelly fish salad. I enjoyed it, all the different flavours and textures of each type of meat on the one platter. I wanted a claypot dish, and the Braised Pork-stuffed Bean Curd with Pickled Mustard Greens and Peas was a hearty but healthy choice.
Combination BBQ Platter and the Pork-stuffed Bean curd:
 
Not so healthy but very yummy were the Crispy Skin Chicken with Ginger and Shallots in Soy Sauce and the Sizzling Shredded Beef Peking Style. The crisp-fried chicken skin contrasted the tender flesh, and the shredded beef were very more-ish much like potato fries where you keep going back for more.
Crispy Skin Chicken and Peking-style Beef:
 
To make up for the not-so-healthy dishes, we had the Braised Seasonal Vegetables Wrapped in Lotus Leaf and Stir fried Scallops with XO Sauce and Snow Peas. Both dishes were cooked well which made healthy eating quite enjoyable.
Vegetables and Scallops & Snow Peas:
 
Some at the table requested a carbs dish, and the Zilver Chef's Special Fried Rice with Crab Meat and Fried Scallop satisfied that need perfectly. This dish reminded me of the Japanised Chinese-style fried rice you can get in Japan, with stuff in thick sauce served atop the fried rice. After the meal, we enjoyed a Taro Birthday Cake which we'd picked up from a Chinese bakery in nearby Chinatown on Dixon Street. Zak had a little taste of it and enjoyed it a lot!
Special Fried Rice and Taro Cake:
 
We enjoyed good food and good company that night!
Encasa
Rob's dad and his wife flew into Sydney from Brisbane for a weekend to spend some time with us. We had lunch on a Friday at Encasa, a Spanish restaurant on Pitt Street. This is another popular restaurant located in a good location, and the waitstaff were kept quite busy during the lunch period, so service was understandably quite slow. However, the waitstaff were friendly and we were given good service. We shared tapas as we sipped on sangria, a red wine punch that was quite sweet and rather enjoyable to drink. We ordered quite a few tapas, and our waiter had to stop us from ordering more than we could finish. Everything were delicious, and the ones that I particularly liked were the scallops and the croquettes.
Glasses of sangria; and Chorizo a la Plancha (grilled Spanish sausage):
 
Pinchos de Pollo con Mojoy (chicken skewers); and Pinchos Morunos (prime lamb fillet skewers in Moroccan spices):
 
Albondigas (beef meatballs in almond sauce); and Vieiras en Azafrán (scallops in the shell with saffron, shallot and cream sauce)
 
Croquettes; and Supreme Pizza:
 
It was great of Rob's dad and his wife to fly into Sydney just to see us. Once again, we had good food and lovely company!
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Has a year already gone by? It has been an unforgettable year full of happiness and frustration, and it really is amazing watching Zak grow up from a tiny helpless newborn to a 1 year old capable of doing so many things. Zak is now no longer a baby, but a little boy who is constantly bringing such joy and delight to our lives. To celebrate this momentous occasion, we had a small gathering at our apartment with my younger sister Honey (who arrived a few days prior) and a couple of friends.
A couple of simple entree that Honey quickly put together - Camembert Cheese with Crackers, and Pineapple Ham; and Chicken, Spinach and "Ricotta" Cannelloni (Rob bought mascarpone by mistake, but it worked out well), salad and Improbable Quiche prepared by Rob, Honey and me - yes, it was a tight fit in the tiny kitchen with the 3 of us in it.:
 
The birthday boy and the birthday cake - Apple and Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting, which is baby-friendly and perhaps a bit too healthy for a birthday cake:
Happy birthday my little Zippy!
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After all that eating we did in Kuching, we flew back to KL for a couple of nights before heading on to Sydney. My auntie's birthday fell on our final night in KL, so we went out to dinner at a Korean restaurant to celebrate. My auntie and her daughters have a favourite Korean out in Petaling Jaya, but because we had a grumpy baby ton our hands, we decided to go to one nearby her house (where we were staying at) in the Taipan business area of USJ (Subang Jaya).
Han Woo Ri Korean BBQ is quite a nice spacious restaurant, with attentive staff who gave really good service. Rob said that he was rather surprised at the level of service which, in his experience, is not a common occurrence in Malaysia. Of course, it was a Thursday night in a relatively empty restaurant so we got more of the staff's attention, but I still think that the restaurant's service is worth commending. The barbecue items range around the RM 20-30, side dishes around the RM10-20 and main dishes around RM30-40. Our fellow diners' previous experiences with Korean cuisine were limited to the BBQ meals, so we ordered a number of non-barbecue dishes in addition to the barbecue ones (BBQ Chicken and Tueji Galbi (pork ribs)).
After we ordered, the banchan (complimentary side dishes) were placed on our table - no less than 12 small plates, which is the most number of banchan I've ever had in Korean restaurants in Australia, US or Japan! And the nicest thing was that we got a complimentary dish of Pajeon (seafood pancake)! Rob and I had wanted the others to try it, but decided against ordering it because my cousin is allergic to seafood. The manager said that he'd throw in that dish on the house, which meant that we all got to enjoy it anyway.
Wide array of banchan surrounding the barbecue plate, where the pork ribs were being barbecued; and the condiments to go with the barbecue dishes:
 
Ddeokbokki and Japchae:
 
Pajeon; and complimentary fruit and sweet for after the meal:
 
This was perhaps the most affordable Korean dining experience we've had - delicious food and great service, and we had wonderful company.
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