Rakuzen @ Hartamas Shopping Center, KL

Our families eat here a lot. And from the look of things, especially the line that is snaking form the counter to the outer part of the waiting area, so do half of the PJ/KL folk!

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When you first walk in to Rakuzen, you get the sense that it is going to be a really “tight” night. The place is packed and it’s no surprise as the prices here are affordable and the food is pretty all right. They greet you with “irashaimase” pronounced in the mangled, garbled pronunciations you can hear at a lot of the non Japanese waiter-ed restaurants. It’s a small thing but for a person that understands the word, it’s a constant irritant to have it butchered. Why do non-Japanese staff have to pretend to speak Japanese? They could just as easily say “welcome”, or “selamat datang” and it would not detract from the charm.

Ok, ok.. better stop being grouchy. I must be really hungry today… haha…
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But anyway, that’s where my criticism stops. The sushi here is excellent! The rice is expertly flavoured and the fish is absolutely delicious. Very good quality without the bad flavour that can come when ordering whitefish at some lower quality establishments.

I am not a big fan of vegetables at japanese restuarants, simply because the choices are few, and the veges are normally cooked to death. The Rakuzen Seafood Salad however, is out of this world. The salad is light and crunchy, while the seafood is sweet and still in its basic raw, juicy state. That rich, creamy, heart-stopping Rakuzen special sauce that come with it just blows my socks off. Very, very good.

Tempura is a must! I could see, and was impressed that the chef mixed a fresh batch of batter for each order of tempura that he made. There are some restaurants I’ve been to, that treat tempura as any other deep fried dish and get the batter completely wrong. It’s important to use clean oil and fresh batter when making tempura. Rakuzen does both. When the tempura got to the table, I could almost hear the batter crackle! Not bad at all. I could have sworn that the prawn on the inside was still wriggling/pulsating.. that fresh:)

All in all a good night. Our families chatted, bonded, and laughed like crazy over a bottle of sake and some excellent food. We always have fun at Rakuzen, oh yes we do!

Add:

Rakuzen,
Lot P17, Ground Floor
Hartamas Shopping Centre
KL

Food:7/10

Service:6/10

Ambiance:5/10

MSG levels: moderate


At 8 am this morn, we wanna wish our readers – Happy 08.08.08! Wishing you Joy, Peace and Grace on this special day! More power to ya! Hugs n keeses XOXO, cumidanciki 😀

12 Comments

  • J2Kfm says:

    oh, one of the must-try sitting in my list, unattended to.
    probably cz all 3 of their branches are not so accessible. (or I could be lost lost … )

    “selamat dating” to you too … =P

  • Life for Beginners | Kenny Mah says:

    Oh I so know what you mean about the dreary veges and odd-sounding welcome greetings at Japanese restaurants. Consider me a fan if they do right by the greens (of which I’ve been a fan of, even when I was a kid!)

  • backstreetgluttons says:

    sometimes or is it all da time, if only ambience & fun can be raised to 9.9 by the presence of initial bsg
    …sigh…
    but Jap food is cool baby

  • Julian Si says:

    Happy 8 – 8 – 8 to you too!!

    I too LOVE rakuzen, but espesh the one at Subang … do try it out. I think they vary in service and food quality somewhat, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the Subang branch 🙂 It’s excellent!

  • mimid3vils says:

    I’ve tried their buffet really not bad ler~~

  • CUMI & CIKI says:

    j2kfm:
    lol.. cool!

    kenny:
    wah.. such a good boy.. even fm a young age eh.. ;P

    bsg:
    agree

    julian:
    ok, will try it out.. but hardly in subang area much 😀

    mimi:
    good 2know!

  • fatboybakes says:

    i’ve never been able to get a table for dinner at rakuzen. grrrrr….

  • Precious Pea says:

    Sigh, i am so lack of good Jap food! And they way you describe the food, aiyer….such a torture!!

  • Big Boys Oven says:

    very nice lar . . .. . I will definitely will never say NO!

  • Nic (KHKL) says:

    there has never been a bad review on this ‘zen’. apparently, the buffet’s a steal. but onli at chulan square me thinks.

    happy belated 080808 ;D

  • CUMI & CIKI says:

    fbb:
    i know the feeling.. i don’t understand why that place gets so packed.. the shopping mall is normally like a ghost town!

    pea:
    you need your fix… now!

    bbo:
    ‘that’s what she said’.. (office sitcom joke)

    nic:
    080808.. not gonna happen again in our lifetime:D

  • JR.Reaper says:

    RAKUZEN!!!its been years since i went there..the first and last time i went there was with my mum ex-boyfriend..he always bring us to luxurious food places..too bad i wasn’t a food blogger back then..

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