Monday 24 March 2014

Maruhi Sakaba @ Taman Desa, KL

Maruhi Sakaba is a popular yakitori joint at Taman Desa. If you follow Google map, most likely you will not be able to find the restaurant as it is located a block away from the indicated location. The signboard is so small I wonder why they even bother putting it up, with Chinese characters only O.O Somehow by chance, I spotted the restaurant and managed to skip several rounds of circling the square. The tip is to look for Public Bank and Maruhi Sakaba is located a few doors down the street.



See the extremely small signboard? 


Yakitori bar with non-existent decor


Menu
The menu is relatively limited compared to Sumi-Ka at SS15 but there are more choices written on a board at the far end of the yakitori station. The board includes daily specials as well as recommendations of their main staples.

L-R: Spicy chilli sauce, salty bean paste sauce
The green chilli sauce on the left was extremely spicy, sort of like pan mee sauce but also very addictive. The one on the right was slightly too salty for me and tasted like Chinese bean paste.

Maruhi Sour (RM 45)
Yep, you read right. It costs RM 45 for this big kettle of Maruhi Sour which apparently is some sort of alcoholic drink. It is very mild though and as its name suggests, a little sour =P

A shot of Maruhi Sour =P


Pickled Cucumber (RM 5)
Crunchy and slightly sourish, the pickled cucumber slices help to cool down the body after digesting meat that came straight off the grill.

Edamame (RM 3)
Not a bad portion for RM 3.

Pork Liver (RM 4)
When the pork liver was first delivered to our table, it was still kind of raw so we sent it back with instructions for it to be fully cooked. When it returned, it was extremely well done which meant it was quite hard and chewy. Despite that, it still tasted nice if you are a regular pork liver eater.

Pork Tongue (RM 4)
Many of our friends did not want to try the pork tongue but those who tried it agreed that it actually tasted really good! Chewy but with meaty flavour, I thought it was one of the best skewers we had that night. Will definitely order this when I return.

Pork Belly (RM 4)
The pork belly was awesome! Definitely the star of the show, it was crispy and flavourful with the salt marinade. RM 4 for a stick really is not too bad at all.

Chicken Thigh (RM 4)
The chicken thigh was moist but its flavour not too outstanding.

Chicken Skin (RM 4)
Chicken skin was quite crispy and well flavoured with salt.

Maruhi Don (RM 15)
A home style version of oyakodon, this minced meat rice bowl with egg is extremely comforting. The bowl is large enough to be shared by two if you're ordering yakitori as well and they are generous with the amount of minced pork given.

Tamagodon (RM 5)
Can't remember the name of this dish but it's just a simple bowl of rice topped with an awesome fried egg. So simple and so good. My friend had this with pork belly skewers d^_^b

Yakibuta Don (RM 15)
The Yakibuta Don came with 2 strips of grilled pork belly, grilled okra and grilled eggplant, topped with yakitori sauce, scallions and toasted sesame seeds. Every ingredient was really good, even the vegetables. It is a good choice to order if you are unsure of what to eat ^_^

All rice bowls come with a relatively large bowl of light miso soup. There is not much miso taste, hence not very salty, but it is very good in alleviating the oiliness and heatiness of yakitori. The soup contains lots of seaweed and scallions which I really like.

We also had grilled intestines which were super chewy and sort of like soft bone. Grilled with salt, there was not much taste of intestine. Another item was enoki mushrooms wrapped with bacon which were good too.

Overall, every item we had at Maruhi Sakaba was awesome and I can't wait to return. Do note that you will not be able to escape being blasted with the smell and fumes of grilled meat =)


PawPoints: 4 Paws
Pawket: Tomato


Maruhi Sakaba
6A, Faber Plaza
Jalan Desa Jaya
Taman Desa
Tue - Sun: 6pm - 10.30pm

Wednesday 12 March 2014

Xiao Long Bao and Noodles @ Din Tai Fung

Well, I'm sure everyone is already well-acquainted with Din Tai Fung and its famous xiao long baos. Anyway here are my 2 paws on Din Tai Fung's scrumptious food =)
        
Their signature dish
     
Wantan Soup La Mian
     
Don't really know why JS ordered this since it looks soooo PLAIN but he should be comforted by the two bulbs of xiao bai chai ^_^
     
Shrimp Pork Wantan Soup 
     
Their wantans are really bouncy and chockful of shrimp and pork meat filling. Not a fan of Hong Kong style wantan soup though as it tastes too shrimpy to me.
       
Xiao Long Bao
       
This is their signature dish which is as good as they claim to be =)
       
Delicate stuff
               
Hot and Sour Soup La Mian
         
I love Sichuan food so this hot and sour soup suits me just fine. Very peppery and the thin somen like noodles absorb the flavours nicely. Also love the soft silky tofu bits and crunchy woodear fungus.
             
Grouper Fish Dumplings
           
Grouper fish dumplings are a welcome change to the usual wantans and xiao long baos. Quite delicious actually and not fishy at all.
         
Shrimp Fried Rice
         
I love having fried rice at Chinese restaurants as the chefs do it so well with lots of fluffy egg, crunchy shrimps and the nice aroma of wok hei.
           
Spicy Shrimp Pork Wantan La Mian
         
An interesting variation of the usual wantan noodles, the spicy la mian includes a dash of chilli oil and tasted really good.
       
         
PawPoints: 4 Paws
Pawket: Onion
                    
Din Tai Fung
Various malls

Sunday 2 March 2014

Sanbanto @ SS2, PJ

We first tried Sanbanto SS2 a few years ago when porky restaurants were scarce and thought it a very good concept with good food to boot. We recently made another visit to its Bangsar outlet which is located in the row of shophouses behind TMC.
       
*squeal*
   
Shop Front
        
Interior
      
Menu
       
Anatomy of the pig
         
Tonkatsu (RM 21)
     
I had the deep fried bread pork cutlet which came with tonkatsu sauce, side salad and potato salad. It was actually not too bad as the meat was quite flavourful. The only downside is the panko coating is not super crispy and a wee tiny bit dry. The potato salad was creamy and crunchy with lots of cucumber and carrot strips.
      
Tonkatsu cross section
        
Classic Carbonara (RM 23)
         
The Classic Carbonara was good too with al-dente spaghetti coated in thick creamy carbonara. The plus point is that this is a non-halal place with real bacon topping the noodles.
               
Quite a nice cosy place for an average priced meal. However since the Bangsar outlet has shut down (yes, we are quite backed up on posts =.=), I'll provide the address of the SS2 branch.
         
         
PawPoints: 3 Paws
Pawket: Tomato
                     
       
Sanbanto
32 Jalan SS2/63
Petaling Jaya
Tel: 03 7876 1728
Tue - Sun: 11.30am - 3pm, 6pm - 10pm