Rakuzen

Before I introduce this little piece of overpriced Japanese food, I will briefly explain what I am doing on my own time...because this is my blog =P

From the top of my head, I will be hitting the gym almost every day now and will be confronting with a vigorous workout routine in order to push up my stamina and to burn off useless tissue in my body, ie, anything that feels soft or can be pinched.  Honestly, every time I get comfortable with a day's workout, the following session I push myself even more and over the edge that will just make my body take a dip down the spiral of exhaustion.  Every time I get off the last few machines, I feel as though if I pushed it just a little more or took a wrong step, I would have sprained something in a really really bad way and would have taken months to recover.  My strongest believe since I was young is that in order to learn how to swim, you need to be thrown into the deep end to fully understand your situation and how far below you really are.

Anyway, here's Rakuzen. =)

Yes, I am impressed with the aesthetics.

What's inside?  Let's take a closer look.

Rakuzen.. It is a literal translation to 'Comfort Food'.  Yes, food, especially "Comfort Food", is the bulk of the Malaysian culture embedded in all who seek and delve into the finer things in life...and also for those who can't keep their own weight and psychological health in check.  I kid you not and neither am I being sarcastic.

Nice mug.

I have this thing for cups and mugs.

These actually get in the way

more than what seclusion

that they're suppose to provide in the first place.

First off, the area where the smaller booths for "couples" which what I presume was suppose to offer the blatant privacy and intimacy are what I would think also divided into a couple...Meaning that the booth opposite yours will definitely share and overhear most of your conversations and not to mention, DIRECT/FULL FRONTAL eye contact most of the time.  Perhaps if it was setup in such a way that the booths were a little more alternating as to avoid this.  Well, I will give props that the alternating entry point of the booths will mean that the both kings on the board will not have a clear open field of vision.

Onward... to satiate muh belly!!! (An episode of 'How I met your mother' comes to mind)

Unagi Set.
Around the world...it's the same damn thing.

Sashimi~

Unagi... UNAGI~~ Broiled Eel with the same uniform flavour and uniform sauce over it.. No complains...but I am unimpressed.  Rice was dry.  If I were to cook perfect rice (duh) and leave it overnight, it'd be what was served to us.  Do NOT open a Japanese restaurant if you can't get the rice right...is what goes on in my mind every time I sit down to dine at any oriental cuisine restaurant.

Cod Fillet set~

I vaguely remember it being decent.

Rice aside, this Cod Fish was seared pretty well...However, here's a tip.  Prepare the tray of the set or bento with all those ornaments before finishing it up with the main entree.  Reason for this is because if it isn't a hot plate, the food will get cold and the oil will start to congeal and feels more greasy.  Then again, since when it oil good for you ;)  The portion was good enough to satisfy my hunger, but not my taste buds.

On a side note, I got macaroni and cheese as a side...dish.  Why, oh why....

Anyway, Cawanmushi, Pickled Radish and Miso soup... Pass!

Fermented Nato Beans
with Lotus Roots.

Let's see.. The appetiser came TEN minutes AFTER the first main meal was served and had to be reminded for about 3-4 times.  We were one of the first few to arrive for dinner that day and there was about four servers hanging around the front desk.  Was the kitchen backed up or something??

Nato Beans and Lotus Roots... it's a rare mixture of gooey-ness and crunchiness.  Fun dish to share with someone and laugh out loud.  This one was seasoned with a little too much soy sauce and the saltiness from that overpowered the flavour of the Lotus Roots.  Sad, because I like Lotus Roots =(

Green Tea(?) Ice cream
Red Bean Paste
Green Agar-agar
And to top it off,
Soy Bean Milk

I like it, but it is really difficult to go down the throat.  With all those ingredients, the gooey-ness is overwhelming.  It would definitely be pulled off if there was some other texture to contrast with all the softness.  One thing I learn in my travels...is that moderation is key and that contrast is the key to a vibrant dish.

What I would suggest is for the bowl to be frozen (or at least chilled) and then served with the CHILLED Soy Milk on the side where patrons can decide to pour it over.  This will avoid the ice cream from melting.  Serving melted ice cream is a sin.  Remember that.

Conclusion.

Service is dreadfully awkward and a little on the slow and absent-minded side.

For a satisfying and full meal for two, it rounds up to about RM120.  It all boils down to whether you want a quiet and dark restaurant to chill with someone.  What you are paying for is for a generally  for a decent and quiet surrounding. I REALLY enjoyed myself just sitting and chatting over refillable green tea.  When I am deep in conversation, I tend to ignore my surroundings so being given stares is hardly something that I would care.  However, I came here for the exploration of what the Malaysia Japanese could offer.  I was disappointed.  I should have taken a strong hint that this place was recommended by an ex-pat tin some magazine.  Well, I shouldn't blame my very slow processing skills, but to take this as a lesson.  Listen to my parents when it comes to eating in KL ;)

You want to know where all the Japanese folks in KL pay good money to eat?  Hakka Restaurant.  Which is what I am currently craving for in the AM ;P

Photo info.

This would be the very first time that I tried out my brand new 24-70mm f/2.8, and as practice and breaking in for using the lense before Manuel Librodo's workshop which is only a few weeks away from the time I ate at this place.

Seeing as how I am horrid at white balancing ambient lighting in low lighting conditions and in the absence of flash, I immediately updated my firmware in my D700 (finally) and I would suggest everyone to check the firmware in their own cameras ;)

- A final note.  Is this a negative review?  No, it is not.  This is the cold and hard truth of my experience and my perspective.  In my opinion, the establishment is already in place and it looks really good, hence I sense the potential.  However, if one would choose to specialise in Japanese food, the deliverance and attention to detail is very important and was not present at all.

I'll leave it at that,

Until next time,

Stout out! \m/