Motormouth From Ipoh – Asian Food & Travel Blog

A “vegetarian” sushi roll?! Golden Dragon @ Fu Tien Restaurant in Medan Ipoh Bistari.

Enough Already with the Mindless Bingeing!!! Stuffing oneself with countless greasy cheeseburgers, handful of fries, lemang + rendang + serunding daging (geez … saying that makes my mouth waters), Char Koay Teow and meaty feast of dim sum had me reconsider my eating habits (albeit for a very brief stint). Stopped me dead on tracks, and I developed a sudden crave for a wholesome vegetarian meal.

I should be whipped for the dearth of posts on vegetarian cuisine in Ipoh. Aside from the famous Yishen (Yat Sum) and Min Sin Yie which I wrote way back in ’08, I have never wrote another piece on vegetarian food in Ipoh. I bow my head in shame …….

So here’s a post on Fu Tien; one of the BEST place in Ipoh for modernized vegetarian fares. We are talking about maki-sushi rolls, topped with slices of fresh and nectar-ish sweet mangoes, crunchy juicy cucumbers, fritters for that added crunch and even cheese (wait, dairy products are considered vegetarian?) !!! Read on to find out why this place is perpetually packed during lunch hours …… Read the rest of this entry »

*Update Nov 2011 – Kizuna One is now CLOSED. The restaurant has been taken over by another, serving Japanese and Thai cuisine.

#1 – Cucumber Maki (RM12/USD3.60) – Delicately rolled prawns and unagi with fritters and topped with a dollop of spicy mayo, and roes.

Kizuna One Japanese Restaurant is located at the revamped Royal Perak Golf Club (RPGC) on Tiger Lane (Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah); and has been proudly serving authentic Japanese cuisine for about a year now. Many locals are still confused whether this restaurant is opened to the public, or catering only to the members of the club.

Much like the misunderstanding that reigned when I first posted on The Fairway (that other dining establishment in RPGC), let me clear the mystifying air of confusion for you readers.

BOTH OF THESE RESTAURANTS ARE OPENED TO THE PUBLIC. Just that, if you’re a member of RPGC, you will get discount from your total bill. There, that’s settled! Happy? 🙂

#2 – The majestically-splendour ambience of Kizuna One (K1) @ Royal Perak Golf Club

With that out of the way, let’s concentrate on the review of the day. Kizuna One is NOT a branch of the other Kizuna in Medan Ipoh Bistari, albeit the almost similar sounding names. Yes, there WERE some connections back then, and established relationships with Akamomiji and to some extent … even A Lai I. But everything dates back to the days of Moritomo; that fantastic Japanese restaurant in Jusco Kinta City back in the late 90’s, and still famous during their stint in the early noughties.

Among the many Japanese restaurants in Ipoh today; Kizuna One triumphs indefinitely in the elegance, exclusivity and ambience departments. Read on to find out how exactly the feast turned out to be one of the BEST dining experiences we have had in a long time ….. Read the rest of this entry »

Sashimi Moriawase Hanzo (RM56.00/USD17) – An enticing platter of fresh and thick cuts of raw fishes and boiled shrimps presented on a bed of shaved ice, with a cube of grated wasabi

I have to confess. The sudden onslaught of new eateries sprouting up in Ipoh surprised me, and my apologies for the delayed reviews of such places. For a variety of reasons (excuses?) of course.

One being the bane of spanking new outlets; pathetic level of service & mediocre/inconsistent quality of food. Not to mention the unacceptably long waiting time for your food to be presented on your table.

Another reason being of course; the procrastinating factor. Dear readers; I am but a mere mortal without a designated gang of ‘makan kaki’ (wanna sign up?) ….. and I do not own a gold mine, or one blessed with a silver gold platinum spoon in my (motor) mouth. All the food reviews on this blog are paid for with cold hard cash dripping with blood, sweat and tears.

Oh Sushi – A very pleasant dining environment amidst the team of affable staff, soft hums of classic Japanese tunes emitting from the speakers, and endless colourful plates of fresh sushi on the kaiten belt.

Cut the crap and let’s move on to the review of the day. One for the weekend, so to speak.

Oh Sushi Japanese Restaurant launched their maiden outlet in Ipoh recently, at De Garden; a hub of retail outlets largely populated with chain eateries (you can read my reviews of Pappa Rich, Ayam Penyet, Wong Kok Char Chan Teng, Tutti Frutti Frozen Yoghurt and TOS Coffee Bistro by clicking THIS LINK) situated next to Jusco Kinta City.

The name sounds familiar? Because this is the SAME Oh Sushi @ Midvalley Megamall in Kuala Lumpur, another pet project of the Kubota Japanese Restaurant group. Read on to find out how Oh Sushi stacked up against their adversaries; the other independent and chain Japanese restaurants in Ipoh …… Read the rest of this entry »

Fresh Oyster baked in Cheese – RM13.80/USD4.20

Now let me share my current favourite Japanese restaurant in Ipoh with you readers. Previously I was an ardent fan of Akamomiji‘s, until the last few visits that revealed some rather poorly executed cooked dishes, and mediocre service. Waraku became our favourite then, with their cheap RM15 lunch sets available on weekdays, with close to 20 choices. And they STILL grill some of the best kushi yaki in town (grilled meats and vegetables on skewers, like our satay without accompanying dipping sauce), bar none.

Of course there’s the Kizuna which I have neglected since the first review, A Lai I that cooks up a variety of mean teppan yaki dishes, and Sushi East that well, best left unsaid.

Still remains a mystery as to why I have not written about Kampai yet, possibly the first and definitely longest running Japanese restaurant in Ipoh. Kampai serves what could be the most value-for-money set lunch (around RM15 each) with sizeable portions, and lots of varieties.

Resembling an “Izakaya” (a type of Japanese drinking establishment) more than a full-fledged restaurant, Tengood serves a myriad of light snacks, finger foods aside from salads, sushi and sashimi, and they serve PORK as well. 🙂

And so there we were on a fine evening, seeking for a bite (or slurp?) of supposedly fresh and plump oysters. (*Pardon the incompetence, I failed to inquire about on which days they got their freshest supplies of seafood, but give them a ring and the lady will be glad to inform you). I visited Tengood a few times before this, for lunch usually since the place is located right smack in the midst of a bustling Greentown Business Centre which is close to my previous working place.

Wanna know why this particular Japanese restaurant impressed me so much that evening? Read on to find out ….. Read the rest of this entry »

Some of you might be wondering about the reason(s) behind the serious lack of Ipoh’s Japanese food posts on my blog. Last I wrote something of such trait was way back when I discovered A Lai I for the first time, after that same Japanese restaurant has been running for a good 3-4 years prior to my virginal visit.

Pathetic huh? In reality, I actually love Japanese food to bits, especially those promising the freshest of ingredients, the most authentic of dishes (aside from the usual California rolls, bento sets and xxx-Dons, which by the way, are exactly what Sushi King is heavily promoting now), and preferably, a reasonably-priced feast.

But of course, Japanese food don’t come cheap, nor do they come in abundance. The good ones, at least. I have visited almost all of the Japanese restaurants in Ipoh, save for Kizuna One at Royal Perak Golf Club, for they charge exorbitantly more, for the same fares one can get at Kizuna, the new Wasabi Japanese Buffet at 1Casuarina which is WAY over-rated for the price one pays, and some random ones sprouting all over Greentown, or Ipoh Garden East.

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Penang food has never ceased to amaze me. Or any self-respecting foodie for that matter. The abundance of hawker stalls selling famous street food at dirt-cheap prices (ok, maybe not ALL but still, a lavish meal of everything will never cost you an arm or a leg), the flourishing number of restaurants and cafes on the island, and not to mention the wide array of cuisines, a perfect epitome of REAL 1Malaysia concept, whereby you’ll see people of all races hanging out at Mamak stalls more often than not.

But pardon me for the shorter than usual post today, for I was stuck in a most horrendous jam on the highway yesterday evening. For a good 6 hours on the expressway, traveling southbound from Penang back to Ipoh. Needless to say, the temptation to skip work could not get any greater. 🙂

Anyway, I wrote about Azuma Japanese Restaurant @ Queensbay Mall before, the much-relished, celebration feast after the much dreaded 5 days of imprisonment on an island known as Langkawi. So let me just share some photos of the food we had this time around, for a quick lunch in Queensbay Mall.

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