Edo Ichi, Solaris Dutamas & Nihon Kai, Sunway Mentari

Occasion: Valentine's Day celebration with family & friends!
Overall comment: Edo Ichi, albeit much mentioned, didn't impress me. It's expensive (in my personal opinion), portion is small, & taste isn't all that fantastic. I still prefer Nihon Kai on the overall. Affordable, generous portion & taste of food is consistent all this while :)
Halal: Pork-Free only (Alcohol/Sake is served)

Edo Ichi Japanese Restaurant

So many people are talking about this place. Some gave good reviews, some didn't, & I shall join those from the latter.

ST, JG, & I went all the way to Solaris Dutamas to try out this Edo Ichi Japanese Restaurant. Thankfully, it wasn't too difficult to locate the place. Paid parking is quite an abundance (basement), but depending on where you park, you may have to walk a wee bit more to get to the restaurant.

The restaurant's ambiance is not very Japanese, but it is comfortable enough for a meal. Their Set Lunch menu makes the food look 'oh-so-good', & even with only 2-handful of choices to select from, we had a hard time to select what we wanted. For me, it's the price issue...hahaha...quite expensive for my budget at that point of time! The main menu has more ala-carte options to order, but as usual, set meals are more pocket-friendly & you get to try more things at one go.

The Lunch Set Menu 

Unagi Kabayaki Set + Add-On Sashimi (RM40.00)

The picture does no justice, ya. The portion looks generous & the presentation looks quite impressive from here, but I reckon the scale of the photo to the actual food is quite a difference. The unagi doesn't taste too bad, but after completing this set lunch, JG said, "I felt like I haven't eaten lunch yet....the portion is SO small. I'm not coming back here again...."

Mini Sashimi Add-On

Thankfully the sashimi is fresh. If not, I'm very sure that JG will call for the manager to give him/her a pep-talk...hahaha...

Horenso Goma (RM9.00)

Nothing can go too wrong with such a simple dish. It's blanched spinach/Chinese "por choy" (in Cantonese) with sesame seed sauce. I actually like such a simple veggie dish, but it certainly is very pricey. The portion is probably the size of my palm only, & my palm isn't very big. *sigh* Yes, fine-dining will not be our greatest desire since portion is compromised with presentation of food.

Sukiyaki Set + Add-On Tempura (RM34.00)

Nope, the sukiyaki didn't gain very high marks as well. It is fortunate that we're giving a passing mark to this set meal. Apart from the portion of food that I've been ranting about, the soup just tastes bland & salty. The only plus point is that the beef slices aren't over-cooked. I also have to say that the agedashi tofu (side dish) is quite good, hence the passing mark for this set meal...hahaha...

Mini Tempura Add-On

Nope, not as good as Nihon Kai & some other Japanese restaurants around town....I can do without this add-on.

Edo Ichi Pizza (RM30.00)

I'll give Edo Ichi some plus points for presentation, but that's about it. The deep fried pizza base tastes a little too oily. The toppings were fine, but I guess Japanese pizza is just not my cup of tea. It's definitely less than 6" in diameter! Call it a kid's size pizza (for kids 6 years old & below). Oh, for the price we're paying, let's just go back to the original Italian pizza place...hahaha...

Spider Roll (RM22.00)

This is by far the better dish among what we have ordered. The deep-fried soft shell crabs were crispy & the presentation made it look more appetizing. There were 4 pieces/serving. Nevertheless, it is still ranked below Nihonkai's where their soft shell crab maki costs RM26.00 for 8 pieces & even the simple Shun Japanese Restaurant's (Subang) costs RM18.00/serving of 4 pieces. Perhaps the shop rental at Solaris Dutamas contributes to the higher prices of food here...

Note: Prices shown above excludes 10% service tax.

JG, ST, & I weren't too glad with our lunch that day. If not for work, we would have gone for another round of food, but I had to get back in time for a meeting. How unfortunate. JG said he'll never want to come back here again. It's THAT traumatizing. He just came back from UK for a short break & this Japanese lunch just didn't satisfy his palette.

Edo Ichi Japanese Restaurant
A4-G1-1, Solaris Dutamas
No. 1, Jalan Dutamas 1
50480 Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: (+603) 6205 5228
Fax: (+603) 6205 5229



Ratings:
Presentation: * * * *
Price: * *
Environment: * * * 1/2
Taste: * * *
Service: * * *

Overall

 *********
Venue: Nihon Kai Japanese Restaurant, Sunway Mentari
Halal: No (pork-free only as sake/alcohol is served)

I spent Valentine's Day 2011 with my friends at a Japanese restaurant & believe it or not, the same night itself, we were out for another Japanese meal! The former wasn't pre-planned, so I didn't really have a choice.

I booked a place for 8 at Nihon Kai in hopes to try out their Valentine's Day set meal. Unfortunately, it was sold out! *surprise suprise* I was glad for the restaurant manager who requested my assistance to promote the Valentine' Day set meal, but I wish I could get to try out what I have promoted earlier!

Bento Set for the Day  (RM18.90/set)

I ended up trying their Bento Set for the Day & I was SATISFIED! Oh, thank God for good Japanese food at such a reasonable price!! I rarely go for cooked poultry at a Japanese restaurant. Usually, I'll go for the typical unagi or salmon meals, but I decided to try something different this time. You'll get a portion of simple salt-marinated pan fried Saba/Mackerel, 3 slices of fresh sashimi, a generous portion of stir-fried chicken fillet with mushrooms, a portion of salad with sesame seed sauce/dressing, & enough rice to last you through the day. I feel that it's not 100% Japanese, but it's a truly substantial meal. Believe it or not, I couldn't finish the whole bento set!

Here are some of the other dishes that we ordered. I've a write-up on some of the dishes in my previous posts, so do check it out for my review & prices.

Chuka Idako

Nicely seasoned/marinated :) The 'crunchy' jellyfish strips go pretty nicely with the baby octopus. I can't recall the price, but it's certainly not very expensive.

Unagi Maki (around RM23.00/serving)

Tamago/Egg + Cucumbers + Seaweed wrapped in a rice roll & topped with a slice of unagi/eel - ah, lovely...

Salmon Maki (around RM23.00/serving)

The salmon here is pretty yummy...I'm not sure if it's salmon belly (wish) or it's just the way the salmon is prepared for the maki. There's this special texture of the salmon that I can't really describe. Half seared, half uncooked, perhaps? It just melts in your mouth...!

Unagi Kabayaki (around RM32.00/lunch set - with fruit & without the cawanmushi)

Generous serving of unagi...what more can you ask for? :P

My Happy Dad

Nope, he didn't fancy the salmon...prefers the chicken...typical "china-man" father...hahaha...

Mixed Fried (around RM20.00/serving)

Truly crispy & delicious. The frying didn't dry up the meat/vegetables, so juices were flowing out when you bite into the fried pieces (either fish/prawns/squid/vegetables).

Mixed Tempura (RM17.00/serving)

Eat it while it's hot & fresh from the wok - *crunch crunch*

AP with his complimentary fruit/dessert

My parents were too full to move after the sumptuous & scrumptious meal

Verdict: A meal for 3 persons at Edo Ichi costs us RM148.50 (and we felt like we have not eaten - it wasn't filling), while a meal for 8 persons at Nihon Kai costs RM345.18 (we struggled to finish all the food! The set meals were really worth-eating)

For more on Nihon Kai, please visit my previous post here.


Battle of the Japanese restaurants,