Review: Rocku Yakiniku Japanese Buffet, 1 Utama

Overall comment: Fresh meats & variety of seafood that's worth your money, especially if you can really eat (a lot) within 100 minutes & if you enjoy dining with some entertainment of live band/magician show on stage. It was a really fun dining experience for me :)
Halal: No

I was really excited to be here at Rocku Yakiniku, 1 Utama, last weekend with AP as the restaurant was also hosting the finale of a singing competition (top 10 finalists of the WILLIAM x ROCKU) & had many OneFM DJs hosting/attending the event as well :D

A familiar face, William San 辛伟廉, one of the many OneFM DJs at the event

Rocku Yakiniku landed on the shores of Malaysia 2 years ago with their 1st outlet at Pavilion Kuala Lumpur opened on 13th December 2014. A year after i.e. last year, they started their 2nd outlet at 1 Utama, which has since gained much popularity among residents in Petaling Jaya & its surrounding areas.

The restaurant boasts of "a restaurant with daily entertainment" concept. Diners can expect to enjoy performances from live bands every evening, with magician shows taking over the stage every Saturday at 1 Utama & every Friday at Pavilion KL.

Each diner will be given a 'ticket' upon paying for the Japanese BBQ buffet, which will indicate the time of entry (I think), so that when the 100 minutes is up, other diners waiting in line outside the restaurant can get an opportunity to enjoy their meal at the restaurant when your table is cleared. I thought this is a pretty good concept as those waiting in line will know how long they need to wait until the next table is available & if they can't wait, they can go off to another restaurant to satisfy their hunger pangs ;)

There will be occasions where the entertainment is just too good to leave once the 100 minutes is up, so diners can actually pay the RM9.90++ for each additional 20 minutes to stay on & enjoy the performances/ continue eating!

The restaurant has quite a good variety of pre-cooked dishes for diners to enjoy while they wait for the barbecued meats to be cooked & I have to say that their meats & seafood are fresh & tasty as well.

(L->R, clockwise from top) Beef ribeye & striploin, lamb shoulder, pork collar & belly, chicken

Fresh seafood platter: mussels, salmon, butterfish, scallops, prawns & squid

As the meats & seafood aren't available from the buffet counter (to ensure freshness & hygiene are maintained), you'll just have to order your meats/seafood each time once you're done with your servings of meats/seafood. I personally think it's best to order, cook & eat & once you're about done with eating the 1st round of grilled meats, to order the next round. This will ensure that your meats/seafood aren't left on your table raw (exposed to heat & all) while you eat. Somehow I feel that it'll be better this way, especially for the seafood as such raw ingredients may change color when left out in the 'open' for too long.

Variety of fresh vegetables that you can grill/eat as salads

Cooked dishes at the buffet counter

Their deep-fried chicken karage & tempura fried potatoes/sweet potatoes were really delicious. I didn't manage to snap some photos of them as they went into mouths far too quick!

Ponzu, Spicy Miso & Chili Sauce

All 3 sauces are specially prepared & mixed by the restaurant to compliment the meats & seafood. The spicy miso (not very spicy) was rated the favorite sauce by diners :)

 

Here at Rocku Yakiniku, the grills & suction equipment used are different from those that you find at Korean bbq restaurants. I reckon it's a typical Japanese method of barbecue as I came across the same at Gyu Kaku Restaurant the last time. The smoke suction is at the bottom of the grill & not from the top of the ceiling. This helps to reduce the smoke smell in the entire restaurant lingering on your body & clothes as you walk out of the restaurant after your meal.

Grilled seafood & enoki mushrooms in an aluminum cup 

Grilled lamb 

The night was filled with excitement & we were all well entertained by William & Yin + the WILLIAM x ROCKU contestants.

Hosts for the evening's event: William San 辛伟廉 & One FM Yin盈盈

They were really entertaining. Such naturals/talent! I really enjoyed the night thanks to their hilarious & spontaneous emceeing.

Also there to grace the event was Amber Chia 

My chef cooking dinner for me as I went around taking photos, videos & meeting other bloggers :)

Amber had to leave early, so they presented a token of appreciation to her to sparing time to attend the event & off she went... 

Apart from the delicious meats, seafood & vegetables, there are also an extensive selection of drinks available at the restaurant, which aren't included in the buffet price. We decided to try out the cold 'sweet sake' while we enjoy the performances that evening.

Dessert: The Last Polka ice-cream!

I was very delighted to find out that the restaurant offers ice-cream by The Last Polka for only RM3.90/scoop! It's by far one of the cheapest restaurants to find such premium home-made ice-cream with intense flavors. Most cafes are selling a cup of the same ice-cream brand for an average of RM9.90/cup. I think, even if 1 cup is equivalent to 2 scoops, enjoying this ice-cream here is still more affordable.

Current flavors: Black Sesame & Green Tea (they have Chocolate too)

Rocku Yakiniku changes their ice-cream flavors from time to time, so if you're here once a month or once in 2 months, you may find yourself enjoying a different flavor of ice-cream on top of your buffet spread.

Special performance by local artist, Yun Mei Xin 雲鎂鑫

She has a pretty good voice & I must say that her keyboardist has the groove in his playing as well! *star struck*

Watch the video that I've captured to have a taste of what I've experienced that evening

This was only 1 of the 2 songs that she performed, but this video is clearer & nicer in sound, so I'm just sharing this :D

Not only did we get to witness & experience 10 different voices competing for the prize, but we got to listen to Yun Mei Xin singing PLUS William San singing as well! There was also a lucky draw for 4 lucky diners to win dining vouchers at Rocku Yakiniku.

William's special performance

It was quite hilarious. I didn't edit the video that I've taken as it's just fun to watch the whole performance even when some parts didn't turn out as great as he expected it to be :P

Lucky draw winners - Congrats to Betty & Auntie Lilly, 2 lucky bloggers who won 4 complimentary vouchers to dine at Rocku Yakiniku again! :D

Together with them in the photo are One FM DJs Emily子颖, Yun Mei Xin 雲鎂鑫, Chrystina Ng 黄玮瑄, & Kyan.

Winners for the singing competition: 2nd runner up 

Winners for the singing competition: 1st runner up 

Winners for the singing competition: 1st prize winner!

Rocku Yakiniku is truly a restaurant to enjoy yourselves after a long day at work or during the weekend with family & friends. With the great entertainment lined up everyday, each week & the delicious spread available, this may be the next 'talk of the town' to try out for yourselves ;)

Various on-going promotions

Rocku Yakiniku @ One Utama
Lot F355/356/357
1 Utama Shopping Centre
First Floor, Rainforest
47800 Petaling Jaya
Selangor, Malaysia.
Tel: (+603) 7710 9884
URL: http://www.rocku.com.my/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ROCKU.Malaysia


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


Overall:






Rocku Yakiniku rocks!