I'm Turning Japanese

an appetising appetiser

Mae and I love Japanese food. Actually Mae and I love just about any kind of food. We're gluttons. But these days, Mae blames it on Baby. "Baby wants Japanese."

Last week we decided to check out this place near our office. Umai-Ya is a new joint here in Damansara Perdana. Located on the ground floor of Perdana the Place, Umai-Ya is a small but fairly swanky restaurant.

Mae orders a boring Teppanyaki Chicken. It's a thing she does. It's like this mysterious gift she has. If anyone can pick out the worst item or the most boring dish in a menu, Mae can!

I order the Fusion Set. Served in a Bento Box (btw, is 'Bento the meal or the box?), my dinner is a compendium of the best of Japanese cuisine. I have a fried rice in there. A few pieces of sushi, a skewer of grilled fish, some fried chicken bits, some choice rolls, octopus and the highlight of the evening, a great tuna sashimi.

Sashimi, is sashimi, is sashimi. It's raw fish, for crying out loud. But here at Umai-Ya the tuna is presented in cubes and garnished with slices of Lady's Fingers (or Okra). First, let it be known that I hate the stuff, but in this dish (actually it was served in a cocktail glass), the normally horrid veggie lent a delightful texture to a typical tuna sashimi. The slime of the Okra made for very messy, yet very interesting eating.

As I relished in the wonder of this amazing little dish, music filled my soul. It was that Vapors classic, "I'm turning Japanese, I think I'm turning Japanese, I really think so..." Hehhehh! What can I say, I grew up in the 80s!!

At times I felt like one of those silly judges in Iron Chef, gushing over another masterpiece by Iron Chef Roksaburo Michiba. It's a little pricey though - our meal came close to RM 100, but I think it's money well spent. Aaaahhhh...

Oops, there's that song again... "I'm turning Japanese, I think I'm turning Japanese, I really think so..."