Edo Ichi, Solaris Dutamas

Gong Hei Fatt Choy!
We're are already half way through the Lunar New Year, brother Hare definitely took a giant leap into this brand new year :)

While most of us are feasting one yee sang after another, there's also another group whose so overdosed with chinese cuisine that they're seeking solace with another cuisine to whet their appetite.

What?! Another cuisine but you still want to lou?

Well, think Japanese would be a good alternative then.

Although I didn't order the Sashimi yee sang served at Edo Ichi, we did went ahead for our Japanese meal.

We started with the Gyu Niku Amayaki, RM18 (or more like they served this dish first, was not the order i was hoping for..haha).

Thinly sliced beef grilled so beautifully, I had to remind myself that this was to be shared. The beef was tender, the edges- slightly burnt, giving a lovely smoky flavour and crisp texture. The sweet sauce grilled with the beef was a good match to it.

The Shake Harasu (salmon belly) Sashimi, RM38.

Absolutely divine. Extremely fresh, springy slivers of salmon belly that glides down the throat.

After 2 smashing dishes, we were looking forward to the Unagi Cheese Roll, RM28.

Maybe my expectations was a tad high, this roll just tasted fine. It was nice, but not superb.

And the salad finally made it's appearance..our Salmon Skin Salad(RM18)..

Refreshing with the tangy dressing, sweetness from the vegetables and crunchiness of the salmon skin. One of the more enjoyable salmon skin- this was really skinned down to, well, the skin :p. No bits of salmon meat sticking to it, which I'm glad.

The only pizza in the menu, the Edo Ichi Pizza (RM30)..

And what's the diff? It's rice based pizza, a rather pleasant twist to this italian favourite. The rice was compressed, deep fried and topped with salmon and unagi. A scrumptious combination of flavours and texture, I liked the feel of the soft, sticky rice when I sink my teeth into its crunchy coat.

Stuffed but hey, there's still one more dish!

Kaisen Saikoro Don (RM38)..
Obviously an enjoyable dish as all the mix of sashimi were very fresh. Yums.

Edo Ichi gets rather packed, do try to make reservations.

Edo Ichi Japanese Restaurant is located at A4-G-1, Solaris Dutamas, Kuala Lumpur. Tel: 03-6205 5228

Cuisine Studio, Tropicana Golf & Country Resort, PJ

A last minute change of plans led us to Cuisine Studio, located at Tropicana Golf & Country Resort for dinner.

Not a formal dining place as it sells cooking and baking products within the premise, we got seats quickly..it's not that pack during dinner time.

The menu's not extensive, so deciding what to have was not too hard..

Started off with some garden salad (RM27)

Generous serving, we all enjoyed this salad filled with olives, sliced mushrooms, sundried tomatoes. Good portion to share for the 6 of us.

Ordered a Pate Platter (RM24)

2 types of pate to go with some yummy bread..

Some multigrain bread freshly baked by Cuisine studio..Dipped with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, it's delicious. Love the warm bread, crunchy crust combo.

Escargot pasta (RM40) was served next..

Penne was al-dente, cooked in pesto, olive oil, handful of escargots, olives and sundried tomatoes. Bollywood Queen loves this. I find it rather tasty, but the escargot was a tad hard..

The Coq Au Vin (RM58)

A common french dish, I liked Cuisine Studio's version. The chicken was really tender, the sauce was thick with wine aroma, and the onions and carrots gave a sweet flavour to this dish. The plain, boiled potatoes complemented the rich sauce beautifully.

The braised lamb shank (RM46) was served almost immediately with coq au vin..

Very homestyle sort of braised lamb, most of my friends love this. The meat was moist, tender and falling off the bone; the sauce was broth like, a contrast to the coq au vin. Nice to mop up the sauce with those freshly baked bread too :)

Last dish was Duck Cassoulet (RM61)

A type of stew, their version was cooked in beans, a lot of beans. Think it's a nightmarish dish for MC as she dislike beans..she avoided this dish like a plague. The duck was rather tough, so's the duck sausage. Rather gamey, and the beans, super huge ones gave the whole stew a very pasty texture. The sauce had a tart after taste, somewhat bitter. This was the only dish that we did not finished eating it.

My only gripe was the very persistent waiter who kept insisting us to order mussels with white wine and having red/ white wine during our meal. When we turned down both the offer, he was disappointed and said it's not french without ordering these. Geez. We were rather irate by the end of the dinner :(

Cuisine Studio Sdn Bhd is located at Tropicana Golf & Country Resort, Jalan Kelab Tropicana, 47410 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

Dessert's Bar, PJ

I first noticed Dessert's Bar when we drove pass it one night; it's red neon coloured signage was glaring and screaming for attention.

Finally decided to try it one afternoon as Dragongirl, KC and I were having lunch nearby..
Just barely a month old, this place is very quiet. Maybe the fact that they only serve desserts and drinks..it did not attract that many customers..

That aside, the dessert menu looks interesting...lotsa pretty pictures that makes selection rather difficult..

We did unanimously agreed to have the Rum Raisin Banana Crepe (RM8) almost immediately though :)

The plain crepe was topped with warm pan-fried banana and plump rum soaked raisins. The banana was very sweet as it was ripe and goes extremely well with the crepe and raisins. The slightly thick syrupy rum sauce was just nice for the crepe. Bits of almond flakes added some crunch to this dessert. Nice.

Next was a rather fusion dessert; or at least I would like to think that it was..

The Tofu Margarita (RM10). I actually had this with Jane on another occasion, but figured I might as well add it in this post too. Served in a margarita glass, this dessert consist of tofu/ soy pudding as the base, azuki (red beans) , fresh fruits and black sesame ice cream on top. We love this combination as the homemade black sesame ice cream was not sweet at all, and had the lovely black sesame fragrance that complemented the tofu perfectly. Mix some azuki on the side; just delicious. The tofu pudding is yummy and rather addictive; though may be a tad bland on it's own.

We decided to have the Dark Sweet Cherry with Chocolate crepe (RM8) too..The cherries had been soaked in syrup, but was still lovely to go with the lightly chocolate flavoured crepe.

I wanted to try Mocharita (RM10)...As with the name; it was Dark belgian chocolate ice cream served with crushed ice (drizzled with black coffee), coffee jelly and soy milk as the base. Great for those who dont like sweet dessert; the ice cream and black coffee gave a light bitter after taste which I like. You need to eat the ice cream with the rest of the condiments though, as the coffee and coffee jelly did not have any sugar added ( well at least that's what I thought it was). KC didnt like this though.

Dragongirl was very excited when she ordered the Pannatini (RM15)..Served in a martini glass, must say that the presentation was rather pretty. Lots of fresh strawberries was mixed with their homemade strawberry jam (which had some sliced orange peel in it) which I thought was a great idea as the fresh strawberries were a tad sour; the sweet jam neutralises the sourness. At the center of the glass; which deceivingly looks like fresh cream; was actually the tofu pudding. Surprising, it goes wonderfully well with the strawberries.

KC wanted a drink and he ordered the Grape smoothies (RM11)..Nothing fantastic though..I'd rather order their homemade ice creams or tofu desserts any day..

Will definitely return to Dessert's Bar as the desserts are yummy and funky :) Dessert's Bar is located at B-0-12 Floor, Block B, Casa Tropicana, 5, Jalan Persiaran Tropicana Golf and Country Club. Tel: 603- 5637 4758. One road away from Tropicana/ Lien Hoe/ 3M or Riana Green (if you are coming from the opposite direction)