Japanese Food at Tsuruya (Bayan Lepas)

I have been told that there is a Japanese restaurant called Tsuruya at I-Avenue in Bayan Lepas. Since my wife love Japanese food and we haven't been there before, we decided to check it out last Sunday.

Tsuruya is quite unique in it's design. While the main idea was to maintain the Japanese feel to it's customer, there are some Balinese elements involved in it's interior design. The lighting looked Balinese as with some of the interior decorations. The design is cozy and inviting as with the lighting which add a romantic twist to the environment. Alas, we had more than what we bargain for. While we were there, they had a power cut and the restaurant was in complete darkness for a short while. It would be a perfect moment if you are still dating. It gives you excuses to bump into things - if you know what I mean.

As the restaurant is made up of two shop units, there is adequate space to split it to a smoking and non-smoking section. You also have the choice to dine on the tatami floor and if you aren't comfortable sitting on the floor, there's always the regular way of dinning on the table. We opted for the tatami floor instead as it allowed us to have a good stretch before dinner. Truthfully, that's about all the exercise I did for the week.

We ordered the California maki and Kappa maki for my wife's nephew. He likes Japanese food too. Since he is still a toddler, the size of the makis fit his mouth nicely. He wont graduate to the bento box any time soon. That's for sure.

While both Anwar and Badawi have special abilities respectively (see Malaysia Today - AG-IGP Tag Team Fabricated Evidence) , my wife too has special abilities. She eats a lot and still maintains her curvy figure eight. For the moment. And just barely. In her enthusiasm for Japanese food, she ordered the Pirikari chicken......

Katsu ni (breaded chicken) with mustard.....

and Tonkatsu chicken in hot plate.....plus one bowl of rice. As she wolfed down her ala cartes, I can't help but think that her appetite would put any guy to shame.

As for me, I had the humble kunshi katsu curry (pork curry rice). Since is a set meal, it comes together with cawan mushi, salad and dessert. It was yummy.

Both my brother and sister in-laws had the unagi bento set.

If you find pleasure in eating, I suggest that you try out Tsuruya. The food is simply delightful and I like all of the food we ordered. The environment is cosy and price is reasonable for Japanese food. What more can you ask for?

Dim Sum at Max Gourmet (Bayan Lepas)

After a great swimming session yesterday morning, I decided to head out to Max Gourmet for breadfast with my wife. As I was in desperate need to replenish lost calories, I floored the pedal of my old trusty four wheeler and sped there.

For those of you who are unfamilar with Max Gourmet, its located at one of the shop lots in front of Queens Bay Mall. Unlike most eateries, it comes with ample parking space but nonetheless, its good to be there early since the parking lot gets easily filled up with shoppers going to QBM. Be warn. Its RM 3 per entry.

The food here is base on Hong Kong cuisine. While dim sum is one of their main specialty, it also serves an assorted menu ranging from different types of noodles to rice of one's choice. We decided to order a mixture of dim sums as well as my usual fried rice. The fried rice is a must for those who wants to stretch the Ringgit since it comes in a generous portion loaded with char siu and prawns.

Here's what I had for brunch:

An assorted range of dim sum consisting of char siu sou, egg tart, sesame seed ball with lotus paste and butter bread. Hmmm...looks like I'm missing a couple of char siu sou even before I took this picture. Someone beat me to it!

The char siu so are really nice because the pastry melts in your mouth and you can also taste the sweetness of the char siu. The egg tarts are equally delicious. Its soft, delicate and not too sweet. No complains with the sesame seed ball. I didnt get the chance to savour the butter bread. It conveniently "dissappeared" while I was busy taking pictures. I will have to leave this to my imagination for the time being.

More dim sum in the form of dumplings. Yum yum. I have to comment that they really use prawns for the dumplings. I mean BIG, SOLID prawns that I can really bite into. I have been to most dim sum places and some times, you cant even taste the prawns since they mince it so finely.



A close up view of siu mai and an equally out of focus shot.

Fried wantans anyone? The fried wantans are different here. They have got a contrasting texture. While its really crispy outside, you could taste the softness, flavours and juices trapped inside the dumpling. Wow!

For the coup de grace, I had the fried rice. Its a well balance dish with lots of char siu, prawns and vegetables.

I had the teh peng or as what was written in the menu; milk tea.



Need I specify further?

All in all, the food here is good and the service is fast. I have never been dissapointed coming here. On week days, do come early for lunch since the crowd starts building up by 11am. Just so you know, they close on Mondays.