Piggin' Out: Hanazen, Jaya One, PJ

Restaurant: Hanazen Japanese Restaurant
Address: 43-G, Block C, Jaya One, 72A, Jln Universiti, 46200 PJ
Tel: 03-79548000
Other reviews: Angie Yong, Foodbin

On Monday, I read this post about Kissaten in Jaya One and wanted to bring the rest there to try it out. Anywhere that sells mentaiko spaghetti is worth a try in our books. But, I didn't read the fine print saying that it was closed on Mondays and so we were standing in front of a closed restaurant at 8pm that night.

Since we were already in the mood for some Japanese food, we headed to the other Japanese restaurant in Jaya One - Hanazen.

Ambience and decor: Classic, simple and clean feel. We were surprised by the decent crowd inside, which is always a good sign for any eatery.


The food: We had a medley of our favourite Japanese items.

First off was the kushiyaki moriawase costing RM32 for an assortment of grilled skewered meats, prawns and veg. Not too bad although we have had better kushiyaki at Shun (next to SJMC in Subang - I've just realised I have yet to blog about this place!!).

Fatteh had the onigiri - one each of okaka, salmon and mentaiko. RM8 each. This is his favourite thing to eat, I think. When we were last in Japan, he practically tried all the different types they have in 7-Eleven.

Rommel had the sakura chi-don - assorted sashimi on vinegared rice in a bowl. Surprisingly fresh and at RM35, it was pretty good value for money given the quality of the fish.
I had my usual ochazuke - this time it was ikura ochazuke, salmon roe on rice with some seaweed and spring onions. You then pour green tea soup on it, softening the rice and making a sort of porridge. One thing I loved about the soup here was that it was tasty enough but not too salty. In many other places where I have this, the soup is always too bland. RM16 for a bowl.

Shen was happy to see the cream cheese korroke on the menu. Of course, she ordered one portion for us to share. RM18 for this soft and creamy croquette.

From the teppanyaki counter, we also ordered the surimeika teppan, grilled squid with butter at RM18.
And finally, Shen's saba shioyaki dinner set. The fish was grilled to perfection - really crisp skin on the outside and soft and juicy meat inside.

Total bill: RM203.50 for 4 of us.
Will we go back? Probably. And we're still contemplating if we should bring Pa there, since he's so particular about his sushi.