Looking for an interesting dining experience in Kuala Lumpur? You should definitely check out Makoto Japanese Cuisine located in Desa Sri Hartamas. But first, a word of warning: it’s not for the squeamish!
Fans of Japanese food would be familiar with unagi, or freshwater eel, which is often served as sushi or in a rice bowl with teriyaki sauce. Most of the time, the unagi meat is frozen or pre-cooked; but at Makoto, these creatures are alive and swimming.
In fact, the restaurant touts itself as the “first authentic unagi specialty restaurant in Malaysia with live freshwater Japonica eels”. Suffice to say, ordering unagi is a must.
The rather extensive menu actually includes zensai (appetisers), salads, sushi and sashimi, although the eel takes up half the menu pages.
Highlights include unagi sushi rolls, charcoal grilled unagi liver skewers, and steamed unagi broth served in a teapot.
The server will show you the live eel, which is rather morbid considering they’ll be slaughtered soon for your dining pleasure – and in plain view, too. (Warned you!)
While everything eel is probably worth sampling, this writer went with the Makoto Unaju Special (RM183), umaki (unagi egg omelette, RM49), Hone Senbei (deep-fried unagi bone, RM10), and unagi liver soup.
The omelette was soft, creamy and flavourful – absolutely delicious, even if you might argue the price is high for an egg dish. Still, the quality is undeniable.
The fried unagi bones were actually quite enjoyable, crunchy as you might expect, and overall fun to eat. They would have been perfect with a glass of cold Asahi beer, for sure!
Then came the unaju special, comprising a half-portion of unagi kabayaki with unagi sauce, and another half without the sauce, for the best of both worlds.
For the uninitiated, kabayaki is a preparation method in which the fish is split down the back, gutted and boned, butterflied, cut into square fillets, and grilled.
This was certainly an experience, with the unagi having a light and smooth flavour with a hint of sweetness. Give the one without the sauce a try to enjoy the fresh, subtle taste, augmented by a touch of wasabi and balanced with some pickle.
Finally, fans of entrails will enjoy the unagi liver soup (although a head’s up, it’s not always available). The liver gives this rich broth that extra burst of complexity and umami only innards can offer.
Learn more about Makoto Japanese Cuisine via its Facebook profile.
Makoto Japanese Cuisine
54, Jalan 27/70a,
Desa Sri Hartamas,
50480 Kuala Lumpur
Read the original article here. Trying to influence your cravings since 2005, Kar Yeong was Guest Judge on Versus 1001 Rasa Baba’s 2018, R.AGE Food Fight Judge 2015 and NTV7 Foodie Blogger 2014. To read more about Kar Yeong’s food journeys, visit his blog at KYspeaks.com.