Hajime Is Fabulous
April 28th, 2007
you know the local Japanese dining-out scene is getting bad when you think Isetan’s unagi don tastes a lot better than the stuff you can get out there.
on one hand, we have the ubiquitous Sushi Kings and Genki Sushis that spit out these soulless kaiten-belt platters that are overpriced and taste mass-produced. then on the other hand, we have the all-you-can-eat Japanese buffets of high volume but shockingly low quality. presented with such hopeless circumstances, what’s a person to do when she wants a spanking good bowl of udon, or sushi that doesnt taste like the fish died 20 years ago in a nearby sewer?
hehe easy peasy. she goes to Hajime :D
Hajime is a Japanese bungalow-cum-restaurant that recently opened on Jalan Damai. a black-and-white pufferfish is its eyecatching brand, and not misleadingly so; because come the right season, Hajime indulges its customers by serving the coveted delicacy fugu. fugu, which is the meat of the highly poisonous pufferfish, takes great skill to prepare and can only be done so by licensed chefs. so yeah, definitely something to try at least once in your life! besides Hajime, the only place in KL that i know serves fugu is Iketeru at the KL Hilton.
warm yellow lighting and elegant wooden finishes give Hajime that comforting yet classy ambience. patrons can choose to be seated at the usual tables, the more chill-out ‘tatami’-style area, or at the sushi bar if you fancy a good chat with the well-traveled and well-read chefs who really know their cuisine!
the very first time i went to Hajime, it was newly-opened and about 4 days old. yet service and expertise were already top-notch. i was so surprised, because you know how new establishments are usually a little awkward at the start, but there was none of that discomfort here. all the waiting staff knew exactly what to recommend, knew their chef specialties, had customer service down pat, moved like well-oiled machinery. wowzers, eh :D
food here is excellent, i dont have to say anymore! here are some of my favourites :
cold Inaniwa udon OR cold so-men thin noodles served with dashi sauce, RM 26.
a must-try for sure! mix everything up in the dashi sauce, dip your noodles in and SLURP! yum yum. the noodle in the picture is the so-men, but i prefer the inaniwa udon much more.
california cheese and unagi maki, RM 24.
totally orgasmic; the sauce that goes with this is just so fantastic. my fav in Hajime.
crispy soft shell crab makimono with caviar, RM 18.
the addition of caviar is genius!
special salmon miso soup, RM 16.
seriously, give the normal miso soup on their menu a pass and go for this one. it’s so wonderfully fragrant and the taste of the soup just spreads out over your tongue like silk! you’d be hard-pressed to find a better miso than this one in KL.
grilled mackerel with teriyaki sauce, RM 20.
bliss is servings of this fish atop fluffy white japanese rice! sigh :D
Hajime special unajyu, RM 42.
comes with a bowl of miso and a side of pickled vegetables. the cool thing about this unajyu is that not only does it taste damn good, but the rice below it is lightly coated in a special sauce, AND there’s MORE unagi underneath the shredded egg! damn good value eh. unajyu forever!
the desserts are mostly their homemade ice-cream, with my favourite being the sesame ice-cream with red bean topping. Hajime also serves their patrons little complimentary dishes of starters upon seating. the starters are always different each business day, and they’re always damn yummy!!! very good gauge of the excellent standard of food here. also gotta love their portion sizes that are just about perfect.
ah. with places like Hajime, who needs to go anywhere else for a yummy Japanese meal :) this place is ultimate customer satisfaction in one beautiful restaurant. they own my ass now. i so cant wait to try the fugu when it’s here!!!
Hajime (map!)
64, Jalan Damai
Off Jalan Ampang
55000 KL
Tel : 03-2143 0073
38 Comments Add your own
1. Jonathan | April 28th, 2007 at 5:28 am
Im no big fan of Japanese foods, but i’d be honest and say those dishes looks great on photos. My bro and I are #1 Anti Japanese food, we might try this dish a few years down the road
2. k0k | April 28th, 2007 at 5:53 am
This is cruel. I’m in India and I’m hungry now and all the shops are closed.
I WANT UNAGI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *burst into tears*
3. Michelle | April 28th, 2007 at 10:21 am
I’M SO GOING TO TELL MY MUM ABOUT THIS!!!!
P/S Your vocabulary makes me look like some amateur in the world of writing. I envy the words you use.
4. Chubby | April 28th, 2007 at 1:39 pm
I was at hajime a week ago. was brought there by a friend who is a big fan of theirs. i tot the place was absolutely chic n fabulous. food was kick ass abit steep on price though.
btw…sugimoto at hartamas serves fugu as well =) u should give it a try its my all time favourite jap place. its not as chic n fabulous as hajime its more like a cosy family place.
5. BENevolent Ben | April 28th, 2007 at 1:53 pm
definitely must go back and try. Japanese ftw!
‘fugu, which is the meat of the highly poisonous pufferfish, takes great skill to prepare and can only be done so by licensed chefs. so yeah, definitely something to try at least once in your life!’
so have you?
6. jonathanlim | April 28th, 2007 at 2:17 pm
u makes me missa jaapaanese fooda!
7. joey | April 28th, 2007 at 2:17 pm
hey, you hv a talent in describing food…darn..i’m hungry dy..how leh:) the unagi looks srumptious..yum yum
8. vvens | April 28th, 2007 at 2:30 pm
they arent very costy right?
and looked very yummy. omg! next stop for try-outs! :)
9. i ling | April 28th, 2007 at 2:56 pm
food recommendations on pinkpau again! weeee* i’ve been waiting for you to write something so I can go there! :)
10. HK | April 28th, 2007 at 5:28 pm
*drool* I love unagi!!
On one hand, the food that Hajime serves seems to be on the stylish side of things, and creativity as well. Ahh, reminds me of Kobe Jones in London. So darn nice! but hefty bill haha..
I don’t quite like the price, sums it all up to about rm300-350 for a family meal there doesn’t it? But it looks soooo good!!
Me want Atlantic Salmon!! NOWWW!!
11. MichelleSY | April 28th, 2007 at 5:48 pm
Food looks scrumptious and the flawless service can only be a plus =)
12. TheRealAnonymous | April 28th, 2007 at 6:14 pm
HOLY COW! You just made me hungry… maybe tonight dinner I’ll order Jap spread from my hotel… LoL! =p
13. songjun | April 28th, 2007 at 8:48 pm
oy so expensive la haha :p i cant believe you paid rm24 for a bowl of somen ! :O omg!! Japanese club sells it for like… rm 12 i think hehe and its a huge bowl :P
oh ya i made teriyaki mackeral by ‘accident’ the other day lol!
very easy oni haha buy raw mackeral ,splash teriyaki sauce on it, put an onionslice or two and then microwave it for about 5 mins or so
u get a steamed texture to it but it tastes just like teriyakigrilled fish yum! next time ill try baking it or grilling it with teriyaki:P
mackeral here only costs 2 pounds for 2 hahaha ! :P
14. Esther | April 29th, 2007 at 12:37 am
omg.. i’m just in the middle of japanese food crave!
15. Carmen. | April 29th, 2007 at 1:40 am
OhmyGod. The pictures are making me hungry. Seriously, I had my dinner just now. And yes, I am fulled, but because of your pictures. -_- Please save me.
16. Jessica K. | April 29th, 2007 at 8:00 am
Read about this restaurant in a magazine and it’s a shame that I haven’t try it out. =(
Btw, how did yuu get to take pictures around? I mean, they allow yuu to do so? I tried to take pictures in restaurant in a few occasions but only manage to take few because it feels pretty awkward and ppl with me finds it embarrassing. >_
17. Kington | April 29th, 2007 at 12:09 pm
YOU MADE ME HUNGRY!!!!!!!
18. alea | April 29th, 2007 at 6:42 pm
unagi? CHEESE?
OH MY GOD! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
19. alea | April 29th, 2007 at 6:44 pm
omfg. it’s near Raffles Design Institute!!
double oh my god! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
20. Sandra | April 30th, 2007 at 2:35 pm
Looks nice!=) when u gonna bring me along for food fest? haha or Chocolate Fest? yum yum! I try once in Zipangu Shang Hotel! regreated because the food wasnt really that nice and tasty. *yuck*
21. Hishy | May 1st, 2007 at 6:17 am
The food looks amazing…
but your post is very depressing to me -__-
22. pinkpau | May 1st, 2007 at 9:53 pm
jonathan : anti jap food?! O___O may i ask why?
k0k : unagi is the BEST :D hey whats jap food like in india
michelle : hehe i see u went to hajime too. fantastic place eh :P sapu rakuzen and saisaki and all those other wannabe tempats.
chubby : im glad you think hajime is fab! true the prices are steep for us KLites so exposed to genki sushi-esque prices, but if compared to other restaurants of its standard (ozeki, kampachi, zipangu), then hajime is a steal :) not to mention their food is 1000x times better than the latter two places. i just went to sugimoto last night! will look out for their fugu when the season rolls around .. :D
benevolent : nochet!! waiting for end of the year till hajime serves it. wei u not coming back for the winter right?
jon : wait till i blog abt malaysian food.. heehee
joey : believe me, it really is scrumptious !
vvens : reasonably priced for a place of its standard :) though i have a feeling the prices are going to go up soon, as more ppl come to know of the restaurant. it’s still quite new now
i ling : yeaaa i havent blogged abt food in forever! =( ive missed it!
hk : no lah not that expensive, probably rm200+ for a family of 4-5? kobe jones!! i oso want!! haha u know what, the latest addition to KL’s jap food scene is a restaurant called Ninja Jones :P
michellesy : the service is fantastic :) seriously wan.
therealanon : haha and charge it all to the employers!!
songjun : i havent been to the jap club since that time! heehee must find an excuse to go then can see all these cute japanese boys. ur teriyaki mackerel oso dunno whether nice anot -__- dont be chem engineer lah u .. be a chef or something
esther : thats a good excuse to go hunt out jap food :P
carmen : so are you hungry or full now??
jessica k : i use my CHARM, muahaha! yeah there are places that dont allow photo taking. but i either go ahead anyway or make them let me take the photos.
kington : GOOD.. i like to make DJ ppl suffer!
alea : i know, right :P and yes it’s right next to raffles.
sandra : haha zipangu memang not nice!! ok one day we shall go eat with karl and kevin .. :D
hishy : why?? us dont have japanese food meh!
23. Jonathan | May 2nd, 2007 at 5:37 am
I guess the paranoia of seeing pregnant fishes when you are about 7 years old gives you the eerie feeling whenever you visit a japanese cuisine. Not forgetting, raw food + Me –> XXXXXX
pity haha
24. TheRealAnonymous | May 2nd, 2007 at 12:00 pm
Actually i’m a hotel guest =p… so my bills are being charged to the hotel management rather than my employers. hehe… but dun care who’s charged lar, so long as i’m not the one paying the bills… makan oni! LoL…
25. 4896 | May 2nd, 2007 at 10:40 pm
My favor Unagi…Someone sent this to me when I said I’m hungry…haha…but i challenge her with mine…http://www.foureightninesix.com/blog/?p=45
26. k0k | May 3rd, 2007 at 3:39 am
Funny you shud ask. *checks out local Jap food*…
…
…
…
Wait there’s None. Nada. Nil. Null (lest I take a 13 hour bus ride to Bangalore). Imagine my torture.
ps: a pinkpau commented in my blog. being the natural paranoic I am, I have to ask - “really really?”
27. violet | May 3rd, 2007 at 3:40 pm
babe. the map mcm tak make sense la. tell the restaurant to redo it. lol. my father lives right next door to sucasa yet i cant even make sense of where to go. or maybe its just me :s lol
28. Crooked | May 4th, 2007 at 7:57 am
Its true that you cant find good or high end Japanese Cuisine in Sushi King or Genkis… but by having a RM26 bowl of udon, a below average white collar wont be able to afford these.
But, this place looks like its worth going.
29. FuGZ | May 4th, 2007 at 4:00 pm
Nice pinkpau. Becuz of this entry, Gin made me go there to have dinner.. with my family, without her.. ahahha..
But yeah, everybit of the things i ordered were simply delicious. Ate till i dropped..
30. em | May 14th, 2007 at 2:28 am
omg! this is the first time I’ve ever read your blog and I was just there awhile ago!!!
talk about coincidence……………. -_-
31. lasilasi | May 17th, 2007 at 7:42 pm
u did a really great job in reviewing the food! i must try it when i get back to msia!!!
32. Anthony | May 25th, 2007 at 7:49 am
holy cow… that looks so good. You suck! :( I live 80 miles from the nearest city and all we have here is like burger joints. lol
33. Yappy | June 30th, 2007 at 6:01 pm
i’ve been wanting to leave a comment on your blog for sometime…
i love your food reviews, they make me hungry everytime i read them! yes, hajime is fantastic!!! I love hajime’s salmon sashimi, its heavenly… I tried out ciao, sweet bean and chocolate brownies in both tgi’s and ms.read (i can’t decide who’s the winner). they are all great!
while reading through your food archieves, I came across a pic of darren yap. coincidentally, he’s my classmate in college. what a small small world!
Anyway, thanks for all the great reviews, keep on writing! :)
34. Alicia Teo | July 16th, 2007 at 12:05 pm
The foods are really nice! i love the California cheese and unagi maki. Must try it.
Nice enviroment as well. :) 160707
35. wptan | September 18th, 2007 at 2:07 am
I check out the restaurant… Didn’t think too much of some of the stuff there. The cheese and unagi maki was very good though. The salmon fish head as well. I posted a post on it as well. Overall I think its a nice place to eat and will probably go there again…
36. dottie ismail | July 18th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
If you guys are Japanese food craver, yes go Hajime. The price could be at higher end but it worth the pockets. My friends and hubby loves the food. We are quite regular. Place cozy, and good to relax with good food after all hectis at work. Try, you’ll come back for more like myself and friends. :)
For food, we love the salmon set, salmon miso soup, avocado etc…the list goes on and of course Sakeeeee….
37. Feeling Down... Japanese &hellip | November 9th, 2008 at 10:00 am
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