Falling In Love With Japanese Food

My first dinning experience at Hanabi (Odeon Towers) has left me feeling very different about Japanese food. To be completely honest, I can't stand the thought of eating raw food, i.e, sashimi. Nonetheless, I thought I'd give the restaurant a try as the price seemed pretty decent for a buffet and there was a promotion on their Twitter page (@HanabiJap).

I got there with a couple of friends on a Tuesday night and surprisingly, the place was crowded for a weekday night. Althought they had 128 dishes, it took quite awhile for me to look for something to order, but thanks to the waitress who served our table, I managed to find quite an array of dishes to order. The service was very fast for such a crowded restaurant and the staff were all very friendly and helping.

 Let's get down to business then. Though I didn't have any sashimi or sushi myself, my friends raved about the freshness of the sashimi. And I guess, from the amount of Unagi Sushi they ordered, I can say that they loved it? I did however, fall completely in love with the Spider Handroll (Soft Shell Crab Temaki). The rice was perfect and the crispiness of the soft shell crab together with the soft texture of the sushi rice and crispy seaweed made for a delicious temaki. 

For the cooked dishes, my favourite had to be the Tori Teriyaki, the chicken was tender and though it was grilled, it was grilled to the right temperature and for the right amount of time. We also had the Grilled Platter which came with Yaki Tori and in comparison, I think that the Tori Teriyaki was way better. The grilled Shiitake mushrooms were nice but the one I had was a tat bit dry though my friends didn't have the same problem. The Garlic Rice was a shocker, it was frangrant and tasty. And quite honestly, I would have ordered more had it not been for my friends stopping me from doing so as they thought it'll be a waste to just have rice at a buffet. For Japanese curry lovers, a must try is the Karee Udon. Enough said.

For dessert, we were treated with a complementary plate of chocolate cake. THIS WAS HEAVEN ON EARTH. I never tasted such good chocolate cake before! It felt like ice creama nd cake all at once. Though the cakes aren't part o fthe buffet, you can just top up $5 for a free flow of these delicious cakes. My friend also had the Matcha ice cream and what was really special was the red bean topping that came with the ice cream. She loved it. 

All in all, the dinner was splendid and the fact that the deco was minimal and the restaurant had a cozy home feeling to it made for a wonderful night. Simply put, it's definitely worth what you pay for it. I would recommend this cozy establishment for any Japanese food lover. But of course, do remember to make a reservation. The full house on a Tuesday night should be an indicator of how popular the place is.