Shoya Sushi Bar, Isetan The Japan Store, KL

Isetan in Lot 10 has undergone major refurbishment and opened its door last Friday to the public. Known now as Isetan The Japan Store, the departmental store will be showcasing an amazing array of Japanese products, fashion and food.

We took BabySumoKids today to have a look around, and they are lots of cool (and very expensive) stuff. My favorite floor is The Market, located at LG whereby you will find Japanese sweets, bakery, tea, craft beers, sake, as well as lots of Japanese cuisine such as sushi, teppanyaki, soba, udon and more.

We dined at Shoya Sushi Bar, which I believe is owned by the same people as Hanaya and Ten as I spotted some of their chefs here. For all the eateries here at Isetan The Japan Store, you will need to queue and then place your order at the counter and pay, and you will be given a number to bring to your table. The food will be served to your table when ready. From what we observed today, it seems that you can order from different eateries. Service is polite and we didn't have to wait too long for our food to arrive. The setting is similar to a food court though, so the noise levels are pretty high.

Today marks the start of #BabySumoBirthdayMonth, and what a great way to kick it off! I had the Special Bara Chirashi Don (RM23) and it was really good! Of course, the best one is still from Hanaya, but for the price we are paying here (3x less than Hanaya), I certainly ain't complaining. It is definitely on par with the one from Ichiro.

To me, a good bara chirashi is one that has fresh seafood, and the ratio of seafood is more than the rice. This one certainly surpassed my expectations :) The rice is topped with generous amounts of salmon, tuna, cucumber, pickles, ebiko, ika, tako, tamagoyaki and more. When I finished the rice, there were still lots of toppings left. I would definitely return for this.

Baby C and Baby D each picked their own dish and Hubby shared it with them. Baby C chose the Salmon Don (RM26) while Baby D picked the Salmon Zanmai (RM35). The salmon don came with 8 slices of salmon sashimi, topped on sushi rice. Again, it was good for the price.

Baby D's salmon zanmai set came with 3 pieces of salmon sushi, 2 pieces of seared salmon sushi, 6 salmon mini rolls and 1 with salmon roe. I had a piece of the seared salmon sushi and it was pretty good (had that melt-in-the-mouth, fatty texture). Both Baby D and Baby C managed to finish all the mini rolls as well as the salmon roe one and Hubby helped them out with the rest. All sets come with a miso soup. Overall, a great, enjoyable lunch!

Baby D can't wait to dig in

 After our lunch, the kids went to the sushi counter to watch the chefs slice and prepare the fish

The menu here at Shoya Sushi Bar

I have my eye on some of the other eateries such as the Henri Charpentier patiserrie and Kinobu (Kyoto cuisine). Can't wait to revisit!

Here are some photos that we took at Isetan The Japan Store today!

Lots of very nice Japanese homewares

Sailormoon - one of my childhood favs!

The boy and Gundam

Bearbrick 

Sonny Angel

A very posh-looking tea place

Hello my Sumo friend

Fans with Twin Towers print

Coffee place

Plen robot

Embroidery machine... they also have like other cool stuff like laser cutting machines and 3D figurine printing services

I like this Garden located on the 2nd floor... very pretty for photos

Twinning with my darling girl

Opening times: 11am to 9pm daily.

Location: Shoya Sushi Bar, Lower Ground Floor, Isetan the Japan Store, Lot 10 Shopping Centre, 50 Jalan Sultan Ismail, 50250 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. (Parking RM6 for first 4 hours)

Tel: 03-2141 7777

Website: http://thejapanstore.mistore.jp/my/en/index.html

GPS Coordinates: 3.146451, 101.712460


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Cinema A La Carte KL - La Mexicana, Bangsar

When watching a food movie, don't you sometimes wish that you could actually taste the dishes in the movie? I know that I do!

Cinema A La Carte KL.. from the screen to your plate, is a culinary film festival of flavours, cinema and solidarity which allows you to do just that. Happening from 25th ​October to 8th December 2016, six different restaurants in the city will prepare a special menu each which best represent the chosen movie.

This year, Cinema A La Carte KL celebrates its 2nd Culinary Film Festival, kicking off at La Mexicana Bangsar. We were invited to discover the gastronomic delights at its first venue, while enjoying the movie "Canela".

All proceeds from Cinema A la Carte KL this year will go to The Lost Food Project, a initiative to raise awareness in society about food wastage and reducing food waste in Malaysia, by donating to the needy. Did you know that a staggering 3,000 tonnes of food is thrown away everyday, just in KL alone?

Watch a movie and eat the food from the movie

After a short speech by the organizer, Ms. Natahalie Nunez, the lights were dimmed and the film "Canela" started rolling. Before long, we were served the first course of the evening, a delicious sope, which is a traditional Mexican snack. The sope has made from corn flour, had a crispy and soft texture, and was topped with shredded duck confit, queso fresco (homemade cheese) with a reduction of Jamaica flowers (aka roselle) and a touch of Chile Morita for a spicy kick. This was served with an aperitivo with the Mexican flag colours - green and red sangrita and tequila blanco Patron in shot glasses. Our fellow diner, a Mexican gentleman taught us to first drink the green (sour), followed by the red (spicy) and finishing with the tequila.

Next was a rich and comforting carrot soup, with coriander and ginger. The fresh Jalapeno chile at the bottom of the soup bowl lends spiciness to the soup and the fried tortilla added a nice, crunchy texture. This was served with a refreshing fresh guanabana and chia juice.

In the movie, Tere who is the restaurant owner of El Molcajete, a traditional Mexican food restaurant, loses her passion for cooking due to a tragic death in the family. Hence the restaurant hires Chef Rosi, who introduces fusion dishes to the menu, as she tries to make it a light, trendy cuisine.

So for the next dish, Chef Carmela of La Mexicana goes fusion and whipped up a ravioli filled with homemade requeson cheese and pumpkin flowers in a chile poblano salsa. I loved the sauce, it was so flavourful! The next two courses were served with a white and red wine respectively.

The movie centres around Tere's mole poblano, a classic Mexican dish with a thick, rich chocolate sauce. Tere makes her mole, the traditional way, while Chef Rosi yet again makes it in her fusion manner. A food critic comes to the restaurant and eventually chooses Tere's mole as the best mole she has ever tasted. All the restaurant customers also come especially for Tere's mole.

Chef Carmela also makes her mole the traditional way, and tops it on chicken and rice a la Mexicana and corn tortilla. I have tasted a few mole in KL, and this is definitely the best I've tried!

And for dessert, we were served Mexican-style coffee and cinnamon cookies, which Maria, Tere's granddaughter makes in the movie.

We enjoyed the light-hearted movie, which showcased the importance of Mexican food and family traditions. For me, it was a nice experience, getting to taste the dishes you see in the movie.

Chef Carmela of La Mexicana Restaurant and  Ms Natahalie Nunez of Cinema A la Carte KL (Photo credit: Cinema A la Carte KL FB page)

There are five remaining restaurants and dates for this event - Nathalie Gourmet Studio (1 Nov - RM270 ), Fong Lye (9 Nov - RM100), Chayo Cafe (22 Nov - RM70), Vina del Rey (30 Nov - RM188) and French Feast (8 Dec - RM270). Do check out Cinema A La Carte KL's Facebook page for more details and for the full menu of each event. Reservations can be made by emailing rsvp@cinemaalacartekl.com.

Restaurant Dates & Dinner

Price: RM180 per person at La Mexicana for food, wine / alcoholic beverages and film.

Location: La Mexicana, 12 Jalan Telawi 5, Bangsar Baru, 59100 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Tel: 03-2201 7155

GPS Coordinates: 3.132901, 101.671069



If you enjoyed reading my posts, LIKE me on Facebook! You can also follow me on Instagram (@babysumo) for more photo updates or Dayre for daily updates.. Thanks :)