I was invited for the third Friday Wine Lunch at the Japanese restaurant Tykoh Inagiku last Friday. The Friday Wine Lunch series is hosted by Pernod Ricard Malaysia, and I was invited by the good people at Millennium Associates. As I tend to look like a lobster after half a glass of any alcohol, I took half a day off from work to attend this event, and it was well worth the effort.
Cabernet Sauvignon, Reserved Riesling, and Reserved Chardonnay from Jacob’s Creek
I didn’t know the existence of Tykoh Inagiku prior to this event. Located at Menara Keck Seng right next to Westin Hotel at Bukit Bintang, the restaurant has a pretty classy set up with comfortable chairs and tasteful furnishing while not being exuberant.
We were served Cabernet Sauvignon, Reserved Riesling, and Reserved Chardonnay from Jacob’s Creek, accompanied by some pretty fine Japanese dishes.
We started out with Sea Urchin and Fresh Tofu with Ponzu Jelly to go with Reserved Riesling. The appetizer consists of a generous portion of sea urchin on tofu with a little piece of kiwi, and a dash of smelt and salmon roe, you can feel at least 4 different textures play in your mouth. Pretty creative.
Fish Stock Soup with Takenoko (Bamboo Shoots) and Mushroom also includes seaweed and a very small slice lime to freshen up the taste. It was a fresh departure from the standard miso soup, I like it quite a bit and actually had two bowls (since there was an absentee). The soup reminds me of the set we had at Ninja Jones.
The Reserved Riesling goes particularly well with our third dish, Sashimi Salad. The fish were either raw or slightly seared and served with different accompanying ingredients in a very fine-dining style. Something closer to fusion than pure Japanese, but I think it worked out pretty alright.
Grill Lobster with Miso Sauce & Char Grilled Wagyu Beef with Wasabi Sauce
I chose the Grilled Lobster with Miso Sauce as my main. Half a lobster grilled with miso, cheese, mushroom, asparagus, and a few other condiments. I find the lobster meat fresh and very delicious, but the miso sauce slightly too salty at times. Luckily the Reserved Chardonnay does well to cut through the grease a bit.
As my luck goes, there was an extra portion of Char Grilled Wagyu Beef with Wasabi Sauce unclaimed, and of course we did not let it go to waste. The beef was done medium well and very, very succulent. Wasabi sauce provided a tad of spiciness while leaving the original taste intact. If you go to Tykoh Inagiku, this is the dish to order, and it would be a good idea to have the beef with Cabernet Sauvignon.
Yours Truly, the dessert, and Lionel of Millennium Associates
Lunch was capped off with Lemon and Yuzu Sorbet and Macha Dumpling. The sorbet was so sour it practically cleaned my tongue anew, an experience not dissimilar from the lunch I had at Lafite. The taste of strawberry with powdered green tea and macha dumpling with the renewed taste buds was much better than having them straight after the hearty main dish.
Menara Keck Seng is located right next to Westin Hotel
As always, this Friday Wine Lunch session was marvelous. For RM75 per pax, I think it’s a steal. Do contact Millennium Associates if you are interested in the next session (usually held on the last Friday of the month).
Address:
Tykoh Inagiku Japanese Restaurant
2nd Floor, Podium Block, Menara Keck Seng
No. 203, Jalan Bukit Bintang,
55100 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
GPS: 3.147919,101.714913
Tel: 03-2148 2133
More photos can be found on my flickr set
