Revisit: Shinjiro @ Tropicana City Mall

I've enjoyed my previous feast of smoky, fragrant food on a stick at this place here so much that, four weeks later, I found myself back at Shinjiro Izakaya Yakitori @ Tropicana City Mall for more....this time bringing along my nephew for a celebratory 'exams are over' treat!

Why does food on a stick bring so much joy?  Is it the smoky, charred bits that lent such awesome fragrance?  Or is it the ease of eating something from a stick?  Maybe it's the intoxicating aroma of something grilling over an open charcoal flame. 

Whatever it is....I simply adore it! ;D  So, let's get straight to the new food on a stick I managed to try this time round.  They have a new menu...and, by that, I literally mean a new menu though the menu items remained basically the same.

First up, the Fillet Mackerel @ RM12.90 offered an absolutely nice grilled flavour to the otherwise soft and flaky flesh.  It may be overly charred for some but I had no complaints as it was perfectly smoky and free from any bitter taste.  Will definitely order this again.

Next came the Fillet + Asparagus @ RM6.90 comprising of 4 pieces of thin beef fillet seasoned with shio and wrapped around a stick of asparagus.  The beef was tender and the asparagus soft to the bite.  On the same plate, we were served the Crispy Tofu @ RM3.90 with bonito flakes (which we had before).  Preferably, these two skewers should have been served on different plates so that the flavours don't mingle as one was seasoned with shio while the other had teriyaki sauce on it....and, luckily, it didn't! :)

Next was a skewer I wanted to try but it was a bit of a mystery to me coz one blog described it as salmon with mentai while another referred to it as breast fillet with mentai.    I couldn't make it out, so I showed the pic to the server who confirmed that it was (Chicken) Breast Fillet x 2 @ RM5.90 a stick topped with lightly torched mentai (and they weren't stingy with the mentai), so if you're absolutely mental with mentai, like I am, you have to order this (hmm, I wonder if there are any other skewers that come with mentai).  [#Tip:  On hindsight, looking at the description in the menu as Breast Fillet, I probably wouldn't have ordered it (in the first place) since it's breast meat and definitely wouldn't have guessed it came with mentai.] 

On the same plate was the Squid @ RM8.90 with sweet and sour sauce.  This I wasn't liking so much as the squid was overcooked and chewy.  [#Note: Again, I tried to order the Squid Tentacles but they ran out of it (again).]

Then came one of my favourites of the night, the Chicken Liver @ RM4.90 doused in teriyaki sauce.  The chicken liver here is barely cooked, so you end up with a texture that's almost creamy and incredibly soft (rather similar to barely cooked pig liver).  So, be forewarned if you're not a fan of barely cooked stuff! ;D

The Thigh + Leek @ RM5.90 was nice and juicy as chicken thigh meat always is......

.....and so was the Thigh Teriyaki @ RM5.90 and Chicken Nugget @ RM5.90 that my nephew wanted.  The chicken nugget resembles minced chicken meatballs, so they would be popular with the young, but I found myself liking them too.

For a bit of vegetables, we ordered Leeks and (Fresh Shiitake) Mushrooms x 2 @ RM5.90 a stick but got only the mushrooms as they had run out of leeks too.

And here were the skewers we tried on our previous visit but ordered again.....

The Minced Beef Balls @ RM6.90, a request by my nephew, previously came with three meatballs but, this time, what we got were five smaller meatballs.  Taste wise, it was better this time as it wasn't as peppery.

The Salmon x 2 @ RM8.90 a stick was just as moist and tender as I remembered....yummy!

The Chicken Wings x 3 @ RM6.90 a stick, the best skewer for me on our last visit, were still as awesome as they were the first time I had them.  It's bonkers just how good they are!

The Chicken Skin x 5 @ RM4.90 a stick, on the other hand, wasn't as good this time round.  I guess it depends on how the grilling is executed to render the skin crispy (like the two sticks at the far end) coz, when not properly done, it's just chewy, gelatinous skin...yikes!!  We ordered 5 sticks and got one stick foc (which we didn't know we would get)....double yikes!!  Too much skin in one sitting! >.<  Those into healthy eating will certainly feel squeamish looking at this pic...kekeke! :D

We also had an order of Shinjiro Fried Rice @ RM16.90 which came with small, crispy fried baby shrimps and a poached egg (unfortunately overcooked) in a flavourful rice with crunchy bits, sesame seeds and scallion.  This was definitely better than the Unagi Rice we had the last time we were here.

We wrapped up our dinner with a dessert of Mochi @ RM13.90 that featured 5 pieces of flavoured mochi with different fillings and cut up fruits of strawberry, mango, blueberry and kiwi.

My Personal Opinion

My opinion has not changed....the sticks of food were still as impressive!  And I've added a few more amazing skewers to my list.

And what 'sweetened' this meal even more....a 25% discount offered by offpeak.my that I discovered only recently.  I got RM50 knocked off from my bill this time.....sweet! ;)  Make your booking through offpeak for your preferred dining meal time between 2 - 6 pm, available Mondays to Sundays.  What better time than now to try Shinjiro before the offer is gone....go, go now!! ;D

Update:  I was told the restaurant has since closed (yet another one that didn't make it past its first year which I'm not sure why as I loved their skewers!)

Shinjiro Izakaya Yakitori
Lot G-06 Tropicana City Mall
3 Jalan SS20/27
47400 Petaling Jaya
Selangor
Tel: 03-7732 2986