Tonkatsu by Wa Kitchen @ Pavilion

Tonkatsu by Wa Kitchen @ Pavilion, touted as the first tonkatsu outlet in Malaysia, has been around for about 4 years now.  Even though I frequent Pavilion quite a bit, this place seemed to have eluded me thus far coz, each time I'm here, I've been attracted to other options available here. 

But a recent post on the place by ccfoodtravel reminded me that I should finally give this place a visit.  I do eat fried food every now and then but not entirely fond of an entire meal made up of fried food though. 

Once seated and our orders made, you'd find these condiments (along with a mini pestle and mortar) on the table.  So, while you wait for your food to arrive, you can start making your dipping sauce first.  For the uninitiated, they may not know what to do with these condiments if they're eating here for the first time, so I'll show you (in fact, I didn't know what that bottle of oil/sauce-like thing was for).

I put a few spoonsful of roasted sesame seeds into the mini pestle and grind them finely (into a paste) or coarsely as you wish (I like it slightly coarse).  You can smell the fragrance when you crush the sesame seeds.

Next, I added the tonkatsu sauce (which is kind of similar to a thick Japanese Worcestershire sauce) with a sweet-salty-tangy taste to the crushed sesame seeds...and the sauce should be done.

But then the resulting sauce looked a bit thick to me and, when I noticed a bottle of 'something' on the table (it tasted like flavoured oil), I decided to add that to my sauce to thin it out a bit (maybe it's not meant for this but who says I can't be different, eh?).  Final result....perfecto...and my sauce is ready! ;)

Most of the meals are offered in sets and since its namesake is tonkatsu (which means pork cutlet), it makes sense that our first order was Set 3, the Hire Katsu + Ubi Furai Zen @ RM36.  It was made up of breaded pork fillet cutlet and prawn served with sliced cabbage, tofu, pickled vegetables, pork and vegetable miso soup, rice and a tartar sauce (made with some pickled relish, probably gherkins, and chopped parsley).  [#Tip: If you want just pork, Set 4 of Hire Katsu + Rosu Katsu Zen @ RM34 offers both the pork fillet and pork loin cutlets.]

I was delighted with the two rather huge prawns on the plate.  No complaints there as they were fresh...and, well.....huge! 

The breaded pork fillets that were dredged lightly in flour, dipped in beaten egg and coated with panko (Japanese breadcrumbs) had a good crunch on the outside.  I felt the pork was tender enough to the bite but the crumbed pieces definitely benefitted from a squeeze of lemon.

Of course the set comes with generous helpings of tofu, pickled vegetables, miso soup and rice.  The agedashi tofu, served chilled, also provided some freshness to the otherwise predominantly fried meal.  You'll be assured of leaving here with full tummies as the cabbage, miso soup and rice come with unlimited refills.

The set also came with a helping of shredded cabbage...I've not seen cabbage julienned so finely...I liked that they had an enjoyable crunch and was great paired with the tartar sauce (but since that wasn't quite enough), I added a few dashes of that flavoured oil over the balance cabbage and it tasted a lot nicer.   

Our other order was Set 11, the Seafood Furai Zen @ RM48, which featured a piece of breaded salmon, oyster and scallop each with two (big) prawns.

It came with the same condiments as the set above.  You'd also find a dollop of something yellow on the plate which I suspect to be either mustard or wasabi (and since I hate both, I stayed clear of it).

Again, the seafood was expertly fried at the right temperature to render it not oily.  The salmon was nice and flaky, the oyster bursting with juices, the scallop soft and moist and the prawn fresh and crunchy.  Of the four, I probably enjoyed the oyster the most because of the juiciness.

The condiment of miso soup looked like just any miso soup (I had before) but was pleasantly surprised when I found quite a bit of ingredients in it.  The soup had bits of pork, shiitake mushrooms, daikon and some kind of gelatin sheets...nice!

Our drinks of Mango Juice @ RM7 and

Iced Green Tea @ RM4 (which is refillable as well)

My Personal Opinion

This meal is great for heavy-eaters as they can have their appetites fully satisfied with refills of rice, soup and vegetables to their hearts content.  For me, I couldn't even finish my portion of rice, soup and vegetables that came with the set (let alone ask for refills).  [#Note: But I did see families on the tables to my right and left (with children) asking for refills of rice, soup and vegetables when they shared the mains with their children. Some might see this as taking advantage of the deal and feel that it's not the right thing to do....but I'm alright with it (as long as they don't overdo it and stick to just one refill).  After all, what can they do if their children can't finish a main on his or her own.  I think restaurants these days will exercise discretion and allow for some flexibility.]

There will be some who would feel that the pork and seafood are on the dry side coz, halfway through the meal, I did feel that way too but I don't think I'd put the blame on the proteins though.  To me, it was the dryness of the breadcrumbs coating that made me feel that way.  The thick crispy breadcrumb coating is nothing like the light tempura batter (which I prefer) but I can see this appealing to the young who'd like anything fried and everything crumbed! ;D

Another thing that I picked up was that the pork and seafood came off as very under-seasoned, bordering on bland.  I'm not sure if they were even marinated with salt and pepper.....maybe they were deliberately left unseasoned.  That's why you have to eat it with the tonkatsu sauce, otherwise it'll be totally bland tasting. 

Would I come back for more?  Probably.....but not anytime soon!  This fully fried (and dry) meal will last me a long while.

Tonkatsu by Wa Kitchen
Lot 6.12.00 Level 6 Pavilion KL
168 Jalan Bukit Bintang
50250 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-2144 2992