WATAMI Review

Watami is a Japanese casual restaurant that was launched in Malaysia in 2011. They have over 600 branches across Asia and 3 of them are in Malaysia. Based on what I have gathered, they used to be a pork-free establishment to accommodate Muslim customers but have recently transitioned into serving pork to align more closely with their principal brand in Japan. More info can be found on their website. The one I visited the other day with my mom is their branch in One Utama.

We ordered their Value Set for 2. We decided to try their Onsen Tamago Caesar Salad, Salmon Sashimi, Tonpeiyaki, Tokyo Roast Katsu Don along with their Sumiyaki Coffee Jelly and Chocolate Ice-cream. As for drinks I had their Green Citrus Green Tea while my mom had their Passionfruit Mango Tea.

I couldn't try out my mom's drink because I had a sore throat and I didn't want to pass it on to her. Their Green Citrus Green Tea is extremely refreshing and helped relieve my sore throat a great deal. It cooled me down quite a bit too. It's a delicious thirst quenching drink that is perfect for our hot Malaysian weather.

Their Onsen Tamago Caesar Salad was a great appetizer to start off the meal. They used mayonnaise as the dressing and I must say, anything with a combination of egg and mayonnaise can never go wrong. The vegetables were fresh and crunchy, the bits of bacon in the salad were crispy and the tiny pieces of toast in there made a great addition to the salad.

Their Salmon Sashimi was incredibly fresh and succulent. The slices were very thick and it was incredibly pleasant to eat especially to a salmon lover like me. Remember to dip it into their soy sauce for the authentic sashimi flavor!

The Tonpeiyaki was nicely cooked. It was like an omelette, fluffy and not rubbery, which will be a delight especially to people like me who love omelettes since the texture is like one. The pork wasn't tough and the cabbage and cheese were barely noticeable but still can be detected which compliments the entire dish.

I couldn't take a picture of their Katsu Don because my mom had already dug into it before I even noticed it was already on the table. The dish was pretty average and there wasn't much of a wow factor to it since Dons aren't suppose to be too fancy. Their Katsu was like a thick slice of deep fried chicken, tasted like it too. The scrambled egg in there wasn't rubbery either which is great. This is a great dish for those who prefer simpler and uncomplicated food.

The Sumiyaki Coffee Jelly was like a Starbucks frappuccino in jelly form. The jelly itself was bitter but combined with the milk and whipped cream made it an excellent desert. The Chocolate Ice-cream was more like a sorbet texture wise. It seemed as though there wasn't a trace of dairy in the ice cream and the bittersweet taste suggests the flavor of dark chocolate.

In the end, the bill ended up at RM80 which is reasonably cheap for a Japanese restaurant. A regular Japanese restaurant would've cost us about RM150 and above with the amount of food we got. Overall, the food itself was worth its value with the great quality and the healthy serving sizes. Their customer service was good too with their waiters being friendly and attentive considering how many times I have been ignored by waiters in many other restaurants. I do recommend this place for those who want to satisfy their cravings for Japanese food and not feel ripped off.

~ Jelica.