Admirers of Tonkatsu By Ma Maison at Singapore's Mandarin Gallery insist the city-state's tastiest pork cutlets can be relished there; now that this brand has come to the Klang Valley, it's time to see whether customers here will feel the same.
Tonkatsu By Ma Maison opened this week at Isetan 1 Utama's Eat Paradise, the haven for Japanese food luminaries like
Menya Musashi &
Ichiro Sushi Bar.
Deep-fried delights: The "Mameton" set (RM32.90) is the signature sampler, featuring pork loin, pork fillet & prawns with a juicy, robust-tasting crunch.
In Singapore, Tonkatsu By Ma Maison's trump card is the use of premium pork from the Japanese Kurobuta black boars & Hungarian Mangalica curly-haired hogs. Woefully, neither of those piggy breeds is available here because of Malaysian importation hurdles.
Sets come with a free-flow of fresh shredded cabbage & white or multi-grain rice, sweet & spicy tonkatsu sauces with sesame seeds ...
... plus tonjiru pork-veggie miso soup & somen in dashi broth.
Extra bowls of thick-as-pea-soup Japanese curry & miso sauce can be ordered too.
How does Tonkatsu by Ma Maison stack up to Pavilion's
Tonkatsu By Wa Kitchen? Both are very nice; residents of PJ can now head to the former, while city folk might stick with the latter.
Tonkatsu By Ma Maison's menu is expected to expand by this weekend, with crab & oyster croquettes & egg-topped katsu don set to make their debut.
Tonkatsu By Ma Maison,
Eat Paradise, Isetan 1 Utama, Bandar Utama, Petaling Jaya,
U r fast! Too bad about the non-availability of the Kurobuta and Mangalica...the somen is a plus point for me to visit tis place...hehe =)
ReplyDeleteUlric: yeah, the manager was quite apologetic while explaining the reasons why they can't offer the kurobuta & mangalica pork here. he says they've even faced challenges with the type of rice they use, since they want to ensure everything is top-notch =)
DeleteNevertheless worth a visit and a good ole try...haha =)
DeleteUlric: yeah, i probably won't return for now, but it was a nice meaty meal. and fairly hearty too. my friend and i only ordered one set to share, but we were quite satisfied with the portion size =)
DeleteI will probably whack one set by myself...no sharing pls...hahaha :P
DeleteUlric: enjoy! ya, one set should be just right for a dude with a hearty appetite for protein. and you can tambah nasi and cabbage and tonjiru soup as much as you want, again and again =)
DeleteI rather tambah somen...unfortunately can't be done...hehe =)
DeleteUlric: silky-smooth somen. not bad =)
Deletelooks good.. shall make my way there..
ReplyDeleteyay another new ramen restaurant at 1U
Simple Person: hope you enjoy it! ooh, but there's no ramen at this outlet though, only somen (the thinner type of noodles). the somen is offered free with every tonkatsu set ordered =)
DeleteKC told me they are open on the 8th? how did u get there so fast? LOL
ReplyDeleteRebecca: the service team here did look surprised to see us prematurely enter their outlet! :D
DeleteAhemmm...u went yesterday nite?...hehe =)
DeleteUlric: well, the manager thanked us for being their first paying customers =)
DeleteWe haven't gone to 1U in a long time. I want to try the Ichiro Sushi Bar, and now want to try Tonkatsu!
ReplyDeleteCK: oh ya, i think go to ichiro first, enjoy some sashimi and sushi there, and then after that, can go to tonkatsu and share a pork cutlet plate :D
DeleteI second Sean's recommendations!...hahaha :P
DeleteUlric: a one-stop center for an array of japanese goodies =)
DeleteJapanese curry is really quite different, I have chance to taste many versions when working in Japan for sometime ! actually not bad !
ReplyDeleteWong: ya, i quite like it cos it's not as spicy as many other asian curries. and it is thick and flavorful :D
DeleteI've yet to try the one in Pavilion and there's a new one already?! I love katsu but most of the time, they tasted rather bland.
ReplyDeleteChong: ya, i think 80 percent of the katsus in kl might not really be worth the calories. maybe you could check out this outlet. the price is relatively steep for katsu, but with all the add-ons and the quality of the meat and preparation, i do believe it's worth it, heh =)
DeleteAha...so what kinda pork do they use here? No Kurobuta... oh NO!! :-P
ReplyDeletePureglutton: ooh, it's Malaysian pork, but premium-grade one, they say, which they took a lot of effort to sample and select from a specific farm =)
DeleteAh we were passing by Eat Paradise yesterday and did not even notice this place.
ReplyDeleteBaby Sumo: oooh, it's hidden a bit deep inside, kinda near ichiro sushi bar =)
DeleteMy Japanese girlfriend just mentioned these to me yesterday! She says they're delicious!
ReplyDeleteThe Yum List: they're like the best kind of pork chops, heheh :D
DeleteI think I would love the Mameton...
ReplyDeleteSuituapui: pork and prawns, all on one plate. great to sink our teeth into :D
DeleteWoohoo!! I didn't get to try the outlet at Mandarin Gallery. Glad that they've come to Malaysia. :)
ReplyDeleteBangsar-Babe: ya, and in mandarin gallery, the price for the mameton set is S$25.80, so it's quite a bargain to be getting pretty much exactly the same thing for RM32.90 in KL :D
DeleteIwas at Ippudo which was just a floor above Ma Maison. I should have tried it and then I would have comparison now!
ReplyDeleteRebecca: ooh, no worries, I'm betting you'll definitely have more chances when you return to Singapore this year! :D
DeleteGood news that they are here in KL. Sadly there's the import constrains. Price wise, I will have to agree that its definitely very reasonable to eat in Msia vs Spore.
ReplyDeleteMissyblurkit: yeah, the manager assured us that as far as the regular tonkatsu is concerned, the quality of the one served here in 1utama is 'nearly' as good as the one served in Singapore. And 'nearly' is good enough for me, heheh :D
DeleteHaven't really try the one from singapore. such a pity that our country has so much restrictions in the importation of meat and hence no good steaks and pork.
ReplyDeleteEiling: yeah, the restrictions on beef imports do cause us to lose out sometimes on some really nice steaks and porky fare. i guess we'll have to consider a trip to singapore for the full tonkatsu experience at ma maison =)
DeleteWOOHOOOO!!! I brought my family here when we were in Singapore and everyone loved it! The last time I was in Tonkatsu by Wa Kitchen, the standard definitely dropped. My brother's an avid tonkatsu fan and he was really disappointed by it!!! hehe but I'm sure he'll be excited by this news!!!!! :D
ReplyDeleteVien: ooo, it's been quite a long time since I stepped into wa kitchen, but am sorry to hear about their slide in quality. Ma maison is up to a good start though, no real teething troubles so far! :D
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