Soft shell crab roll

Hokkaido Ichiba at The Gardens is constantly crowded, especially during peak hours. Despite dining there at a non peak hour, I still experienced less than satisfactory service. We were seated at the sushi bar due to the lack of tables.

Ordering was a pain. It was difficult to get the attention of the wait staff as they were all over the place trying to attend to as many customers as possible. My chicken katsudon took 40 minutes and 3 reminders to arrive. The wait alone marred my dining experience.

Chicken katsudon

To be objective, the portion was fairly generous and it tasted pretty good. The breaded exterior of the chicken katsu was light and crispy, while the meat was tender. This chicken katsu came with plenty of onions and gravy, which I enjoyed, as I like my rice slightly wet. Purists might roll their eyes at me though.

rif’s soft shell crab roll was generously stuffed and quite a mouthful. If you were to pop the whole roll into your mouth at once. If you don’t, you will end up with a deconstructed sushi roll. So your choice. He also ordered a California roll that was decent, but not rave-worthy.

California Roll

On a whole, I didn’t enjoy my dining experience at Hokkaido Ichiba. The poor service didn’t justify a revisit. I would rather dine in Yuzu, even though it’s pricier. My parents who were at Hokkaido Ichiba last night said the same thing about the service.

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Ambiance: 6/10
Price: 6/10
Food: 6/10 (pork free)
Verdict: Decent food, but a big boo-boo to the service.

Hokkaido Ichiba
Lot T-201, 3rd Floor, The Gardens,
Mid Valley City, Lingkaran Syed Putra, 59200 KL.
Tel: 03-2283 1060