Wrapping up our Hanare trilogy, we returned here for this restaurant's first Sunday champagne lunch, which featured a free flow of G.H. Mumm's best bubbly.
Hanare offers KL's most limited weekend buffet selection, but quality trumps quantity here; it isn't an all-you-can-eat spread where abundant trays of abysmal food flood the counters. Instead, everything is efficiently and painstakingly prepared to order (even the sashimi, which is only sliced upon request).
Just three types of raw fish were available _ tuna belly, salmon & yellowtail _ but all seemed worthy of blue-ribbon distinction, flown in from Tsukiji Market. As good as sashimi gets in the Klang Valley.
U.S. oysters, freshly shucked as soon as the two-hour lunch started at noon.
The cost is considerable: RM298+ per person with champagne and RM150+ without. But since Hanare's sashimi and oysters are steeply priced on the a la carte menu, this remains a sensible way to freely indulge while still capping your expenses.
Teppanyaki, cooked with a smile. There were only five tables of customers during this lunch, so the service team managed to keep things running smoothly.
Plump prawns & fleshy fish. As someone once sang: let it flow, let it flow, let it flow.
Achingly tender beef, perfectly prepared. Not unnecessarily salty.
Tempura prawns & veggies, lightly battered with minimum oil. To illustrate how Hanare's weekend lunches are an economical alternative to its weekday dinners, a simple plate of seafood tempura on the a la carte menu would already cost 60 ringgit.
Veggies for variety's sake; green is the new pink. Our only complaint: 120 minutes might seem too fleeting for a leisurely lunch, particularly since many other outlets in KL allow three or four hours for Sunday brunches.
Smoked salmon with seaweed & salmon roe. Admittedly though, we were satiated by 2 p.m. and couldn't eat or drink much more. Mission accomplished!
California Maki. And that, folks, is all that this buffet provided (we tried everything!). Nevertheless, noodles and other tidbits will be available in the future.
Japanese strawberry ice cream brought the curtain down on the meal.
Of course, the primary attraction is the ceaseless supply of champagne...
... and all the sake you can slurp (10 glasses per person might be the safe limit). Would two hours be sufficient time to get sloshed? Here's where you can find out.
Service is irreproachable. Our glasses were never empty for more than a minute.
Hanare Japanese Restaurant,
Ground Floor, The Intermark,
Jalan Tun Razak, Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: 03-2164-2133/ 2164-2633