KUALA LUMPUR, May 2 — You escape from real life the moment you push through the noren leading you into Kappa Kaisen Izakaya.
Their mascot, a kawaii kappa (Japanese water spirit) riding cowboy style on a fish with a mug of beer, signals loud and clear that you’re in for a ride of fun, great food and drinks.
Mimicking the Japanese salary men’s favourite after work past time, this casual dive lets you decompress or even banter (over drinks of course) with that boss who just chewed you out at work.
Being kiasu about where you sit is important here, as those coveted front row counter seats allow you to be in the thick of the action, just like watching your own personal cooking show.
Failure to secure such a seat is not the end of the world as there’s table seating and private rooms for big groups of diners as well.
The vibe here may be casual but these chefs behind the counter are pros of all kinds of Japanese cooking, whipping up sushi, sashimi, tempura, fried and grilled items, with expertise and lightning speed.
Live dangerously here, even though your wallet may not forgive you.
You may vow to just grab only a few bar bites with a drink but be warned of severe over ordering syndrome as greed sets in once you taste the consistent quality of the dishes served.
As early as 5pm, the place is rocking as it’s happy hour time until 7pm.
Take your pick from Japanese sake from various regions including the famous Dassai 45, wine, beer, highballs, shochu made with mugi or imo, whiskey and fruit liquor using ume, yuzu, mikan and white peach.
If nothing excites you, bring your own tipple as corkage is RM50 per bottle.
Refresh your palate with the crunchy, appetising Kappa Salad (left) while the Crab Gratin (right) will jumpstart your meal with crab meat. — Picture by Lee Khang Yi
Rev up with Kappa Salad (RM12), a magical combination of freshness with thin, crunchy shredded vegetables tumbled in a tangy dressing and a generous scattering of fried baby anchovies.
Our tastebuds got the first whammy of happiness with the fully loaded Crab Gratin (RM28), where every bit of crab meat was scraped clean.
As it’s a sibling of beloved Sushinosuke located in Tokyo and Malaysia, expectations were mile high for their sushi and yes, it passed with flying colours, as cloud-like shari was hugged by fresh fish expertly cut.
Since one will be busy drinking away, the curated sets is an easier pick, like their Toyosu Set (RM98) with 8 kinds of sushi like akami, chutoro, otoro, salmon, unagi, ikura and egg.
Toyosu Set has eight types of sushi with fluffy ‘shari’. — Picture by Lee Khang Yi
Look for board specials too for fresh seafood flown in from Toyosu market in Japan.
Hotate (RM12) from the sashimi menu took the top spot for its plump juiciness with caramelised edges from the blowtorch.
Make room for their sushi tacos — fun, crunchy seaweed vessels — filled with rice and sashimi or tempura.
Tuna and Onion Sushi Taco (RM14) is quite a mindbender with a generous dollop of creamy chopped tuna mixed with onions topping the rice, while the seaweed “taco” provided the texture.
Plump, sweet tasting Hotate (left) is lightly torched and Tuna and Onion Sushi Taco (right) is a riot of textures with creamy chopped tuna and crunchy fried seaweed. — Picture by Lee Khang Yi
The overwhelming temptation to order the second pick was why the Engawa and Tuna Sushi Taco (RM22) appeared on the counter, looking dangerously like a tower built from engawa, chopped tuna, tobiko and rice.
It’s not just a one hit wonder place as the tempura and fried items had us tipping our hats to the chefs handling the deep frying.
The tempura has a light, crispy batter without any underlying greasiness, letting you enjoy snacking on the Ice Fish (Shirauo) Tempura (RM20) from the daily special menu.
Seafood Tempura Set (RM48) with five kinds of seafood offers a good way to enjoy the flash fried goodies like kisu fish, prawns and mentai.
Seafood Tempura Set (left) has a light, crispy batter and Oyster Fry (right) hides a juicy oyster inside the fried breadcrumbs exterior. — Picture by Lee Khang Yi
Other sets include a vegetable one and another combination of seven different kinds of seafood and vegetables.
Try to order the tempura items individually if you have the time as the texture will be much better too.
Oyster Fry (2 pieces for RM18) was a real treat too, where the deep fried panko coated morsel offered a light, non-greasy crunch followed by a juicy piece of oyster.
Jumbo Tiger Prawn Fry (RM28) is also very good too, with the bouncy prawn coated with that crunchy brown crumb.
Jumbo Tiger Prawn Fry combines bouncy prawn covered with a crunchy crumb. — Picture by Lee Khang Yi
Don’t forget to order the Ikura Chawanmushi (RM18), a luxed up version of the silky steamed egg that usually is RM12.
The smooth egg is blanketed with orange ikura giving pops of brine balanced out with a strip of yuzu.
Desserts are limited but the Tenshi no Warabimochi (RM14) provided wobbly bracken starch jelly dusted with kinako that threatened to slither away from our spoons.
This is definitely a place we want to return to — again and again — as long as we book our seats ahead of time.
Ikura Chawanmushi (left) is silky smooth with a layer of briny ‘ikura’ and Tenshi no Warabimochi (right) is the ideal dessert to end the night here with its ultra wobbly texture. — Picture by Lee Khang Yi
Kappa Kaisen Izakaya,
54-1F, 54, Jalan Medan Setia 2,
Damansara Heights, Kuala Lumpur.
Open: 5pm to 11pm. Closed on Monday.
Each month, it will be closed for one Tuesday of the month so check their social media for the calendar. This month, they are off on May 6.
Instagram: @kappa.kaisenizakaya
* This is an independent review where the writer paid for the meal.
* Follow us on Instagram @eatdrinkmm for more food gems.
