Rakuzen 樂膳 Japanese Restaurant

Ceiling deco, Rakuzen (29 August 2005)


Rakuzen (樂膳 ) is a Japanese Restaurant at Gurney Paragon Mall , Penang. It is located at level 6, in a "enclave" with other Japanese outlets, between Sushi Zanmai and Pasta Zanmai. I have been eyeing this restaurant for a while, and my wife and I finally went there yesterday, to celebrate my birthday.

24 June, 2015 visit

Had our dinner at Rakuzen last night. I ordered the Sake Oyako Zen (RM40 nett) while my wife had the Saba S. Zen (RM33 nett). The food is very tasty, but rather small portion for me. Eating here gave me a craving for more Japanese food, and as a result, we booked for Japanese buffet at our favorite Japanese restaurant (which at RM98 nett is no comparison to here).

Our dinner at Rakuzen Japanese Restaurant (24 June 2015)


Sake Oyako set at Rakuzen Japanese Restaurant (24 June 2015)


Sake Oyako set at Rakuzen Japanese Restaurant (24 June 2015)


The Saba fish set that my wife had at Rakuzen Japanese Restaurant (24 June 2015)


Timothy Tye at Rakuzen Japanese Restaurant (24 June 2015)


My wife Chooi Yoke at Rakuzen Japanese Restaurant (24 June 2015)


15 May, 2014 visit

Rakuzen has a wide selection of set meals and à la carte orders. My wife and I usually go for Japanese buffet, but this time around, we opted for the set meals. Prices are from RM28 upwards, with most of the sets going for around RM30+. The sets that my wife and I ordered cost RM38 each. With service charge, this pushes the price per person to around RM44.

I ordered a set with a combo of tempura and maki while my wife ordered one with udon noodles. These are how the sets look like:

Tempura and sushi set, Rakuzen (16 May 2014)


Udon and sushi set, Rakuzen (16 May 2014)


Another view of the Japanese set meals we had at Rakuzen (15 May 2014)


While this may appear rather steep, it is only slightly over half of what we would customarily pay for a Japanese buffet lunch at a hotel such as Kampachi. The other benefit is that you don't end up gorging yourself with food just to cover the high price.

Timothy Tye at Rakuzen (16 May 2014)

List of Japanese Restaurants in Penang