Our visit to Wakaba on 14 May, 2018

My wife and I had a lovely dinner at Wakaba Japanese Noodle Restaurant on 14 May, 2018. It has been half a year since our last visit. We would love to come back, but has been too busy to do it earlier. Then recently, the restaurant revamped its menu, and having done that, extended an invitation to us to give it a try.

On this visit, we meet up with restaurant manager Mr Kedrick Kok. Also there to welcome us was the owner of the restaurant, Mr Masaki Nonomiya, who spoke very good English, having lived in Penang since 1995.

When asked what we wanted to try from the new menu, I responded that we are eager to try the dishes that showcases authenticity, and not to duplicate what we have taken on our previous visit. As we have tried the soba and udon on our first trip, this time we tried ramen, which is in fact the restaurant's speciality. Mr Nonomiya ordered for us the Shoyu Ramen 醬油ラーメン and Shio Tanmen 塩タンメン. Shoyu Ramen, or soya sauce noodle, is ramen served in Japanese soya sauce broth, while Shio Tanmen is ramen served in salted broth with a combination of vegetables and pork slices.

Shoyu Ramen (14 May 2018)


Shio Tanmen (14 May 2018)


The next item we tried is the Unagi Nigirizushi ウナギ握り寿司, which is hand-pressed eel sushi. This is entirely handmade at Wakaba, and should be eaten as soon as it is served. I can tell you, the taste is fantastic.

Unagi Nigirizushi (14 May 2018)


Another snack which we had was the Gyōza 餃子. These are Japanese meat dumplings, filled with minced pork. This being a non-halal restaurant, it makes liberate use of pork in many of its dishes, in order to retain the authenticity of Japanese cuisine. As such, the filling for the Gyōza is minced pork rather than chicken.

The Gyōza was beautifully crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, and the minced meat well cooked.

Gyōza (14 May 2018)


The final item we tried that evening was the Super Pork Katsu 厚切りトンカツ which is deep-fried port cutlets. Despite the thickness of the pork, it was done just nice, neither under or over cooked, so the flesh is soft and not dry.

Super Pork Katsu (14 May 2018)


My wife and I enjoyed a lovely visit to Wakaba, relishing the Japanese dishes that were served to us, and also the company of Mr Nonomiya and Mr Kedrick Kok, and we hope to visit the restaurant again, from time to time.

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