Gone-Bei

Ala-carte Japanese buffets are rare in KL. So far, I've only tried Munakata (no longer available, but was VERY good) and Rakuzen (so-so). SK brought to my attention another such establishment-- Gonbei at Starhill Gallery. The place definitely scores points with its beautiful interior. The entrance is an interlace of bamboo which cast interesting shadows across the floor. And everytime guests walk in, they beat a welcome drum. Inside, wood is the main theme, with the focal point being the walls that are carved with numerous Japanese family crests (mon).

Dinner was with SK, KH, Takashi and Jase. Upon arrival, every guest receives a complimentary abalone sashimi. Yummy! Never had it before. But I think it's to cover for the absence of raw oysters on its menu. For drinks, one can have green tea, herbal tea or lychee margarita (another uncommon item). Basically, one orders from them menu and the waiter will key-in the orders and have it brought to you later. However, with this system, many things can go wrong and have gone wrong. Two points of failure-- the waiter can screw up the orders or the kitchen staff can't cope with the orders. But I'll talk about the shortcomings later.

Other interesting stuff to note on their menu is the white tuna and seabass sashimi. Basically, they have the appetizers, grilled stuff, braised stuff, fried stuff, sweet stuff and raw stuff. How's that for a professional food review? Hehe. Anyway, the food quality is better than most buffets out there. Even the edamame tastes better. The sushi counter is very good and consistent. My biggest complaint is the grilled section. I think that they cannot cope with the orders. And the tempura was quite bad. The batter was basically soggy from oil.

When more and more people came, things became quite chaotic for the staff. Shouting and scrambling up and down. Even the kitchen staff had to bring the food to the table. And worst of all, when we complained about our orders, they merely gave us the standard reply and did nothing. SK lapsed into one of her legendary bitch fits. Can't blame her when you're paying MYR85++ per head. Nearing the end we had found that at least one page of our orders were "lost" so we cooled ourselves down with the nice ice cream-- chocolate chip, mango tango, green tea and rum and raisins. :P. I would say that it was a good dining experience, except for the service. They really have to work on that.

Gonbei

P.S.: Oh, did I mention that it was free? Hehe. A big thank you to SK!

Comments

Bengbeng said…
such a terrible place. if in a small town where word of mouth is very important, this place would have shut down in 3 months or so. service is all important where the product they r selling is priced up high so customers expect an overall dining experience.. not just great food
Cheryl said…
die...my dear(s) out there sure will complaint for FREE food then.. :P I MISS JAPANESE liao....let's eat the Jusco Sushi also will satisfy now...
Pluboy2 said…
Hahaha... this is one of the lousiest japanese restaurants i've been to..

Terus blacklist liao.. I still rather pay the same and go for buffer, opposite hahaha...
fufu said…
lucky i still stick to my point - never have jpnese food outside japan...

well i did parttime in a ala carte buffet restaurant in osaka, japan, well owned by my host father :) erm.... no matter how busy we were...we never present bad food to customers... but only good service... i think we must learn this from japan...well no one has the working experience in japan, ya i think they should pay me as a consultant or what lol
Derek said…
I am actually quite happy with the food, even though the service was lousy. Had lots and lots of white tuna and salmon.

Probably coz most of what I ordered is NOT from the grilled section.
nase said…
The interiors prolly the only plus point in this resto. But then again, aren't we all a tad sad and deprived lot when it comes to good & reasonably priced Jap food, sigh.
C'est la vie said…
I focus on the last sentence. Damn, you got a free RM85++ Japanese buffet!!! Jealous!!! :P
William said…
@Beng:
Haha, small town people are "vicious". :P

@Cheryl:
More revelations to come!

@Takasi:
LOL. I don't like Jogoya le...

@fufu:
The Jap have very high service standards, they take pride in their work. You cook for me?

@Derek:
So next time it's your treat, k?

@Nase:
Oh well, beggars can't be choosy.

@Free:
The benefits of the DEAR programme!
Jean said…
free food. so nice! you're lucky!

From me to you, suejean =)
Kris said…
The food looks really amazing...like from magazines of 5 star Japanese restaurants, plus I really like that bamboo work too!
Alexander said…
Never been there XDD

Helloooooooooooooo :)
William said…
@SJ:
Hehe. Perks.

@Kris:
Too bad there aren't more food pics. My cam ran out of batteries.

@SengHoo:
Hi! Hopped over from SJ?

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