COCO Ichibanya Launch at 1 Utama

Any Japanese curry lovers out there?

Cause I sure am one!

Finally CoCo Ichibanya has opened it's first outlet here in Malaysia and I was lucky enough to be one of the first to try it! *nomsnoms*

So the girls of MHB (Kelly Siew, Sharon Loh, Jiayeen, Kate and founder Tim Chew) and I headed over to 1 Utama on 6 March 2015 for the official launch of the internationally acclaimed Japanese Curry House – CoCo ICHIBANYA which has finally arrived on our shores! 

CoCo ICHIBANYA is widely known worldwide as “The Japanese Curry House” with 1,350 restaurants in Japan, China, Taiwan, South Korea, Thailand, Hong Kong, North America, Singapore and now in Malaysia!

With the lovely girls from MHB, so nice seeing them!

And always so much fun!

Celebrities such as Amber Chia attended the launch.

Miss Malaysia Chinese International 1998 and Hong Kong TVB artiste Debbie Goh

Project Superstar Malaysia 2007 champion Orange Tan

Star Search finalist and TV host Gary Yap with Amber Chia, Orange Ning and Julie Woon

CoCo ICHIBANYA’s tagline is “The tastiness you can choose” where you get to customise your meal based on your preference and appetite – from the spiciness level of the curry, to the various toppings, and even the amount of rice. There are 7 different levels of spiciness for the curry, starting from mild for kids, the signature original flavour, and from level one’s medium hot to level five’s “crazy hot”.

There is a selection of over 30 meat and seafood varieties to choose from including chicken, beef, pork, prawns, clams and more, and some are paired with toppings such as egg, corn and croquettes. If you’d like more toppings just add-on what you want or if you want more/ less rice, simply order the amount that is right for you.

On the menu are also some fusion items like spaghetti with curry meat sauce, curry gratin and curry pilaf, while for those who don’t eat spicy food there are also non-spicy options such as seafood spaghetti with cream, creamy corn soup and salads. Have some juices, coffee, teas, soft drinks, floats, milkshakes or even beer to go along with your meal and have a sweet ending with some Matcha or vanilla ice cream!

Here’s a look at some of Coco ICHIBANYA’s signature dishes:

Pork Cutlet Omelette Curry – RM26.00

Fried Chicken Curry – RM20.00

We got to try this one with the standard curry and to my surprise the chicken was crispy and tender while the curry was actually very flavourful although not very spicy! We also got to try the Lightly-Crisped Chicken Curry, Fried Shrimp Curry, Salmon Cream Croquette Curry and Fried Fish Curry. Although all of the proteins were friend in batter, they were not oily but rather were nice and crispy on the outside and deliciously tender inside. 

We were also served three (3) types of curry sauce – standard, level 3 and level 5.

Grilled Spinach, Bacon and Corn Curry – RM20.00

Seafood Spaghetti – RM22.00

Fried Fish Curry – RM25.00

Some notable items that stood out from the menu were the beef yakiniku curry, grilled garlic prawn curry (which is my fave!), and salmon teriyaki curry, while there’s even vegetable curry for those who don't eat meat.

Check out the full menu here – CoCo Ichibanya Menu

The CoCo ICHIBANYA branch in 1 Utama seats a maximum of 65 persons in the 128 square meters restaurant which exudes a casual, friendly and unpretentious ambience. Folks in Penang, look out for the second outlet which will be opening in Queensbay Mall soon.

CoCo ICHIBANYA is a non-halal establishment which serves pork and beer.

CoCo ICHIBANYA is located at:

Lot LG 333A, Lower Ground (New Wing),

1 Utama Shopping Centre,

Bandar Utama,

47800 Petaling Jaya,

Selangor.

Telephone: 03-7732-8937

Operating Hours: Daily from 10.00am to 10.00pm

CoCo ICHIBANYA is a restaurant chain owned by Fuji Group, the company of Fuji Japanese Restaurant in Thailand, and for more information, head over to http://www.ichibanya.co.jp/english/index.html

I had a great time over good food and awesome company, so head on over to CoCo Ichibanya and see what's all the hype about! I'm pretty sure you'll love it! Do tell me which dish is your fave too!

Till then, x.