Hot off the grill

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Chicken breast bone and ox tongue keep the Japanese expats and regulars coming.

ONE of the best-kept secrets in Subang Jaya’s SS15 is Sumi-Ka Japanese restaurant.

This makan place was introduced to me by my squid-jigging kaki Ryota Hazishume.

Crunchy and tasty: Grilled chicken breast bone.

One of the most authentic food outlets around, it is managed by a Japanese and patronised by his countrymen.

Sumi-Ka specialises in serving yakitori (grilled chicken) and the outlet is so popular, you have to call ahead to book your table or a spot at the food bar.

Its owner, who was introduced to me as Oka-san, hails from the city of Nagasaki in Japan.

“Ahhhhh ... Samo-san, so sorry about Tetsu; he cannot stand the sea-sickness ah ...,” he said. Oka-san was referring to his younger brother Tetsu, who had joined me and Ryota on a squid-jigging trip recently.

This is a place where Ryota hangs out after work and he had told me the yakitori items were really unique.

“Samo-san, you must try the chicken breast bone. It’s very tasty and goes down well with shoju, sake and even beer!” Ryota said.

With that in mind, I finally made the trip to Oka-san’s joint. The moment we parked ourselves at the yakitori bar, we were served fresh cabbage salad with vinegar dressing.

One stick at a time: Oka-san at work at the yakitori grill.

While we were enjoying the salad and chilled beer, Oka was busy at work.

The restaurant was packed with Japanese expatriates and some locals who were regulars.

Bit by bit, the yakitori orders came.

First, there was the chicken breast bone, which is sold at RM6 a stick.

It was crunchy and tasty, and frankly, one stick is not enough.

I had to wait patiently as Oka-san worked at the grill to roast the fresh yakitori sticks.

Next on the menu was gyu-tan or ox-tongue.

Much soughtafter delicacy: Gyu-tan or grilled ox-tongue.

This, Ryota said, was one of the much sought-after delicacies at Sumi-Ka.

At RM8 a pop, it took about half a dozen ox tongue servings to satisfy my craving.

Other noteworthy dishes at this outlet are the Japanese pork knuckles, roasted mackerel and yakitori beef (beef grilled the same way as the chicken).

If you love rice, the charcoal roasted onigiri comes highly recommended.

After loads of beer and plenty of chicken breast bones and repeated orders of ox tongue, our bill came up to RM290.

This did not come as a shock because the Japanese would have paid even more in their home country.

The next time I ate there – with my wife Michelle – we, too, had plenty of chicken and beef, and with the beers factored in, we paid about RM190.