Komorebi Dining in Penang
It could be the FOMO we’re feeling from seeing half the world travel to Japan, or that Malaysians simply cannot get enough of Japanese food, but omakase and izakaya seem to be having their moment right now.
Among the bounty of choices in Penang, yet another nouvelle Japanese restaurant is establishing a reputation for another genre of cuisine: Komorebi Dining. This newly opened restaurant offers the first Kappo-style cuisine in Penang and Malaysia – it’ll fulfil more than your basic sushi fantasies.
We visited the restaurant to bring you this exclusive look at the Kappo experience, so you know what to expect here.
Multi-course Japanese meal in a fancy space
Along the animated Jalan Pintal Tali in George Town, there lies a slick facade of an entrance at Ropewalk Piazza, concealing sheer opulence within. The polished doors belong to Komorebi Dining, and they open up to welcome guests into a serene and sophisticated world of culinary craftsmanship.
Being the first eatery in Malaysia to offer a refined and immersive Kyoto-style Kappo dining experience – which simply means ‘to cut and to cook’ – the restaurant focuses on a more casual fine dining that takes advantage of the proximity between the diner and chef.
The carefully curated interior of Komorebi Dining emphasises exclusivity with its sense of zen-ness – soft light dances against sleek wooden furnishings, florals in delicate porcelain adorn the space, and the subtle scent of incense perfumes the air.
We were ushered to our seats at the centrepiece of the dining space, a 12-seater counter with the perfect view of the chefs at work, to enjoy our 8-course extravaganza (RM650).
Komorebi Dining offers lunch sessions as well with a 7-course menu (RM300), which you can make a reservation for on their website.
The multi-course menu showcases the beauty of the changing seasons in Kyoto through its plates, with only the freshest of ingredients and seasonal produce used in their dishes.
Throughout our dinner course, we were taken on a gastronomic journey of taste, flavour, aroma, and texture, and each dish was nothing short of captivating.
Like an orchestrated performance, the meal unfolded with the skilled chefs masterfully crafting each dish and gracefully serving their masterpieces, offering insights into the nuances of each, as well as friendly banters in between, with the seated diners.
Here’s what we had the pleasure of savouring that evening:
Art on plates
Don’t scorn at the meagre serving just yet. Trust us when we say that the seemingly endless progression of dishes will have you unbuttoning your pants at the end of the meal.
The meal opened up with the small bite called Sakisuke, which was a visual flair of Sakura-shaped crisp wafers encasing narazuke pickles and monkfish liver with a mild ginger overtone from the myoga.
This was followed by Zensai, or a small appetiser. Served on a gorgeous leaf petal plate, the dish bloomed open to reveal a medley of Japanese grilled eggplant and isaki fish, cloaked in tanginess from the irizake jelly.
Their Chawanmushi is a ritzy take on the beloved silky custard of comfort in a cup, upscaled with the earthy notes of the prized matsutake mushroom.
The next course, whimsically named Seasonal Gifts, exuded artistic panache like no other. Almost too pretty to eat, the platter was an ingenious melange of the season’s freshest picks.
There was the Ohidashi Mushroom Ikura which was a refreshing salad crowned with pearls of salmon roe, and the seikogani or snow crab, majestic in its presentation yet crisply refreshing in its taste.
The kuromutsu fish was delicately sliced and glistening with freshness. We savoured the velvety creaminess of shiro ebi and bafun uni, delicate on our tongues but bold in its umami flavour.
Unassuming at first, the next Mountain & Sea course was a take on the elements of nature and the harmonious celebration of land and sea. The woodsy profile of the maitake mushroom and the subtle crunch of ginnan gingko nuts play up the creaminess of the rich kegani crab beautifully.
In true Kappo style, we were pampered with some Japanese umeshu or plum wine in between courses. The alluring amber liqueur that carries tart notes of the finest ume plum tingled our senses with every sip.
We were already salivating from the smouldering aroma of unagi being grilled over a Japanese Binchotan charcoal as we were finishing our previous dish. Binchotan featured an unapologetically sexy plate of stunningly seared Unagi and charred roasted cauliflowers, lying atop a sunflower seed puree.
Rounding off the savoury dishes is the Donabe, which translates to claypot from Japanese to English. The one-pot wonder held within it a potpourri of sauced-and-spiced yamagata tsuyahime rice, sweet corn and edamame, ebi imo taro, and the star of the dish, the succulent and plump ezo awabi abalone.
We relished the dish as if it was our last.
Ending our meal on a sweet note in pure Japanese fashion, the dessert presented was Warabi Mochi, an ethereally bouncy and supple cloud embraced by kinako, or roasted soya bean powder, with a dash of brown sugar syrup.
Dine on Japanese Kappo cuisine at Komorebi Dining
Oozing quiet elegance, exhibiting polished service and serving Japanese cuisine with utmost reverence for the country’s culinary tradition, Komorebi Dining in Penang will leave you feeling mesmerised and privileged to have been able to partake in its exquisite offerings.
As slots for Komorebi Dining fill up rather quickly, you’ll want to make sure you have yours secured by booking at least two weeks in advance.
Do note that the dining session will take up a substantial amount of time, as the pacing of each meticulously prepared dish is a leisurely one. This is to ensure diners can properly appreciate everything that’s served.
Address: 138, Jalan Pintal Tali, George Town, 10100 George Town, Pulau Pinang
Opening hours: Tue – Thu 6.30pm-10pm | Fri – Sun 12.30pm-2.30pm, 6.30pm-10pm (Closed on Mondays)
Contact: 012-858 1138 | Komorebi Dining’s Instagram
Also watch our video feature here:
For more food features, here’s Penang Famous Samosa, a Michelin-approved stall with samosas in Little India and Chulia Street Night Hawker with decades-old stalls in Penang.
Photography by Jia-Ju.
Cover image adapted from:The Smart Local Malaysia