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Last Friday, I was in the mood for celebrating. WL also wanted to go someplace where we could eat and chat. So we wound up going to Saisaki, where I had promised to bring her some time ago. Located in Wisma UOA, the restaurant serves a, as the title implies, Japanese buffet spread. Additionally, it also features a small selection of local and Korean dishes.

After dawdling in the office, we arrived at 8.30pm to find the place packed to the rim. We were greeted at the entrance by this unpleasant sour faced lady. When we asked for a table for two, she pointed us to the table directly in front of the door (talk about bad feng shui) and told us it was the only one available. We asked whether we could wait for another table and she shot us down by saying we had to wait 30 minute to an hour in a very curt tone! WTH? Not another rude waitress. I’ve met my share and don’t particularly like dealing with them. Anyway, we said we would take the table after we came back from the restroom.

As it turns out, when we did return, lots of people had vacated their tables and were leaving. We nicely asked for another table and again that rudeness about her. Fortunately, another guy came forward to serve us and showed us to a newly vacated table at the far side of the restaurant which he promptly cleared for us. THAT is how service should be. I didn’t waste much time, heading straight for the buffet table, since I was starving. When we came back to the table, WL wanted to change her chair to one which was padded, which I oblidged (of course). The nice part was that as I was flicking a chair from one of the rooms, one of the waiters actually came by and took the chair out for us. He even offered to change my chair, which I declined. Now that’s what I call good service.

I’ve been to Saisake once prior to this. During that visit, I found the food selection to be tasty and fresh. This time was no different. The sushi bar is the best I’ve seen for buffets so far. The selection is quite extensive. The more common sushi is arranged on the outside counter while the more unique ones are displayed inside a refrigerated area which keeps them cold and yummy. You’ll need to ask the sushi chef(?) to get at the yummy ones inside. I usually go for the Salmon but this time around, it looked a little pale. So instead, I went for everything that was behind the counter.

Alongside the sushi is a small section dedicated to freshly deepfried tempura as well as some panfried and grilled stuff like sausages, pancakes and the like. At the end of the first row is the tepanyaki section, where you can choose from either chicken, beef, lamb, or vegetarian. I was pleasantly surprised by this one as I hadn’t noticed it during my last visit (strange… maybe because my last visit was during lunch while this was dinner). Alongside that is the Egg Pudding and juice bar.

Opposite from the fresh dishes were the pre-cooked selection which included things like fried udon, soups, barbequed chicken wings, softshell crabs, fried vegetables, Korean sidedishes (like kimchi), tong sui, porridge, rice, and a whole lot more. The desert section was one counter beyond that, and included some cakes, cookies, and most importantly (IMHO) ice cream. There’s also a section on the other end of the restaurant that prepares sukiyaki (I think that’s what its called. Japanese steamboat). I would have taken some pictures but photography of the buffet spread was not allowed.

I particularly enjoyed the Tepanyaki lamb. My only complaint was that they didn’t serve vegetables with it (probably the chef was only filling in cause I saw another table had vege), and that they used way too much margerine. Otherwise, the meat was tender, juicy, and very tasty. I went back for the vegetables after that and it was a different cook. I wanted to go for a second plate of lamb but WL wasn’t up to it.

I think it was unfortunate that I was a little full when I walked into the restaurant cause we missed out on quite a number of things. Sukiyaki for one, the other flavours of Tepanyaki for another. And we didn’t go for the Sake either (which we were initially planning to do). On a side note, there’s a promotion on the Sake (which seems to be year round). It normally goes for RM20.90 but is discounted to RM12.90. So have a go if you’ve never tried it before.

The pre-cooked spread was a little dull IMHO. The black pepper udon even tasted a little funny. Maybe because it was cold and they had added something to make it a little sourish. I don’t know. I just didn’t like it. I topped everything off with 3 bowls of green tea ice cream. YUM! That was the highlight of the meal, methinks, cause I have a sweet tooth.

Anyway, the bill came out to RM98.90 for two persons inclusive of tax. Lunch buffet costs RM39.00 while dinner is RM43.00. Children dine for half price. All in all, I think it was a good meal. Kinda pricey for the selection (no oyster!) but the food (most of it anyway, especially those that count) was fresh and the quality was good.

I do recommend that you try it once. If you like it, then you can head back for more. Although I’ve eaten there twice, this is the first time that I’m settlling the bill. The first time was a company farewell so it doesn’t count. Would I go back for more? Well, personally speaking, I probably would not because of the cost. But if someone was paying, sure!

Restaurant Saisaki - Japanese Buffet
Unit No 1-9, 1st Floor,
Wisma UOA II,
No. 21, Jalan Pinang,
50450 Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: 603-2166 3728
Operation Hours: Lunch 12.00pm - 2.30pm, Dinner 6.00pm - 10.30pm