Fushimi in Kyoto is famous for Fushimi Inari Taisha, but did you know that Fushimi is famous for nihonshu (Japanese sake)? If you are a nishonshu lover and happen to be travelling around this area, do make time to visit Fushimi Sake District.

Here in Fushimi Sake District, you will find white-walled kura (traditional sake breweries) lining the streets, with cedar ball ornaments (sugidama) hanging above their entrances. Calm, quiet and pleasantly free from crowds. I really love the atmosphere here!

We wandered into our first sake brewery – Fujioka Sake Brewery, which is about 5 minutes’ walk from Fushimi Momoyama Station.

For full itinerary of our trip – READ: JAPAN TRIP 2025: 12D11N in Nagoya, Kyoto, Kanazawa, Toyama & Tokyo

Once you step inside, you will find a small bar area – Bar “En” , featuring a traditional low bar counter and low table with floor cushions on the tatami area. On the other side, there is a display of their sake range available for purchase, along with various merchandise.

We settled ourselves at Bar “En” and started with all the Sookuu 苍空 namazake and a few non nama varieties. We tasted our way through the selection to see which ones we liked best. All while getting our pocket ready for a few bottles to enjoy back at the hotel that evening.

Namazake is something we really can’t bring back to our home country, so whenever I am in Japan, I will hunt down some namazake. Forgot to mention, Sookuu is such a beautiful name. It means “blue sky” in English!

There was also a handy chart showing the profile of each sake they offer, ranging from light to rich as well as dry to sweet. That made it easier for us to understand and compare the different varieties,

Each glass was priced at ¥690 and their special frozen sake that was ¥750. They also had amazake, sake lees ice cream, miso tofu, pickles and other little bites that pair well with sake.

Frozen sake was interesting – its taste changes as it slowly melts. So you get to experience the sake evolving from the first sip to the last.

After our tasting session, we ended up with bottles of Junmai Miyama Nishiki (¥2,350) and Junmai Ginjo Yamadabo (¥3,500) for the night.

Fujioka Shuzo
Opens from 11.30am to 6pm
Closed on Wednesdays

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Porca

A neighbourhood restaurant from the family behind The Butcher’s Table, which is conveniently located just a few doors away; serving modern Western comfort food at very affordable prices. Porca offers everything from brunch plates to grilled dishes that are perfect for sharing. Portions are pretty generous, and everything we had was nicely executed.

One of the best things about dining here? Corkage is free! You can bring your own bottle of wine, and they’ll provide the wine glasses for you to enjoy your pours.

I’ve been here twice with my BFF, so here’s a little compilation from both visits. We’ve heard so much about their Roti Kaya dessert and have always wanted to try it, but unfortunately, we were just way too stuffed after our meals on both occasions! So, dessert will have to wait for our next visit.

Latte (RM 11)

Lychee Happy Gut Soda (RM 12)
Light, refreshing and a nice choice to cool down with.

Strawberry Matcha Latte (RM 16)
A sweet and creamy matcha option with a fruity strawberry note.

BYOB! A refreshing Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough with lovely fruity notes. It paired well with the food and felt just right for the hot day. Very much giving a summer vibes.

Potato Chips with Jamon (RM 28)
A sinful but seriously delicious bite, especially when paired with the refreshing wine. Very addictive. Definitely the kind of snack you keep reaching for without realising how much you’ve eaten!

Tuna Tartare with Seaweed Crackers (RM 30)
Ohh, I quite liked this one. It had such a nice balance of savoury, buttery, tangy and crunchy elements. The crispy seaweed crackers gave you that initial crunch, which then transitioned into the melt-in-your-mouth, velvety-soft tuna tartare.

Butter Corn Ribs (RM 18)
Buttery with a hint of spice, and that squeeze of lime added a tangy kick to the sweet corn.

Salt Beef Toasties (RM 35)
Multigrain sourdough, pickled cucumber, sauerkraut and cheese
Love that salt beef, pickled cucumber and sauerkraut combo. The latter two added a lovely tanginess that balanced out the richness of the toasties. Do enjoy this while it is still warm, or the cheese will harden and can turn a little rubbery once the cheese cools down.

Beer Mussels (RM 28)
This came in a pretty generous bowl and was served with sourdough for soaking up all that broth. The broth was and packed with sea essences.

Porca Dots (RM 20)
Nicely grilled zucchini and arranged in a cute porca (polka) dots presentation. Simple, nicely done and a good vegetable addition to the table.

Argentinian Sirloin with Romesco Sauce, Pine Nuts (RM 120)
A hearty grilled dish that’s great for sharing. The sirloin paired nicely with the nutty, slightly smoky Romesco sauce and pine nuts.

Porca
30, Jalan SS 2/103, SS 2,
47300 Petaling Jaya , Selangor
Brunch/ Lunch from 9.30am to 2.30pm
Dinner from 6pm to 9.30pm
Closed on Tuesdays

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Fushimi Sakagura Koji

Fushimi Sakagura Koji, also known as Fushimi Sake Brewery Alley, brings together 18 sake breweries and more than 100 sake brands under one roof.

If you have no idea what to order, go for their “18 Breweries’ Sake Set”. It’s a great way to sample sake from all 18 breweries and discover which ones you fancy the most!

There are also a number of specialty restaurants within the space, serving a great variety of dishes to pair with your drinks, including sushi, kushikatsu, Kyoto-style oden, teppanyaki, charcoal-grilled dishes, sake lees ramen, and more.

As we were a bigger group, we were seated in the table section, where they have plenty of space to accommodate larger groups. If you’re coming with a smaller group, you can also choose to sit at the bar counter for a more intimate experience.

For full itinerary of our trip – READ: JAPAN TRIP 2025: 12D11N in Nagoya, Kyoto, Kanazawa, Toyama & Tokyo

18 Breweries’ Sake Set (¥ 2,430)
You get to enjoy 18 different types of sake, with one selected from each of the 18 breweries. Each sake comes with a description, sake meter value, and alcohol percentage, so you’ll know exactly what you’re drinking.

I spotted 月の桂 The Branche and immediately knew I had to order it!

You can pick more sake to make it your own sake flight!

They also offer Beer and Sparkling Sake too if you are not into Sake.

Fried Tofu (¥ 880)

Beef Stew (¥ 600)

Butayaki Gyoza (¥ 550)

Sakekasu Ramen (¥ 1,100)
This is the one and only type of ramen here, and it’s a local specialty that you can find in this space. You can even choose the sake lees from 8 different breweries!

We picked the one made with Tamanohikari, which has a bolder sake flavour that really came through in the ramen.

Shimesaba (¥ 890)
An izakaya dish I will always order whenever I see it on the menu!

If you’re a sake lover visiting Kyoto, Fushimi Sakagura Koji is definitely worth a stop, especially when you’re short on time and want to sample a wide variety of sake and local dishes all in one place.

Fushimi Sakagura Koji
82-2 Hiranocho, Kyoto-shi Fushimi-ku, Kyoto 〒612-8057

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Yes, here again in Sushi Kita, for birthday celebration with the sushi gang, after our June and January’s visits!

I always visit sushiya during winter-spring, because of the fatty fish. I guess this would be my first time in a sushiya for a summer-ish course! And Yes, Chef Yogi excelled it again!

Sushi and sake, always the perfect match. First thing first, a bottle of sake! Luck was on our side, or maybe with the birthday girl! There was this 山本 NO 7 純米吟醸 (Yamamoto No 7 Junmai Ginjo) in the house. Of course, we had to order!

Super delighted with this bottle of No 7. Strong aroma with elegant acidity, full of character! I could still remember its yogurt-y taste – on the first sip, and later on it transformed into different profiles after some time as we ate. It was just purely amazing, packed with umami-ness and matched well with our nigiri.

Chawanmushi
with added fish cubes inside this time.

Kisu – kobujume for one day.
My very first time had it as neta, I think…

Bonito

Buri – aged for 7 days, smoked lightly with charcoal
This was the day’s MVP! It was soooooo good! How I wish it could stay longer enough on my palate. The aroma, the flavour, the shari; all blended well and the flavours bursting in the oral cavity. I took longer time to chew on it, slowly – for its flavour to unfold slowly. Chef commented I can take such a long time to chew LOL. I guess he also cannot tahan me on the slow-ness… until he nudged me that he needs to move on to the next nigiri.

Ootoro

Tennen ootoro – aged 14days

Seki Saba Bozushi

Kohada Kimi Oboro

Akagai

Sanma

Aka Ebi – dry aged 1 day
This one also 刷新我对红虾的认知. Aged for one day and the texture can be so different.

Sujiko

Himokyu
Ahhh, such a nice ending!

Miso Soup

Ankimo
And chef surprised us with ankimo to go with the drinks!

Shiokara

Dessert

Happy Birthday to Jean!

More pours!

And a cute photo of us!

Sushi Kita 鮨きた
C.AT.01, SEIBU Department Store,
Lot C12, Persiaran TRX,
Tun Razak Exchange,
55188 Kuala Lumpur.
Opens daily
Lunch from 11am to 3pm
Dinner from 5.30pm to 10pm

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After asking for recommendations from my Malay colleague, she filtered through all the places she has been and recommended her favourite Ayam Gepuk. She told me this place sit right at the top of her list.

Yep. I ended myself in Gesek Geprek to kick start my Ayam Gepuk journey.

Gesek Geprek

Tucked away in Ampang, Gesek Geprek is the spot for ayam gepuk/ geprek. Correct me if I am wrong but I think they lean more towards geprek style, given their crispy battered chicken. My colleague told me, “You must get their Set Special Tauhu Tempe!” So, here I am, twice within a week, and yes I love it.

Set Special Tauhu Tempe (RM 13.5)
It comes with white rice, sambal, tauhu, tempe, fried egg, ayam crispy, fried cabbage, cucumber and kicap. The nasi (white rice) and sambal are refillable for free, which is always a bonus. Add on Ayam Goreng at RM 6.

You can choose your preferred level of spiciness, from Manja to Pedas and Extra Pedas; and have the sambal put on your rice or have it asing (separately). Often, I will go for the Manja level, it is already very ass-kicking spicy enough for me.

Crispy chicken and fiery hot sambal with aromatic creamy nutty cashew nut sauce, also runny fried egg. This combination works wonder. The chicken was very crispy and flavourful. A mix of hot sambal creamy nutty sauce hit the syok factor. Then comes to the runny fried egg—the oozy yolk and crispy egg white help mellow the heat while making everything richer!

And that drizzle of kicap manis? A must! That touch of sweetness brings everything together and level up the whole dish!

Gesek Geprek
Blok A12-G, 10, Jalan Mewah 4,
Pandan Indah, 68000 Ampang, Selangor
Opens from 11am to 9pm

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Don’t Tell Mama

Don’t Tell Mama is a trendy café and steakhouse offering comfort food and budget-friendly steaks. Housed in a warehouse space, it features a playful retro industrial vibe that gives this place plenty of character.

The interior is filled with raw concrete walls, quirky posters and dim lighting, creating a cosy atmosphere that’s perfect for good food and great conversation.

During the day, they serve beef ramen and Japanese curry rice; while after dark, the menu shifts to steaks and claypot rice. We’d heard they offer affordable steaks that won’t break the bank! That’s what brought us here in the first place!

Best in PJ Steak (RM 34.9)
Grass-fed striploin, sunny side up, fries, black pepper sauce
The striploin was tender and succulent, with beautifully smoky, charred edges that we really enjoyed. It came with a generous amount of fries and a sunny side up, and final dressed with the black pepper sauce.

What impressed me even more was how quickly the steak was served. It was extremely fast! We got it like less than ten minutes after placing our order, despite the restaurant being packed. At such an affordable price, this is definitely a good steak I’d come back for!

Rich Kid Wagyu (RM 88.9)
Australian Wagyu Striploin, fries, black pepper sauce.
It was with a softer and fattier texture but we still preferred the earlier one over this. This one didn’t have the smoky charred edges that we loved. LOL.

Cholesterol (Engawa) Claypot Rice (RM 68.9)
Their signature dish—torched engawa served over a bed of fluffy white rice, then garnished with furikake and ebiko—was delicious. I was hoping to get some of the crispy, scorched rice bits from the bottom of the claypot, though. Perhaps we mixed everything together a little too early, as we didn’t get any of that prized crispy rice.

Get Rich Instantly (RM 18)
Vodka, gin, tequila, sourmix, elderflower, sparkling water
Wanna “get-rich-instantly” and so I ordered this LOL. However, the colour of the drink was different from what I saw on the menu, so I wasn’t sure if it was the correct one. It also didn’t quite taste as described. Gave a feedback but I was told it was the one. Anyhow, it wasn’t really my kind of drink, as it was a little too sweet for my liking; needed extra ice for the drink.

Life Saving Drink (RM 25)
Vodka, elderflower, oolong tea, sparkling water. It was refreshing with floral note, and had the highest alcohol content compared with the others. This was better than the Get Rich Instantly, with a hint of tea that added a pleasant depth to the flavour.

Don’t Tell Mama
9, Jalan 51a/243, Seksyen 51a,
46100 Petaling Jaya, Selangor

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Sake stanD 凛

Sake stanD Rin is located in Nishi-Shinjuku area and is a casual standing bar offering more than 200 kinds of sake from all over Japan. The place has a great vibe, with nice music playing in the background while you enjoy your sake tasting.

Getting here:
About 3 minutes’ walk from JR Shinjuku Station from the West Exit

At the back of the bar, there are refrigerator showcases filled with sake bottles. We picked up our selections from the fridge and brought them to the counter to be poured. The prices are clearly displayed according to the colour of the mizuhiki (the decorative cord) on each bottle. Just choose between 60ml or 120ml, and the friendly staff will take care of the rest.

For 60ml, blue indicates ¥ 599, red is ¥ 699, green is ¥ 799, gold is ¥ 999 and that bottle that carries the most premium red green gold mizuhiki is priced at ¥ 1299.

There is a sake map on the wall, allow you to compare different varieties as if you were travelling across the country.

Happy us! There were so many bottles I have not seen and tried before. We got to sample many kinds of sake! And yes, I also picked up bottles based of the nice appearance of the labels LOL.

They also offer a small selection of bar bites and snack to go with the sake. We had the Offal Stew using Sake Lees (¥ 599) and Fresh Fish Yukhoe (¥ 499).

A special thanks to Suzy for taking time to bring us to this amazing sake bar. It was such a fun place, filled with great vibes, good music, and, of course, plenty of delicious sake!

Sake stanD 凛
東京都新宿区西新宿1-4-11 宝ビル 1F
Weekdays: 5pm to 12am
Weekends and PH: 2pm to 12am

The post TOKYO: Sake stanD Rin @ Shinjuku first appeared on My Story.

RAYs

RAYs at Steppes Mont Kiara is their second home following the first outlet in PJ’s B.LAND. Here, they serve all-day comfort food, including burger, brunch dishes and indulgent milkshake.

A quick glance at the menu makes one thing pretty obvious – the burgers are the star of the show. There is a generous selection to choose from, each sounding pretty tempting. But the rosti was what caught our attention.

One thing I really liked is that each dish on the menu comes with its nutritional breakdown – showing the amount of protein, fats and carbohydrates. It is indeed a nice touch, especially for those who are on gym and people who like keeping track on their macros.

Latte (RM 14)

Rosti (RM 25)
Duck bacon, sunny-side egg, crispy potato rosti, house crème fraiche and chives
The rosti was really good; pan-fried to crispy, golded edges, with a lovely crunch and that irresititible toasted buttery aroma. Definitely one of the better rostis I have had in KL.

Pulled Beef Ragu (RM 30)
Pulled beef brisket, Italian tomato sauce, fried parsley, yellow onions, grated cheese, chili flakes, sourdough crumbles and linguine.
A comforting and hearty pasta dish layered well with flavours. Pulled beef brisket came generous too!

RAYs
LG3-01-3, Steppes @ 32,
Jalan Kiara 3, Mont Kiara,
51200 Kuala Lumpur.

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Glad to see this DOUHUAT 豆發 pop up nearby my neighbourhood! Now I can easily grab some whenever I feel to have one!

DOUHUAT 豆發

Tucked away at one corner at Jalan Cerdik, Cheras; DOUHUAT is a small dessert shop specializing in all thing soy – from Tau Fu Fah and Soymilk to Soymilk Soft Serve.

I must say, their Tau Fu Fah is silky smooth, while the Soymilk is creamy thick and rich, with a lovely, full-bodied soybean flavour. Both the Tau Fu Fah and Soymilk come with a choice of sugar syrup, ginger sugar or gula Melaka. I personally always go for the gula Melaka in my Soymilk while the classic white sugar syrup with a hint of pandan scent into the Blackbean soymilk.

The prices are pretty reasonably, at RM 4.5 for a bowl of simple hot Tau Fu Fah, RM 5.5 for bottled Soymilk and RM 6.5 for bottled Blackbean Soymilk.

You can also level up your Tau Fu Fah with toppings such as glass jelly, taro balls, tapioca pearls, red bean and osmanthus kuih. So if you like a little extra texture and sweetness, there are plenty of options to play around with.

三剑客 (RM 10) with 3 toppings

But what I love most has to be their Soymilk Soft Serve (RM 5.5). It is creamy and silky smooth soft serve, and yet carries the genuine soybean flavours. Definitely the kind of dessert that hits the spot in our hot weather like now!

And don’t miss their Redbean Soymilk (RM 8) – a blend of red bean and soymilk served ice-cold and blended smooth, just like a classic 红豆冰.

DOUHUAT 豆發
2, Jalan Cerdik, Taman Connaught,
Cheras, 56000 Kuala Lumpur

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Ah Hua Café 亚花茶楼

Tucked away in Taman Taynton View, Ah Hua Café is a dim sum place that combines the cosy charm of a modern café with the nostalgic vibes of a traditional teahouse. It makes a great spot of a leisurely breakfast or brunch, whether you are catching up with friends or enjoying a family meal.

Plus point, it is conveniently situated close to the MRT Station! So taking a trip down here to yum zhou char is definitely not an issue if you are afraid of the traffic and parking issue.

The menu offers a delightful mix of classic Cantonese dim sum alongside creative modern twists, all freshly prepared and beautifully presented. I particularly love their Black Garlic Siew Mai – I’ve visited many times, and it is always on my must-order list. The juicy pork filling is enhanced by the rich umami of black garlic, with a hint of smokiness.

Har Gao was good too, featuring a generously sized with a huge tiger prawn wrapped in a delicate, translucent har gao skin. Braised Beancurd Rolls with Abalone Sauce was meaty and juicy. Stir-fried Radish Cake with Signature Sauce was packed with smoky wok hei, giving it an irresistible charred aroma. Also, the Deep Fried Taro Puff was amazing – crispy on the outside with flavourful soft center of sweet savoury pork and taro fillings. Really delicious.

The portions of the two Guangzhou-style crinkle rice roll dishes — Dried Shrimp & Jicama Rolls and Curry Pork Skin Crinkle Rice Rolls — were huge, but they were just okay-ish. I will probably give their rice noodle rolls a try next time!

Tea is from RM 4 per pax, with a minimum order of 2 pax. I quite love their Chrysanthemum Tea and Long Jing

Ah Hua Black Garlic Siew Mai 亚花黑蒜烧卖 (RM 10.8)
The juicy pork filling is enhanced by the rich umami of black garlic, with a hint of smokiness. Smoky, delicious and huge too!

Tiger Prawn Dumpling 虎虾鲜虾饺 (RM 11.8)
Har Gao was good; featuring a generously sized with a huge tiger prawn wrapped in a delicate, translucent har gao skin.

Braised Beancurd Rolls with Abalone Sauce 鲍汁鲜竹卷 (RM 11.8) – meaty and juicy!

Cantonese Style Stuffed Chili 老广醸尖椒 (RM 10.8)

Deep fried Taro Puff 蜂巢炸芋角 (RM 9.8)
Deep Fried Taro Puff was amazing – crispy on the outside with flavourful soft center of sweet savoury pork and taro fillings. Really delicious.

Stir-fried Radish Cake with Signature Sauce 秘制香辣酱炒萝卜糕 (RM 11.8)
This was packed with smoky wok hei, giving it an irresistible charred aroma that I love!

Chive & Prawn Crispy Beancurd Roll 韭菜鲜虾腐皮卷 (RM 11.8)

Dried Shrimp & Jicama Rolls 虾米沙葛肠粉 (RM 13.8)

Curry Pork Skin Crinkle Rice Rolls 咖喱猪皮皱皮肠粉 (RM 15.8)

Ah Hua Café亚花茶楼
1, Jalan Mutiara Raya,
Taman Taynton View,
56000 Kuala Lumpur.
Opens daily from 7.30am to 3.30pm

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