Howaitokuren Japanese Food @ Lembah Permai, Tanjung Bungah Penang

Howaitokuren is a Japanese restaurant tucked in the quaint neighbourhood of Lembah Permai in Tanjung Bungah. Having established in the mid of April 2019, the restaurant is lesser known by folks in Penang, moreoever with its relatively small signage board at the facade of the restaurant. Despite being a Japanese restaurant, the interior were being maintained as minimalist. With a big menu that comprises of sushi, ramen, bento and many more, you surely will find something for your Japanese crave fixed here with the above average taste here. Howaitokuren also will feature some daily special items, though we find it odd the special items were showcased toward us manually utilizing photo gallery from a mobile phone.

Kanitama

Kanitama (RM 15) is the Japanese style Omelette filled with crab meats. This is an off menu item in the restaurant and we only get to know its existence after the owner introduced to us using her mobile phone. We enjoyed the fluffiness of the egg, but its sauce appears more appealing to the patrons who enjoy strong umami taste. On top of that, crabs sticks were used instead of crabs meats, though we could not tell how the taste will be if real crab meats were used.

Katsu Don (RM 20)

Chanpon (RM 25)

Katsu Don (RM 20) come with generous portion of rice and fried chicken cutlets. However, the overall taste is slightly on a milder side and a stronger seasoning may elevate the taste better. As for Chanpon (RM 25), it is another off-the menu ramen dish. It comes with a variety of ingredients - prawn, squids and meats, with a subtle seafood flavoured soup. Overall, the noodle dish is a decent choice in which we indulged in the milder soup without strong seasoning. Feel free to add some chili flakes to spice the entire dish should you prefer a stronger taste.

All in all, Howaitokuren restaurant may be a suitable place for you to get a decent Japanese meal with a relatively affordable price. We did not manage to try the sushi, and the chefs recommended us to try their yakiniku after we feedback the seasoning is lacking for their katsu don.