Gyu-Kaku Surabaya

Dulu nih ya waktu Gyu Kaku buka gerai pertama nya di Indonesia, tepatnya di Jakarta, pernah aku dapat undangan untuk acara opening nya. Sayangnya waktu itu belum sempat ke sana dan cobain karena posisi lagi di Solo. And after many many sunshines, they opened several spot in Surabaya too! Sekalian lah pas ke Surabaya akhirnya aku cobain datang sendiri ke gerainya di Galaxy Mall Surabaya. Tau gak sih, lokasi nya sebelahan sama Shaburi. Jadi kudu kuat iman, karena salah-salah bisa nyasar ke Shaburi untuk makan shabu nya yang aduhai itu. OK OK Sekarang waktunya buat bahas Gyu Kaku nya haha. 

My favorite shot came from iphone instead

Nah ini musik nya untuk nemenin baca post kali ini..

So is this a visit by invitation?

No, I told you I got an invitation for their first store but I couldn't make it. This time I came on my own volition because, indeed, I had been missing Japanese grill since I moved to The Netherlands. Japanese grills are very expensive in Holland and frankly I could barely find any restaurant like this in there. 

Getting table was easy

I was quite surprised to see many vacant tables at Gyu Kaku in Galaxy Mall Surabaya, I came around 7 in the evening which was supposed to be prime-time for dinner but I got my strategically located table right away. Couldn't be happier. Only after around 8 p.m. hungry crowds started to come and fill the empty tables. 

Although they have buffet packages, Gyu Kaku is not really all-you-can-eat Japanese grill because they still have a la carte menu. so if you feel like eating only a little you can prefer to get a la carte menu instead. By the way, me and my friend took the buffet menu because we were quite famished. If you take buffet, then 90minutes time limit will apply. They have 2 kinds of buffet packages.

(a) Standart Buffet 228k/per person

(b) Premium Buffet 398k/per person

There are enough delicacies to make you kenyang bego

I always take the cheapest option when it comes to buffet! I'd say if a restaurant satisfied me with the minimum money I could spend, they really did a great job. So I took the standart buffet, the difference was in the premium buffet you would get wagyu beef and tongue as well. Standart buffet allows you to have the tongue actually if you want to add 70k more per pack.

The flesh

Of course meat is their strong word here, that's what they are selling the most. My standart buffet permitted me 10 kinds of meat including 7 kinds of beef and 3 of chicken. Apparently I only tried 9 of them, I missed the 'Basil Chicken with Cheese' but so be it. I was happy enough with all that I have tried. Out of those I have tried, some of them did steal my heart you know. 

Dragon Karubi

Comes in big cut

This meat was pretty highlighted in the menu, so I ordered 3 portions at a time. Turns out it's a big cut of fat covered meat, so if you don't really like fatty meat you should avoid this one. I shouldn't eat too many fat but I finished all of it anyway haha. And because this one comes in very big cut, you will end up cutting it into smaller pieces. That way, it would be easier to eat.

Cut with scissor

Negi Karubi

You will have either Karubi and Negi Karubi, the difference is, Negi Karubi will come with some leeks on a separated plate. The meats are the same, but why I liked Negi better was because the leek gave fresher sensation when you eat it. It tasted really good when you mix the grilled Karubi, the spicy tare sauce and the leek. UH I CANNOT.

Suki Shabu

Thinnest meat out of all

Probably this is the most familiar flesh out of this buffet because this kind of meat is also used in the shabu-shabu. But don't simply compare this one to any shabu meat you have tried out there, this one is certainly comes from quality meat! The downside is, if you grill this for too long, it would get burnt.

Chicken with Spicy Sambal

Sorry didn't shoot the chili

They have a lot of chilies coming with this chicken, trust me, if you love hot spicy foods then this is for you. Or at least you can have the chilies with other meats. The chicken itself was a little bit under-marinated I guess, it was pretty tasteless if not accompanied with any sauce, unlike other meats.

More of these for only 228k per person

Gyu Kaku's meats in the standart buffet were amazing enough for me, but it's not all. The package also comes with various side dishes. I tried some of them and I would say I picked the right menus.

Chicken Karage

Karage has been quite famous as side dish ya in Japanese chain restaurants. Most of the times I like it, so I ordered this as well in Gyu Kaku. It tasted good! One portion comes with 4 pieces of karage so don't be afraid not to be able to finish it. 

Kimchi

The best kimchi in my life

Even if you don't like kimchi, you have to order it when you eat in Gyu Kaku. It's a buffet after all. I swear they have very good kimchi, it isn't like other kimchi, it tastes very decent in term of spiciness, sourness and after-taste flavour.

Miso Soup

My apology I didn't take the picture of it, but it was also my favorite side dish in Gyu Kaku. It comes in big portion and the taste is very decent as well. It would neutralize the bitter sensation and delicate after taste of grilled meats.

Pudding

Standart Buffet gets two kind of desserts, the pudding and vanilla ice cream. I would suggest you take the pudding, it isn't like your home-made pudding. It're very soft almost like mousse, softer than royal pudding. It felt almost like bubur sumsum but way fancier hahaha.

Conclusion

Well done Gyu Kaku Indonesia, I think your foods nailed it! My tummy was happy and I paid a fair price for all of it. I would give an 8 score for this Japanese grill restaurant, I only hope that restaurant staffs can be a little less chatty. Also they can give more attention to all customers. Bisou bisou.