It’s no secret that Malaysians (or at least, Klang Valley-ites) love Japanese food. But dining at high-end sushi restaurants or izakayas regularly can be painful on the wallet.

For the budget conscious who still crave a taste of Japanese fare, there’s Sushi Mentai. Despite most establishments raising their prices to accommodate rising ingredients costs, Sushi Mentai has maintained its RM1.80 and RM2.80 sushi plates – and their ala carte rice and noodle dishes are pretty reasonably priced as well.

The Hubs and I had a quick lunch at their outlet in Bandar Puteri Puchong. I’ve written about my visits to other Sushi Mentai branches, and this one is similar in aesthetics – no frills, tables squeezed close together, a conveyor belt in the middle peddling sushi. It’s a place made for fast, casual dining rather than long chit chats.

While waiting for our mains, I took a plate of what I thought was scallop from the conveyor belt, but turned out to be battered boiled eggs. They were still tasty though, and were topped with a dollop of creamy mayonnaise mixed with faux crab meat and fish roe.

Another appetizer: soft shell crab temaki. Sizeable, fresh, and with a nice balance of flavours and textures – there was chewy and moist sushi rice, crisp lettuce, salty fish roe, crunchy soft shell crab, and cucumber, all rolled into a cone of seaweed.

For mains, I had the ebi (shrimp) curry rice, which came with large chunks of potatoes and carrots, a mountain of rice, and three pieces of deep fried ebi tempura. While I wouldn’t call it spectacular, it tasted decent for the price. The potatoes and carrots were cooked until soft, the shrimp was well seasoned, the batter was crunchy, and the curry sauce was mild (if a bit tepid).

The Hubs had hotate with egg rice, essentially an omelette of scallops and onions. Again, it was decent for the price, albeit I think it could do with more seasoning.

Sushi Mentai is a good choice for those who are on a budget. At least it’ll tide you over until pay day, when you can go to pricier establishments like Ippudo.

SUSHI MENTAI (BANDAR PUTERI PUCHONG)

22, Jalan Puteri 2/4, Bandar Puteri, 47100 Puchong, Selangor

Opening hours: 12PM – 9.30PM

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