KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 4 — For the first time, Japanese rice bowl chain Densetsu no Sutadon-ya brings a taste of their famed stamina don to Malaysia

Their first outlet in Malaysia will open in Lot 10's J's Gate Dining on October 6.

Started in Tokyo back in 1971, the chain is operated by Artworks Co Ltd. There are a total of 198 outlets all over Japan that offer their signature sutadon.

Sutadon or stamina don is believed to have started as a staff meal at a ramen shop in Tokyo where the goal was to serve affordable yet filling food to the youth.

As word spread among the Japanese salarymen and locals, sutadon outperformed other dishes. Eventually, they opened Densetsu no Sutadon-ya where sutadon was the specialty.

Essentially, it is a variation of buta don, where a bowl of warm rice is topped with thin slices of pork belly mixed and stir fried in a special garlic soy sauce. The ingredients are believed to energise your body.

At the Sutadon-ya in KL, they will be serving their signature Tokyo Stamina Rice. The rice bowl crowned with the thin pork belly slices is served with miso soup and beni shoga (pickled ginger).

The sauce has a hint of garlic but it lends an appetising taste to the whole ensemble, making you finish the rice bowl quickly. Eat it with the beni shoga that helps clear the palate.

In Japan, the rice bowl is served with a raw egg. Here, as not everyone may like raw eggs, you can add on a dashi onsen egg instead.

You can vary the taste of your rice bowl with a selection of sauces and toppings.

There are six different sauces: yakiniku, spicy curry, teriyaki, wasabi mayonnaise, sriracha and tonkatsu. For the toppings, there is kimchi natto, stamina menma, miso okra, vermicelli garlic, spicy jellyfish and zah cai potato.

Your order for the Tokyo Stamina Rice is served with a choice of two sauces and three toppings.

According to Sutadon-ya Kuala Lumpur Executive Officer, Business Development Manager Kenji Kusama, the most popular sauce is yakiniku while the stamina menma is the top choice for topping.

The Tokyo Stamina Rice is served in different sizes. You also have variations where it can be topped with ebi (prawn) mayo or takoyaki.

For the in-store promotion to celebrate their grand opening, they will be offering their signature Tokyo Stamina Rice for RM3 per portion (usually this is RM29) from October 6 to 8, 11am onwards.

The offer is limited to 500 bowls for dine-in customers each day. The restaurant will be distributing queue tickets to manage the crowd.

From October 9 onwards, they will offer the full menu that includes their Tokyo Stamina Curry and Tokyo Stamina Fried Chicken (a choice of karaage or katsu). You also have items like Japanese risottos and potato salad where you can pound the cooked potatoes yourself in a suribachi mortar with the sauce. There are also refreshing fruit teas.

The eatery located just next to the escalators from the car park can seat up to 52 diners. You can also peek into the kitchen as they prepare their food.

Find Sutadon-ya at Lot P1-12, J's Gate Dining, Level 4, Lot 10, 50, Jalan Sultan Ismail, Kuala Lumpur.

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