Bar Hanareya, Setia Alam

Bar Hanareya is a bit off the beaten path, but it's a distinctive destination for fans of Japanese fare. 

Freshly launched in Setia Alam, this friendly space specialises in otsumami - snack-sized plates - served with signature Japanese liquor-based cocktails.

The menu comprises thoughtful tributes to classic nibbles - edamame cooked with house-blended Japanese soy sauce; fermented red snapper entrails with cream cheese; simmered, sweet-savoury Japanese swordfish, tenderly braised; and Japanese-style kimchi comprising avocados and mountain yam. Heartier meals of okonomiyaki and udon are also available.

Cocktails prove well worthwhile too, washing and weaving yuzu sake, umeshu and Japanese whisky with coconut oil, Okinawan salt, Sakura bitters and more - for recommendations, ask for the bartender's take on the old fashioned, as well as Jen's favourite concoction.

Bar Hanareya is now on a CNY break and will be back 28 January.