I WAS surprised how you can build up a poke bowl with myriad ingredients and it still turns out right at The Fish Bowl in 1Utama.

I looked to my friend for guidance and she pointed out all her favourite things.

We chose one base out of eight, which was the truffle mushroom rice. Other bases are brown or white rice, soba, quinoa, pesto rice and cauliflower rice (of which I’m not a fan).

Then we pick two sauces – sesame miso and minty green—and four sides of edamame, walnuts, almonds and pineapple.

There’s an unlimited choice of toppings, so we take all: sesame seeds, fried shallots, fried garlic chips, seaweed flakes, green onions, chilli flakes, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, chia seeds, furikake, fish roe and wasabi. For the protein it’s Shoyu salmon for us.

Altogether it was a bowl of tasty goodness, with lots of crunch, freshness and flavour.

The cubes of salmon were seasoned well, and it amazed me how the level of saltiness was just right when everything was mixed together.

I am happy with the flavourful mushroom rice. Two bottles of kombucha – beet it and lite green – completed our healthy lunch.

For those who want a quick takeaway the signature bowls make it so convenient. I went back for a cooked protein, which was the miso salmon, and had the Misohungry bowl.

In this poke bowl (RM20.90), is the salmon, rice (brown or white) or greens, shallots, corn, seaweed salad, mango, seaweed flakes, furikake, fish roe and sesame seeds, all brought together with lime aioli. It’s a good combination and I like the burst of sweetness from mango, but I still prefer my raw salmon, which I’m told is Norwegian in origin.

Some of the signature bowls are on the daily special at a special price if you are a Fishies Club member.

I was eyeing the Umazing bowl which has teriyaki unagi, which on Friday is 20% off its usual price of RM35.90 for members.

I signed up to be one and the poke bowl did not disappoint. I loved the unagi, which was perfectly marinated and grilled.

It had a light sweetness and was not drenched with sauce, as some store-bought unagi is. My base was brown rice, with cucumber, pineapple, almonds, pumpkin seeds, seaweed flakes, fish roe, Gar-Gar (garlic) and teriyaki sauces.

My least favourite bowl here must be the Ono herbs chic (RM15.90), with cubes of honey herb chicken.

I found the chicken overwhelmed with thyme. Perhaps I should have waited till Wednesday when members enjoy a chicken bowl at RM13.90 and can opt for Preeka chicken (with Indian spice marination), grilled chicken breast or honey herb chicken.

As takeaways are the order of the day now, it is best to bring your own food container as there is a charge of RM1.20 for a takeaway bowl.

The Fish Bowl has just introduced the dynamite salmon bowl, which is now on special offer at RM24.90 till May 31.

There are vegetarian options such as the Hawaiian tofu signature bowl (RM13.90) or build up your own poke bowl with tofu, tempeh and chickpea broccoli fritters.

The Fish Bowl has been around since 2016. It has 12 outlets across the Klang Valley in 1 Utama, the Gardens Mall, Sunway Velocity Mall, IOI City Mall, Kiara 163, Plaza Arkadia, Pavilion, Suria KLCC and Sri Petaling, among others. – May 22, 2021.

* Eu Hooi-Khaw has been writing about food for the longest time, covering all aspects, from restaurant reviews to cooking and recipes, as well as the healthy side of it. She has written for major newspapers and magazines, published the cookbook Fresh Ingredients, and also writes for her website hooikhawandsu.com.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.