On the run at Eastland and grabbed some sushi here. One salmon. One tuna. Just ok. Competently…read moremade food court sushi. Nothing to inspire though. Consumed in record time and after these few words the food will be a rapidly fading memory. It's a 2.8 for me.

I can't add much after having a quick lunch here yesterday, but the brown rice as previously…read morereviewed is great! It adds a more substantial, "nutty" flavour to the sushi rolls. Don't expect the nori to be crispy as the rolls are obviously made well ahead of lunch time. Flavours are spot on though. They also have nigiri sushi "a la carte" so you cans make up you're own bento box if you like.

Lovely little Gyoza place. Huge variety of small bites and a great drink menu. My husband and I…read moresaw this gem and thought we'd give it a try our first night in Melbourne. Salmon tartare was my fav!! So light and flavorful, three delicate pieces packed in yumminess. We ordered a few more Gyoza appetizers and two drinks. The food is mostly $6.80 each for small plates which was perfect for a little nibble. Very clean place and friendly, helpful wait staff.

This Izakaya Style Tapas Restaurant is a great place to sample lots of small bite size dishes for…read morethe price of $6.80. Order a salad and then add to your order another four choices for a great affordable meal. The Gyoza here is a specialty. Order at least a couple of plates! The spicy chicken salad is very spicy Beware. After attempting to eat this my mouth was on fire. Pity as I usually like hot spicy food All dishes we ordered were very tasty and well presented.

Always had a good experience here. Friendly staff. Good food. Nothing flash but good fresh food…read more Great place for quick bite to eat before heading to the Palais.

Oki to go, oki to stay, oki any time of day! The freshest, most appetizing sushi is at Oki 2 Go. I…read moreguess they've no excuse for not having the freshest seafood, after all they're on the doorstep of the bay but seriously, this is good stuff. At first glance Oki 2 Go may look like your typical walk in-walk out questionable sushi joint, but take a closer look and a step inside and you'll realise its actually quite an upmarket place. The lighting and red colouring of the decor adds to the authenticity of the Japanese restaurant. Larger than it appears, open til late seven days per week, BYO wine, dine in and take out options, Oki 2 Go won't disappoint. Selecting where to eat can be a hard choice when in Acland street but trust me, Oki 2 Go certainly holds its own in the dining mecca of St Kilda. Tip: If you're a fan of bento boxes, choose the Oki Bento, mmmm oishii!!

Always guaranteed a great traditional Japanese meal here at excellent prices…read more The staff are wonderful and the menu is extensive (many many choices of Bento boxes) with specials between 1pm-5pm. The decor is very Japanese, its a relaxed vibe and at a great location in Bourke street, Melbourne CBD.

I hate the layout of the tables here. They're set up in such a way that you are forced to share a…read moretable with other people. I hate that, especially when they stick you with people who won't shut up, or filthy people who keep snorting and blowing their nose with the napkins. So please be aware of this if you plan on trying this place. The food here is okay, but not the best I've had. My main complaint is I feel like they take too many short cuts with the cooking and this comes out in the food. The takoyaki are deep-fried instead of pan-baked; the curry is too hot for Japanese curry and the meat is just boiled or grilled and just dumped in. Again, it's not bad but it could be much better. They have a good range of bento boxes though and the prices are not too bad. Service is not good. They almost go out of their way not to refill your teapot. I had to pick up my teapot and wave it in front of the waiter's face but that still didn't work. I had to wait until someone came to drop off a plate and physically place the teapot in their hand. I shouldn't have to do that. It's little things like this that just make the whole experience not very pleasant. Overall, it's okay here, just not the best.

My husband and I grabbed a quick veggie gyoza order for takeaway and were not disapointed. The…read moredumplings were vegan and delicious! They were fresh and tasty. The shop is small and has one table outside. The staff were friendly.

Stumbled across gyoza gyoza by accident Friday night and ended up with dinner and drinks and were…read morequite pleased. A little Japanese gem in the middle of Chinatown Melbourne. All good items on the menu cost $6.80 and is really good quality. Ordered Karachi chicken, chicken ribs and their signature gyoza. Delicious. We also had a Asahi mix between pale and the dark which wasn't too shabby. A good compliment to the fried chicken. It was rather busy and there was a bit of a wait but it was definitely worth it. The décor is classy and an especially cool feature is the wood finish under the bar. A special shout out to our waitress Mae from Tokyo who had only been in the country 2 months. She was very pleasant and adorable. You'll be lucky if you receive her service :)

We came with a Groupon voucher for an 8-course vegetarian banquet and it was excellent value for…read moremoney. We requested everything to be vegan, which was no trouble for them. The courses included miso soup, edamame, agedashi tofu, nasu dengaku (eggplant), vegan fried chicken, rolled-up crunchy tofu skin with rice, sushi rolls, and dessert. It also included house sake, which tasted like rubbing alcohol, but hey, alcohol's alcohol. Some of the dishes were definitely better than the others. I liked the "fried chicken" and the eggplant (the sauce with the eggplant was amazing!!! I practically lapped it up.) The sushi rolls were OK, kinda generic. Wasn't crazy about the agedashi tofu for some reason. The miso soup was tasty, and the edamame was pretty much your usual steamed edamame, nothing special (although they gave us a LOT of it, which was nice!) The crunchy tofu skin with rice was very bland, and my boyfriend didn't like it at all so I ate pretty much the whole thing myself. For dessert, we skipped the typical ice cream that comes with the banquet and got vegan desserts instead. It was basically a peach-flavored jelly thing (made with agar agar, not gelatin). It was tasty, but I was honestly SO FULL at this point that I couldn't finish it. In general, I liked the meal. But I think some of the flavours could be improved (especially the sushi rolls, agedashi tofu, and crunchy tofu skin with rice). I'd also just gotten back from two weeks in Japan and I'm not sure how "authentic" some of these dishes truly were. They definitely tasted like they'd been a little bit Westernized, but maybe that's just me being picky because I had just been in Japan and had such amazing food there. The two girls who served us were also very sweet and nice. The atmosphere was nothing fancy, just a cozy little place with no frills, but it was nice. I'd definitely recommend the place if you're wanting a vegan or vegetarian Japanese banquet, especially because most Japanese places use dashi or fish in almost every dish, so it's hard to find a good vegetarian Japanese banquet. Just go wearing stretchy pants because by the end of it, you will be FULL.

We came here late on a Monday night when all other restaurants were closed and loved it. The food…read moreis very delicious and high quality. The service was excellent and I got more sake than I could finish for a very reasonable price. Also the ambience was cozy, funky and traditional all at the same time.

If you love Japanese food you will be in love with hinoki Japanese pantry. Walking through the…read moreglass doors you quickly learn that this is no ordinary ethnic supermarket but rather an ode to Japanese cuisine. You can get everything from sake to soy sauce, soba to sashimi and everything in between. There is a delicious range of freshly prepared sushi and sashimi as well as everything you would need to take home to make your own. All the packaging is in Japanese so you may need some help from the staff. They are super friendly and eager to help. Loves: 1. Assortment of products 2. Freshness 3. Value for money - quite inexpensive 4. Staff picks and suggestions - help you navigate the different brands

What a great find! I've been here a few times for a quick sushi lunch and it's a bonus it's also a…read moreJapanese convenience store. (This is where I'll pick up some frozen udon, soba noodles and sauces). The good thing about this place is that it's got variety, from sashimi to different sushi rolls, even seared ones too. The sauces aren't too over powering as other sushi joints may smother mayo all over the sushi! There's only been one time that sushi I ordered there wasn't as good, salmon was a bit chewy. I recently ordered a platter for dinner and it was ready to be picked up in 1hr (called to order). Great presentation for a dinner party or if you just want to indulge in a sushi platter for dinner.

Lovely meal at Aka Siro!…read more It was my last day in Melbourne, the brother and I ventured to Collingwood to visit the restaurant that we've always been curious about, Aka Siro - A quaint Japanese eatery situated on the quiet corner of Peel St. and Cambridge St.. We arrived just a little after 1 pm and judging from the long queue of people willing to stand outside in the cold, you could definitely size up the popularity of Aka Siro. The restaurant has a petite physicality with half of its seating capacity dedicated to the bar seating, and the other half to tables/dining areas. The menu was equally limited, but all seems very tempting. We ordered several dishes to share: * Karaage Curry: This was a foolproof plate of curry. The chicken was deliciously crispy and tender, the curry was also very hearty! * Nizakana Teishoku: Fish fillet braised with soy, sake and ginger. Fresh and tender fish, but the flavor was nothing too special. * Gyu-Teki Teishoku: This dish was freaking delicious!! The beef was tender, succulent and juicy, the house made sauce was very delicious and addicting. We love every bite of this. Aka Siro certainly satiate our appetite for traditional Japanese cuisine. The food was authentically Nippon, the space was cozy and homey, the service was also hospitable. The Price, on the other hand, was more on the higher side of the scale (each costing between $ 17-22) especially when you witness the (tiny) portions, but the overall flavor was on point!! Aka Siro was well worth the travel! Tip: RSVP is recommended & cash only.

Had dinner at this lovely Japanese restaurant in Collingwood. Very good authentic Japanese cuisine…read more It's the second time we've been this trip. It's a small place and is always busy so make sure you make reservations ahead of time. #maneklady #manekeats #manektravels