I really feel sorry for the restaurant staff at Tookaiya... Clearly there isn't enough people working on what seems like a commonly overbooked Friday night dinner service. The woman that helped service us were friendly and approachable, but it didn't seem like they had set tables to serve so we were asked four time if we'd like to order drinks... Then nothing. Had to wait 30 minutes before we could get someone's attention to take our food order. Once we hit that milestone, the tummies started grumbling because we could smell everyone else's food. So we waited, and waited, and.... Waited. Eventually, as mentioned in previous reviews, our food came out bit by bit in the strangest of orders. It was okay food (cooked tuna maki was a winner for me) but certainly tarnished by the fact that we had to wait so long for very small servings. I'd come back here, but would only do so on a weeknight. Weekends are clearly too busy for them to handle. read more

Tookaiya Japanese Restaurant - Gyoza. Smaller than what I'm used to, but still super tasty! - Japanese Near Me - Niddrie, VIC

Now the service is not as bad as previous reviews suggest. I have always had a great time and staff are really nice. Occasionally their is a wait to get a seat despite making a reservation. Offers many varieties of Japanese cuisine. My photos only show delectable food....sometimes the photo for the review is not taken as food goes into tummy too fast before brain remembers to take the photo!!!! read more

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Ate here recently but left not feeling very impressed. We came at a peak time on Saturday night and were lucky to get a seat at the front of the restaurant - facing the street (still nice setup though). The place was bustling, loud and filled with people - I was actually glad to be put in a quiet corner. We ordered the Banquet B at $40 per head. Never have I eaten somewhere where the food came out all in the wrong order. I believe it was because they had a rush on the sushi so they were making it as fast as possible, so they served the other dishes. The lowdown: - Miso Soup: quite nice - Sashimi - did not come out until alot later but was worth the wait. - Sushi & Rolls Platter - came out as above, later in the meal. - Agedashi Tofu - one big massive hunk of fried bean curd per person, pretty hard to eat with just chopsticks... it was rather large and awkward. - Tempura - 1 of the following (from memory) prawn, eggplant, sweet potato - was ok. Very minimal condiments. - Gyoza - I was disappointed in these. The amount of dipping sauce (not sure what it is but its not soy) was TINY. The wrappers did not seem fully cooked. - Harumaki - These were nice and had a lovely mayo to dip with. 2 each. - Kaisen - this was alright, some scollops, fish, calamari, prawns. Could not quite taste the butter/lemon sauce however. - Yakisobo / Fried Rice - we went with the Yakisobo for a change, it was ok. Dessert: Various ice creams and coffee or Japanese green tea. I guess I think the issue I had was that we had to ask about the missing order/sushi worried that they had forgotten it. Also when paying the bill we sat there for SO LONG for them to take the credit card it was unbelievable. We ended up having to get up to give them our money. Lastly - the noise factor kind of ruined the night for me. Nearby customers were incredibly loud (which is no fault of the restaurant) however I do believe they have stuffed tables so close together and furnished the place with things that reflect noise made things rather uncomfortable. I'll be in no rush to return. read more

Do i have to give a star? I guess i do so here goes. We arrived at restaurant yesterday. My wife and i have been here many times. The food has always been good but not great so no big expectations. We immediately noticed a change in decor (nice) new staff, etc. We were seated withot drama drinks came quickly, we were happy. We ordered off the lunch menu. Wife had chicken teriaki, i had sushi platter, and kids meal for the little one. When sushi platter arrived i noticed the sashimi did not look right. Tuna was not redish, other varieties just didnt look right. I took a bite of the perch and nearly gagged as it was so off. Tuna was worse. I decided not to take my life into my own hands and finished the sashimi which had no raw fish. My wife complained that the chicken was off. To their credit the server asked me about the uneaten fish and i said i was scared to eat it. I also politely told her i'd be scared to serve that fish as it was definitely off. She claimed they'd only purchased it that morning. I very much doubt that statement of course there is a bait shop accross the street. Maybe a one off but who wants to get sick. I did get a full refund on my sashimi platter which i appreciate. I wont be back. read more

So I have been here a few times before and liked the place. It's the closest Japanese restaurant to our house - it's not amazing (we have been to Tokyo before, so we know what amazing Japanese food tastes like!)but it's close and not too expensive, so every now and again we stop by and have some sushi or ramen. On this said day, we arrived at 5:15 on a Sunday of a long weekend. We arrived so early because we needed to pick my folks up from the airport that night. My husband wanted to go in at five, but working in hospitality myself, I said that we should give them fifteen minutes to get their bearings. So, we up to Tookaiya at 5:15 to find the signs out and the door open. We wait at the door, but no one looks up. Every staff member seems to be behind the front counter which is way at the back of the room. So, we seat ourselves at a two-seater table with no Reserve sign on it. Two minutes later, a man comes up to us who we have never seen at Tookaiya before, and says sharply, "May I help you?" - as if he had no idea what we were doing there! We asked for a menu, and then he said, in the same tone, "Next time - you wait to be seated! DO NOT seat yourselves!" I don't know what possesed us to stay and eat. I guess we were both so shocked that we had been spoken to in such a way that we acted for a bit as if nothing had happened. Then, after we ordered my husband and I began to talk about what an ass the guy had been! We asked one of the waiters (who walked around the dining room like drones - no smiled, just doing slow laps around the tables) who he was. He said the general manager. When the general manager delivered our last item of food, my husband asked him if he would apologise for how he had spoken to us. The GM then said, "Oh, my sorry if you were offended" and then went on to say how he was right! "You mustn't seat yourself, these are the rules" Then were is the "please wait to be seated" sign?! So, in the end, he would not apologise for how he spoke to us, but continued to say how 'right' he was! This kind of arrogance has led us to NEVER EVER visit this poor excuse for a Japanese restaurant (they obviously are not Japanese as I know the language - they sound Chinese to me) again. Like I said, I work in hospitality and I have never spoken to a customer the way that arrogant waiter spoke to us. Tookaiya must not care about service if they are willing to hire a man like that to represent their business. I will be instead going to CHIBA in Moonee Ponds, which is run by a Japanese family and has amazing fresh sushi! read more

Tookaiya is fantastic. waiters are very attentive and the food is delicious we have been coming back for years and Will the head waiter is a gem. read more