Otsumami: 257 High Street Melbourne

The slogan in the GFG is 'small dishes to be eaten with beer.' Exchange beer for sake and we're all set.

We went on a Saturday night that was super busy. After ten minutes they managed to squeeze us into a table at the back, which was nice. We had a show to go to in an hour so we only ordered a few dishes as it was clear they were struggling with quite a few large groups, birthdays included, and we didn't want to be waiting for food that couldn't be prepared in time.

We ordered Abu-Age Ponzu (tofu in ponzu sauce with salted plum and daikon), gyu kushi for Senor Gringo (eye fillet with garlic, yuzu pepper and butter), miso soup, rice and a green bean salad with ginger. Plus the obligatory sake.

The flavours were lovely and it was really good quality produce but my tofu was chewy, the beef was cold and it was clearly an issue with the kitchen and wait staff being overburdened. It is a small place and I think it was slightly over capacity, judging by the staff practically running between tables. My dining pleasure was also dampened by the fact that I got my food within minutes and Senor Gringo got his 40 minutes later.

I'm not going to write this place off, I would just recommend going on a night that isn't so busy - perhaps Sunday or a weekday? They clearly know what they are doing but had too much going on.

One tick for now, perhaps two ticks if we're ever in the area and there is nothing else that interests our bellies. Also, this is in the GFG>$30 and you would struggle to be full for that price as the portions are small.

Shimbashi Soba and Sake Bar: 17 Liverpool Street Melbourne

OMG this place is amazing. I love love love it. They grind their own buckwheat and make their own noodles from scratch every day on the premises. You can see the mill in the corner when you walk in. Apparently something happens to buckwheat, and flour in general, after 24 hours (oxidises maybe?) and eating it when it is freshly ground is better for your digestion and health. I won’t argue with that.

I have been a couple of times at lunch and the only thing that stops me from going back more regularly is that the restaurant is small and I don’t want to eat in a packed place by myself when they are so busy (plus I don’t think it is fair). I could take a friend but sometimes you need alone time when you are surrounded by people all day.

I have the seasonal vegetable soup that is loaded with veggies and herbs. Thank you Shimbashi! I don’t know why but so many places seem to be afraid to add many vegetables and just load you up with noodles or rice - they give you more meat for goodness sake so it can't be about cost. The soup has a niboshi dashi broth (don’t google it, you don’t want to know) with so many layers I just can’t describe.

It seems there are dozens of Japanese restaurants these days but Shimbashi is a stand out winner for me. Go there. It will do you good, I promise.

Three ticks – I wish all food tasted this good.

Sushi Masa: 10 Bourke Street Melbourne

Final blog post for year, I'm going to finish it off telling you about a great little Japanese place in the city. 

At Sushi Masa a Japanese man prepares made to order sushi or sashimi for the lunch crowd. The restaurant smells like the ocean and the food is fresh, plentiful and delightful.

My go to favourite is the vegetable bento box with vegetable tempura, agedashi tofu (crispy and well balanced), nasu dengaku (grilled eggplant with miso sauce), miso soup, rice and salad (the potato salad is not fussy eater friendly). Very filling, I haven't managed to eat it all yet but it is worth a try, particularly for $16.50. 

Senor Gringo gets the sushi and sashmini combo and I'm game for a little teeny bit of the raw tuna dabbed with wasabi. Their teriyaki beef is also a winner and the lunch menu is about half the price of the dinner menu.

Three ticks. It deserves recognition.  

Kokoro Ramen: 157 Lonsdale Street Melbourne

Let's be clear, ramen is definitely not high brow food. But it is certainly yummy and sometimes just what you need.

Kokoro Ramen is a student haven (the exact sort of people you would trust to pick out good ramen). It is cheap and fast and loud. They have a whole bunch of mix and match meal deals and design your own ramen options, along with chef selections. The noodles are homemade and so is the gyoza but... they make it once a week and then freeze it. You can kind of tell. I would still recommend it as the broth is delicious, so rich and warming.

Fussy eaters do need to be careful though. The tofu salad comes with a creamy sauce that contains egg, as do a good number of the onigiri. The vegetarian ramen is advertised as having a vegan broth but I asked what is in it and they mentioned butter (random). The vegan ramen also contains egg noodles - you can go without but you need to specify thin noodles not curly noodles. I have had the vegan broth twice and it tasted completely different each time. The second time I spent the afternoon coughing, clearing my throat and feeling as though I was wading through concrete. I recommend you check and double check your order. When you do they generally call over someone that speaks better English and you shouldn't have any problems (no guarantees). The pork broth is the best.

Things they do well: Agedashi tofu

Tempura

Edamame

Miso soup

Ramen soup

meal deals

Bring cash and enjoy Two ticks

 meal deal sized ramen, gyoza & onigiri 

DonToo: 330 Little Lonsdale Street Melbourne

DonToo has a small lunch menu and is not exactly fussy eater friendly. By day the restaurant does not serve ramen noodle soups, which is a bit sad as it is apparently the chefs specialty. 

For lunch you can choose between: 
¨        grilled beef, pork or chicken 
¨        curry tofu, beef or chicken 
¨        beef udon or soba noodle soup (the udon noodles contain egg) 
¨        a cold soba noodle salad (vegetarian – ask for no mayo if you are vegan) or 
¨        a lunch box with two types of meat, salad, rice and pickles. 

I ordered the cold soba noodle salad. It was decent, not too stingy on the vegetables but the dressing was very sweet and overall it was nothing remarkable. 

Senor Gringo had the lunch box, which came with grilled beef slices in soy sauce and chicken teriyaki. The chicken looked okay but Senor Gringo assured me the chunks of meat were fatty, poor quality and too sweet. The beef slices also had a line of fat along the edge which must be a quite traditional thing as it is quite common. Senor Gringo was not impressed and didn’t finish his meal. 

Most tables ordered the beef or pork soup which contained a boiled egg. I wanted a soup but didn't feel like meat that day and they weren’t willing to substitute tofu. The beef looked fatty anyway and I wouldn’t have been happy, which is a shame because the broth smelled delicious from afar.

I’m giving this place one tick. Lunch is really cheap ($5.9-$9) and I think the quality matches. 

Brim CC: 601 Little Collins Street Melbourne

Brim CC is a super packed Japanese fusion place near Southern Cross Station and I mean super packed - the line is often out the door.

You'll forgive me then for feeling disappointed. The food is pretty, organic and has just as many options for vegans, vegetarians and meat eaters alike, but I found it lacking in oomph. No amazing flavours. Everything was muted. If this was near my work, I would go there occasionally simply because its organic and better than many processed food venues but I didn't love it. Purple peanut is better and right round the corner at 620 Collins Street. If you don't like strong flavours and you are in the area, than this is probably the place for you.

We ordered two bento boxes to share - the Tokyo bento and the vegetarian special. The Tokyo bento had three rice balls (which is a bit much thanks - one would have been fine), a hamburger steak meatball and potato salad (both contained egg), grilled eggplant and tofu with miso paste (not bad but I've had much better) and sauteed carrots. All very gum-able. I imagine this is what a child or an old person would eat for dinner. As I said, very mild flavours and I didn't try the meatball but it looked unappetising.

The Vegetarian Special I would go so far as to call bland. It contained a small dish of soy beans in a tomatoey type sauce, cold tofu with a tiny bit of carrot dressing (it would have been completely flavourless without the dressing), a random pile of diced tomato with nothing on it (??), grilled pumpkin (which offered some natural flavour), traditional cucumber pickles (thankfully - I love pickles) and sweet daikon (it was meant to be sweet and salty but wasn't).

The most popular lunch choice is the combo - mix and match soup, salad and rice with curry. The soups seemed fairly random for a Japanese fusion place - Russian borscht, French sausages and veggies, vegetarian ginger and carrot and Hungarian goulash with gnocchi. The curries were more of what you would expect - katsu, Tokyo style beef curry and Tokyo chicken and tomato.

Apart from the abundance of rice, the food is pretty healthy and does offer a nice alternative to other options but it is for those with a very mild palate. I love bold flavours so I won't be returning but I do recognise everyone is different and clearly this place is popular so it must be filling a void.

One tick.