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| - Located in an old warehouse on Carlaw Avenue, House of Moments is a lounge, restaurant, bar venue. We had been there before when it was a warehouse for Kudu and a lot of the decor was left over from then. The hostess/owner? showed us around describing how the space could be utilized and the possibilities for use. You enter off of Carlaw and walk down a couple of steps into a large warehouse space. The floors are polished concrete, while the ceilings and pillars are all painted a stark white. The walls in contrast were painted black as backdrops for a collection of oversized paintings and art. The spaces were separated by diaphonus white curtains that could be drawn to define areas and large heavily carved Southeast Asian doors. There were a couple of bars, a dance area, eating areas, lounge areas and a selection of seating. The place was overwhelming and was designed to appeal to an evening crowd. The menus featured Japanese inspired sushi, tempura and bar type food, priced in a manner expected from such a nightclubby place. While not a big menu everything featured special sauces or plating that paid attention to style over substance. The place was buzzing with staff, including waitress dressed all in black save for bright red corsets. These outfits were finished with flat shoes that sadly while comfortable for serving did not match the overall style that the place tried to impart. They really needed to be in sharp stilettos to complete the sillhouette. The service was polite, with a sense of humour and prompt and efficient, and the food arrived beautifully plated. Unsurprisingly, while the food was beautiful it was not that exciting. It was standard Japanese fare that had been sadly dressed up with too much sweetener. It was an interesting experience to try something new and would appeal to a crowd that is interested in atmosphere, imbibing and socializing rather than eating.
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