As soon as we walked into this restaurant were greeted by a roar of welcoming voices - (ever so often the staff yell something in Japanese - I have no idea what they are saying but it sounds exciting).
The restaurant itself is very dimly lit with hanging light blubs scattered down the middle. There is a also a large distressed wooden communal table running down the centre of the restaurant towards the bar with a collection of sake bottles acting as a divider down the middle of the table.
Booths line the sides of the restaurant and we are led to one near the front. I love how large and private they all are. Our waiter comes over to greet us and goes over the menu. He is soo polite and respectful kneeling down when talking to us and explaining the menu.
Onto the food. These are all the items we ordered:
Avocado Salad - fresh avocado w/ mixed veg
Loved this dish, I adore avocado, it was super creamy with the tangy dressing a refreshing crisp lettuce
Spicy Salmon Roll - chopped salmon sashimi w/ spicy mayo sauce
Not very spicy but I enjoyed the crunchy tempura bits and fresh salmon
Gyoza - crispy deep fried dumplings
Really crispy golden brown loved the crunchy exterior and juicy filling
Bacon wrapper asparagus skewer -
Really nice smokey charred flavour from the bacon
Yam Tempura - deep fried yam potato
Very crunchy and crispy sweet yam paired with the cool tangy dipping sauce nice contrast
Salmon - grilled salmon w/ teriyaki sauce
Salmon was soo flaky and tender a nice medium rare just the way I like it with a light teriyaki galze
Chicken Karaage - deep fried chicken w/ sea salt
Really crunchy exterior enclosing nice white meat chunks definitely squeeze the lemon over it and roll it in the salt n pepper mixture for extra zing
Vege Yaki Udon - pan fried udon w/ veg & teriyaki sauce
A steaming pile of thick noodles with fresh stir fried vegetables and a nice coating of teriyaki sauce really good
Teriyaki Salmon Tempura
Our waiter brought this complimentary dish over from the cook.
Light crispy coated morsels of salmon in a teriyaki glaze
Bulgogi - marinated beef w/ veg
Loved this dish served on a sizzling plate perfectly cooked tender strips of beef and ample fresh stir fried vegetables
Green Tea Ice cream
A very small portion just one tiny scoop set on top of a crossed chocolate filled pocky sticks topped with whipped cream and a frozen raspberry
Overall I have to say the service here is one of the best, waiters were very friendly and dare I say almost too polite. Food was very fresh and came out in a timely matter and also very affordable (the most expensive dish we ordered was 7.95). If your ever in the mood for some Izakaya I suggest you give this place a try.