Best Japanese Restaurants in Melbourne for Sushi, Sake & Ramen

Multiple fine dining and bar options round out the experience, ensuring guests have ample opportunity to experience the proud ‘omotenashi’ hospitality Japan is so renowned for. Situated in the financial district, this luxury Tokyo hotel is split across two buildings – a modern tower and the heritage-listed Mitsui Main Building. Within are 57 retro-futuristic rooms and 22 suites, 10 delicious restaurants and bars, and an award winning spa. Ace Hotel Sydney has brought together a world-class team for Kiln, its wood-fired rooftop restaurant set 18 stories above Surry Hills. The inventive Mitch Orr leads the kitchen as the restaurant’s Chef-Partner, with acclaimed Melbourne-based interior designer Fiona Lynch as the design partner for the space.
If you're looking for some sushi atop a white tablecloth, then Ocha is your best bet. Located in the heart of Hawthorn, Ocha is refined, elegant and unforgettable. It's a long-time hatted restaurant — and for good reason. Traditional techniques are combined with sublime imaginative touches to make for a truly memorable meal. Don't be surprised if your sushi arrives at your table like it's been turned inside out or upside down.

Travelling on foot without a heavy pack means you slow down and really experience the world around you, the place and its people. Exploring pack free on foot is both eco-friendly and human-friendly. Carrying a very small backpack with less than a couple of kilos enhances the walking experience profoundly as does having access to a hot shower, a glass of wine, a good meal and a comfortable nights sleep.
Feeling overwhelmed and not sure where to begin when it comes to eating at Japanese restaurants in Melbourne? Let  Quandoo help you decide… For high-end, authentic sushi and an extraordinary dining experience check out Minamishima on Lord Street in Richmond. If you fancy cocktails and Japas in a cool setting, pay Hihou on Flinders Lane a visit, accessible only by a secret doorbell.

Order the matcha lava cake to add a touch of theatre to your meal. Then pop into the retail section for golden truffle salt, Japanese plum wine and gourmet instant noodles. Akaiito's 'younger brother', Ototo is not to be overlooked. The comfortable dining space with booth seating is ideal for big groups of friends. Choose from a selection of Asian-inspired tapas and snacks, sharing plates, or the signature feed me menu.
Is it still worth it to wait in line at this Asian-inspired McConnell restaurant? Aesthetically speaking, these plates share the same level of attention to detail. Chef Kazuki-san, the restaurant's head chef, is still in the kitchen, but has moved to the dining room. When it comes to kitchen duties, Anthony Hammel has taken on the majority of the responsibility.

We ordered the salmon tataki, beef teppanyaki set, gyu tan, asari sake and unagi fried rice . Akaiito's private dining room - Interactive dining experience at its finest. Our signature Robatayaki Charcoal Grill uses 100% imported Japanese  coals to grill a variety of fresh vegetables, meat and seafood that are seasoned with spices and flavours of Japan.
Koko at Crown Melbourne is a luxurious teppanyaki experience and offers arguably some of the best teppanyaki Melbourne has to offer. The high-end surroundings, refined attention to detail and beautiful presentation means that dining at Koko can be at a higher price point than other teppanyaki restaurants in Melbourne. It’s known as ‘The Teppanyaki’ by regulars, and offers a traditional Japanese Teppanyaki style meal, made by chefs with deft hands, without the theatrics of throwing bowls or food at diners. Also teppanyaki restaurants often require everyone to order off a set menu instead of a la carte, so there’s often a lot of dishes on offer to suit everyone's tastes. Makoto sushi train in the City offers great food and quality service.
“Order and Chaos”, the words that best describe Melbourne’s newest Japanese food destination, Tetsujin. If BBQ isn’t quite what you are after there is also an abundance of izakaya style dishes and an extensive drinks menu including beers, wines, sake, Japanese whisky’s and delicious cocktails and specialty mocktail drinks. ” when you walk through the door and into this Japanese destination. Designed by a renowned Melbourne architecture firm run by Adrian’s father, this new izakaya creates an atmosphere of urban cool, strategically incorporating whiteness into Japaneseness. Their regular dinner menu comes in a washi paper scroll listing small dishes of foods and drinks ranging from imported Japanese sake to locally grown wines, in both English and Japanese. Japanese food is certainly one of our favourite cuisines, because it encompasses so many different type of dishes.

The basement houses a fun casual diner, while the street level shows off a glowing sushi bar slicing some of the freshest fish in Melbourne. Here, just 12 seats are treated to a stunning succession of nigiri and delicate seasonal dishes that are the apex of both traditional technique and cutting edge creativity. Collingwood's favourite Japanese cafe and homewares store has moved to a bigger space and now there's even more room for what it does well. Simple, clean, flavoursome Japanese dishes – like their traditional salmon breakfast or nourishing rice bowls – are a great refuel before you browse their range of covetable stuff for the home. With Japanese cooking classes, specialised groceries and fresh produce, this is your friendly neighbourhood Japanese retreat. During this exquisite omakase experience for just 12 diners, Shinya Nakano, a talented and creative Kyoto-born sushi chef, presents 18 or so morsels in a choreographed showcase of Australian seafood.
When you allow it you end up with groups of 20+ people all wanting to split and it becomes an unnecessary headache for the cashier and ends up wasting the other customers' time. Fair bit of fusion going on which is fine by me if it works – everything was good to excellent. Place gets Japanese curry restaurant mixed reviews on service – ours was good, till the end when they refused to split the bill for us . But even in Japan the Osaka-style is more popular especially given that Okonomiyaki originated from Osaka. For those who like tempura, Tempura Hajime in South Melbourne is excellent.

So put down those instant ramen packs and get exploring – your taste buds will thank you for it. Akaiito’s interior is beautifully designed with Japanese elements throughout the entirety of the restaurant. With both shared and private dining spaces available, we aim to present our guests an unforgettable dining experience in the heart of Melbourne. Combining fresh local and top notch globally sourced ingredients, Akaiito’s East-Meets-West interpretation of modern Japanese cuisine highlights the best of fine dining. Enjoy innovative cuisines as you discover Melbourne's best dining experiences at restaurants celebrated by critics and locals alike.
Even though Sado Island has downsized in recent times from their old Stirling Highway corner location, the intimate new surrounds almost make it feel more authentic. It’s been operating for decades, and their bento box options are some of the best you’ll find around Perth. Is light in colour and clearer and thinner than standard dark soy sauce. Shiro Shoyu can be used in sauces and seasonings without darkening their colour making it ideal to flavour refined dishes such as clear broths and pickles. Hinoki is your local Japanese grocery and sushi bar in the heart of Fitzroy, Smith Street – Melbourne. Please, sir, I need some more of that Don You may get your hands on some chicken katsu curry nearly immediately after placing an order at Don Don, one of the greatest Japanese restaurants in Melbourne in the year 2020.
Because Saori Tsuya and Kazuki had previously operated their business in the countryside for seven years, why move it back into the city? Kazuki's, as well as Lygon Street as a whole, appears to be on the rise. Your opinion may be swayed by a granita of yuzu on top of the sake jelly, which has been moulded to the bowl for an enjoyable squelch. It's a refreshing, citrus-sweet-and-sour treat that's just what the meal ordered. After a palate-cleanser of smoked and pickled vegetables, it romps through 14 nigiri sushi pieces, all of which feature seafood as their primary ingredient.