Toko

Toko is amongst one of my favourite Japanese restaurants in Sydney (and although I acknowledge I have a very long list of favourites, this one does not appear on that list unjustified).

Situated in the heart of the one of Sydney's oldest suburbs, Surry Hills is now a thriving community of warehouse-converted apartments and restored Victorian architecture, housing some of Sydney's finest chefs and designers. This suburb screams attention.

Today I was here with a group of my girls. The restaurant has a very strict "first in best dressed type" seating policy which means they do not take bookings, and requires everyone to arrive prior to seating the table. The policy is highly un-female friendly given most females these days run on a "I like to be fashionably late" policy. I suppose the argument for this increasingly popular seating policy is to allow restaurants to better manage its seating turnarounds (and inevitably profitability) which is too commonly affected by late customers or worst even, no-shows! However despite this frustrating seating policy and having picked a very busy night, the staff at Toko clearly used their best endeavours to seat us swiftly.

The first thing you notice here is the buzz - the place is exploding with customers and the wait staff are constantly seen whizzing around. The place is decked out with a lot of wood, a very modern edge to the decor, but a lot of wood. The lighting is dim, very dim. Almost too dim to house such a buzz of an ambience. 

The buzz may also be attributed to their longer-than-the-food-menu drinks menu consisting a wide selection of cocktails, sake, shochu, Japanese whisky and non alcoholic cleansers. We all started with a round of cocktails to sip on while deciding on our orders. To the left of the main dining area is an open sushi bar to allow those lucky enough to score a bar seating to witness the sushi chef in action, and slightly further down is the open robata grill. Be sure to poke your head around and check these out - its quite a show!

Toko offers an izakaya style dining, where dishes are designed to be shared (a more detailed explanation of izakaya dining can be found in my earlier post by clicking here). The dishes lean more towards contemporary and modern, rather than traditional and classic, so if you like Japanese with a twist and a bit of fusion you would love this place.

Our first dish, Freshly Shucked Pacific Oysters in Tosazu (a very versatile Japanese vinegar dressing). The oysters were very fresh and chilled well - a great start to the meal.

Our next dish was the Thinly Sliced Wild Snapper with Truffle Oil and Pork Crackling. The delicately sliced snapper was dressed nicely in a truffle dressing and micro-herbs, while the crumbs of pork crackling gave the dish a bit of a modern kick.  

Then came the nigiri to share - we ordered Salmon Nigiri and Mackerel Nigiri. Something traditional we thought.

The star dish of the night was the Scampi Nigiri with Fois Gras and Truffle Oil from the Toko Signature Sushi collection. Above and beyond, this is my favourite nigiri, ever. The scampi is fresh and the flavours so well balanced - a foodgasmic experience not to be missed, so good, the table ordered two rounds (and nearly a third)!

Also from the Toko Signature Sushi collection, was the Chopped Scallop with Ponzu, Wasabi and Cucumber. Again a very well balanced dish in terms of texture and flavour, and not to be missed.

"Sake, often referred to as the 'drink of gods', is the quintessential Japanese drink, to the extent that the Japanese themselves call it 'nihonshu', meaning Japanese wine" - Toko

One simply cannot dine at an izakaya restaurant without ordering a bottle of sake, or maybe two!

Our following two selections were from the Toko Makimono menu, the Spicy Tuna and Chilli Mayonnaise Inside Out Roll and the Prawn Tempura, Avocado and Cucumber Inside Out Roll.

Next dish was the Moreton Bay Bug Tempura with Chilli Ponzu and Yuzu Koshou Mayonnaise, another Toko favourite. The tempura batter is very light and does not overpower the soft and delicate chunky pieces of bug meat.  Dip in the ponzu and then the mayonnaise - Yum!

As a side tempura dish, we also ordered the Seasonal Vegetable Tempura. A large serving a various vegetables dipped in the very light batter and fried golden - a simple yet popular dish amongst the girls.

Our final dish was the Duck Breast with Sansho Pepper and Pickled Nashi Pear. Very tender, juicy pieces of duck breast balanced with thinly sliced pear making the meat light and refreshing on the palate. 

Overall a pleasant meal again and the girls were impressed with most of the dishes. The service was a little bit of a miss with orders taken incorrectly, it was at times a little difficult to get the attention of our wait staff and orders being missed. However a great place to dine with a smaller group, enjoy a very lively and loud buzz, happy chatter. For a tamer environment with more attentive service (and which allows for dinner reservations), try Tokonoma next door.  They share the same kitchen and drinks menu as Toko too!

xx

Toko Surry Hills

490 Crown Street

Surry Hills  NSW  2010

(02) 9357 6100

Toriichi

The Masuya International Group of restaurants is definitely not a new name to me. Their flagship restaurant, Masuya has been around since 1993. Though I was only little girl back then, I have since been a loyal customer. This group is also responsible for bringing to us other big names such as Makoto (an all time favourite sushi-train) and Miso (famous for their succulent and juicy pork katsu bento boxes).

Recently, this group brought to us another restaurant, Toriichi. Toriichi is located at 12-14 O'Connell Street, Sydney just upstairs from Masuya. The space is long and narrow and furnished by combining modern elements with a bit of zen. A strange combination if you ask me, particularly with the black walls contrasted with white fluorescent lighting and zen displays. However despite my previous comments, I was lucky to get the best seat in the house - a table made from a 350 year old tree.

The menu presented shows a combination of kobachi (tapas, as starters), deep fried options, house specials, aburi/yakitori options, oden (a Japanese mini version of what we commonly call a 'hot pot', without the flame) and sashimi. I was here with my high school girls on our once-a-month catch up and given it was a first-time here for all of us, we tried to order a good mix of food.

First things first, Sake.

The sake menu at Toriichi boasts variations from all around Japan. Again a week-night and although I told the group prior to dinner that there will be no drinking, I could not resist ordering just one bottle between us! The sake menu provides a Sake Meter Value (SMV) which is always very helpful. There is such a great variety of sake that it is impossible to know it all, and the SMV can assist in picking out the right one for your personal taste.

As a general rule of thumb, the higher the positive number, the drier and richer the sake. Conversely, the lower the negative number is, the sweeter and lighter the sake. I usually opt for a sake with a SMV of about +5.

I must point out, although the sake menu is not extensive, it does cover a good range - from the Junmai Daiginjo-Shu (the most premium), to Junmai Ginjo-Shu, to Junmai-Shu. The first word "Junmai" is an indicator that the sake is of good quality, made with traditional techniques and using only with pure rice wine (with no added alcohol, unlike cheaper variations).

The next word distinguishes how 'polished' the rice is - the more polished the rice used, the higher the quality of the sake. "Daiginjo" sake is made from rice that is polished down to 50% or less its original size. "Ginjo" sake is made from rice that is polished down to 60% or less its original size. Normal Junmai sake is made from rice that is polished down to 70% or less its original size.*

We picked the Jyozen Junmai which had a SMV of +7 - Dry, full-bodied and fruity. Tick, tick and tick!

First we had the Chicken Nanban - fried chicken and onion marinated in sweetened rice wine vinegar. To be bluntly honest, I did not rate this dish. I could not see the point of serving fried chicken cold and soggy as it defeats the purpose of frying it, doesn't it?

Next was the Salmon Carpaccio, served with a Japanese citrus and soy dressing. The salmon was fresh and the flavours well balanced.

Next came the Ice Crab Meat and Cucumber Salad. The cucumber was lightly pickled but overall I found this dish bland and lacking in taste. Something more was needed to enhance the flavour of the crab meat.

Then followed the Mixed Sashimi of salmon, tuna and swordfish. As with other Masuya Group restaurants, the fish was fresh and served in thick slices.

The long awaited 5 Kinds Assorted Oden was then served. A small bowl of vegetables, potato jelly, fish cakes and radish cooked in a traditional fish broth. It's something different but not something that I enjoyed as again I found it a bit bland in comparison to the other dishes.

The Yakitori came next. The chicken was generously salted and very juicy.

We also ordered the house special Dashimaki (more commonly known as 'Tamago'), which is simply a very thin egg omelette made in a special rectangular pan, rolled together while cooking to make a long and thick egg roll. I expected the Dashimaki to be a bit sweeter and more tasty, but also found it to be a bit too bland for my liking.

Our final dish was taken from the specials menu, the Aburi Wagyu Beef. This was my favourite dish of all the hits and misses. The beef was cooked evenly, not overdone, and the meat was tender and juicy.

Overall, the experience was not as great as I expected from the Masuya Group and must be my least favourite. Nonetheless, their sake menu is very reasonably priced and well varied, and I am sure to be back to try them all (especially their Sake Tasting Menu - at a very attractive $20 to try 5 kinds!) - just next time I might stick with the fail-proof dishes. The ambience is casual and lazy, so bring a friend or two!

xx



Toriichi
12-14 O'Connell Street
Sydney NSW 2000
(02) 9233 8181

Fuku Restaurant Sake & Wine

For many reasons, Japanese cuisine is my favourite cuisine.  I am a big fan of seafood, I love the taste of freshly grounded wasabi (no, not the pasty packaged stuff), i love pickled ginger, and I get all worked up about fancy food presentation.  I was even recently told by a friend that my "facebook account consists 90% of food photos, of which 80% is Japanese cuisine, and mostly sashimi/sushi".  A very true statement made, I say.

Japanese meals are usually simple and very well presented.  A good Japanese chef would balance his flavours and textures well, and artfully arrange his meal of captivating colours on stunning tableware (usually a lot more expensive than they look - if you have ever tried to pick up one of those serving plates, the first thing you would notice is how heavy and solid it is!).

One mid-week night, I stumbled across Fuku Restaurant unplanned.  It is discretely nested up on Level 1 at World Square, Sydney just opposite Ding Tai Fung.  I must have walked past them many times and not noticed them? 

I was greeted by their friendly staff quickly on arrival and lead to a spacious 4 person table by the window (even though there was only 2 of us).  It was mid-week and the restaurant was obviously not at capacity.  I was impressed by their considerate service (some restaurants would put us on a smaller table despite there being plenty of larger available tables).  Big tick!

The restaurant is nicely furnished and dimly lit - my first impression was "Uh oh, it's mid-week and I just walked into a fine dining restaurant with a friend, who was working overtime and just stepped out to grab a quick bite with me! Fail."  However on opening the menu I was presented with, I quickly discovered I was very wrong (whilst the eye repetitively flicked over to the separate sake menu lying lazily on the table in front of me - it was mid-week and I do make an effort to avoid drinking on weeknights).  The menu was very fairly priced with a well-rounded sake menu - this was an izakaya restaurant (居酒屋) - perfect!

What is an izakaya restaurant?  The word 'izakaya' means 'to stay, in a sake shop'.  A typical izakaya restaurant offers a good sake menu and serves food on the side to accompany the drinks.  Therefore you may find that the portion size of food served in izakaya restaurants smaller than what you would find in your average Japanese restaurant.

Though I didn't plan to drink, I felt a little obliged to order a bottle of sake - nothing fancy just the chilled house sake.  The sake served was dry and had rich rice flavour, exactly as I like it, and very affordable.

Our first dish was the Kingfish Carpaccio.  Very fresh, served with a citrus dressing and baby herbs.  It was the perfect starter and very appetising indeed.

Next the Salmon Belly Aburi was served (note the salmon belly was not on the menu, but can be specially requested subject to availability).  I always prefer the fattier part of salmon and would go for the belly wherever possible.  After searing the belly, the salmon simply melts in the mouth. Yum!

Finally came the Smoked Miso Cod.  I was very unsure about this dish at the start because bar cod tastes awesome when cooked well, but can be a total fail if not cooked properly.  Before this dish was set on our table, the first thing we picked up was the smell - a tantalising smokey flavour.  The dish was set down and before us was two flat pieces of wood still burning (we think it may have been cedar wood but forgot to ask) tied together with cooking string.  The string was cut loose, the top piece of wood lifted off and there was the smoked cod, and it looked good!  The fish was tender, dressed in a sweet teriyaki-like sauce, and strongly smokey - it was truly divine!

What an unexpectedly and surprisingly wonderful experience this was.  This place is great for a casual date-night with your other half, or a girly catch up (did I mention the drop-dead gorgeous waiter?).

xx



Fuku Restaurant Sake & Wine
Level 1, Shop 1103 World Square
Sydney  NSW  2000
(02) 9261 8977