Gyoza

Darac Grill & Bar

Seafood Sausage Stew

This hearty stew compromised of a great selection of ingredients and was cooked right in front of us which was nice.

★★★☆☆

Ramen

I give this ramen one star because it costed $3. Ridiculous.

★☆☆☆☆

Gyoza

These prawn dumplings had an extremely soft filling and were not as crispy as I would have liked.

★★☆☆☆

Cheese Fire Chicken

Spicy Korean stir fried chicken with melted mozzarella cheese. Yum!

★★★☆☆

Seafood Spring Onion Pancake

Bland and underwhelming.

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

Good service, wide menu selection, relaxed atmosphere, sticky floors. I think my expectations were a bit too high so I was a little disappointed that nothing in particular stood out.

Darac Grill & Bar

51 A’Beckett St, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9662 2441

Gyoza Gyoza

Salmon Tataki

Tuna Tataki

Soba Noodle Soup

Yaki Hotate

(baked Japanese scollops with creamy miso sauce)

Lobster Mini Burgers

Panfried Miso Eggplant and Duck Gyoza

Kinoko Hoiru-yaki

(foil baked mix mushrooms with ponzu butter sauce)

Overall:

What makes Gyoza Gyoza such an appealing place is that all their dishes are $6.50. With more than 80 Japanese tapas style dishes to choose from, we spent a fair amount of time deliberating over the menu. We had high expectations with the gyoza (due to the restaurant name) but they turned out to be rather ordinary and also smaller than expected. In fact most of the dishes we sampled turned out to be quite ordinary, with the only stand out dish being the baked scallops. Service was average and the small tables meant that it became a tetris challenge trying to fit all our dishes onto the table. Gyoza Gyoza may not offer the best Japanese food, but they do offer a wide variety for a decent price.

Gyoza Gyoza

115-117 Little Bourke St, Melbourne, CBD

(03) 9663 0801

http://www.gyozagyoza.com.au/

Kenji

Sushi Bento Box

California deluxe rolls, nigiri sushi, gyoza, chicken karaage, croquette, crumbed fried prawn, calamari ring, edamame, salad

★★☆☆☆

Prawn, scallop and seared salmon nigiri

★★☆☆☆

House Special roll

Tuna, yellow-tail, prawn and cucumber, wrapped in salmon

★★☆☆☆

Green Tea Thickshake

Tasted like vanilla ice cream with occasional lumps of matcha powder.

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

Warm and inviting atmosphere, lovely service, extensive menu, typical Japanese fare. Note that this place is closed on Sundays and Mondays.

Kenji

Burwood Arcade Shop 10, 1405 Toorak Rd, Camberwell, VIC

(03) 9889 1084

Samurai

804 Glenferrie Rd, Hawthorn 9819 4858

Green tea milkshake

Takoyaki

Gyoza

Samurai sashimi

Steak teriyaki

Thoughts:

Green tea milkshake – essentially green tea ice cream in a cup which meant that it was super thick, super sweet and super fantastic = Excellent

Takoyaki – slightly crunchy on the outside, soft and creamy on the inside = Good

Gyoza – strong aroma of ginger, and I found parts of the dumpling skin to be thick and chewy = Not bad

Samurai sashimi – fresh slices of tuna and salmon = Good

Steak teriyaki – tough pieces of slightly overcooked steak drizzled with teriyaki sauce, served with rice and salad = Not bad

Overall:

This busy little place attracts quite a crowd as the the service is quick and polite, and the food is quite reasonably priced (especially the lunch and dinner boxes).