Does Kiraku Mean Comfortable ?

A long time friend of mine recently invited the missus and me to savour some Japanese delights at his soon to be opened restaurant located smack in the middle of the CBD. Nestled in a basement unit at 55 Market Street, Kiraku is the latest in a series of Japanese themed restaurants that belongs to the Shin Kushiya stable of restaurants.

Kiraku serves up Japanese standards during the day (sushi, sashimi, udons, sobas & dons). The shabu-shabu (Japanese style hot pot) makes a daily appearance only during dinner service. The staff were very polite and attentive, which made us feel very kiraku. The head chef is from Osaka and he runs a capable team of sous chefs. I'll cut straight to the food from here on.

Please ignore the half eaten bits. You could probably tell that blogging was the last thing on my mind. On this plate from left to right we have chu toro (premium tuna belly) & sake toro (premium salmon belly). The piece with white stripes is the salmon belly. FRESHness guaranteed and bursting with flavour! Coats your mouth with a film of omega oil goodness. Definite must eat.

Kiraku maki to your left. Melt in your mouth pieces of foie gras draped over batter fried sushi rice. The soft, rich foie gras contrasts well with the crisp batter of the rice topped with a little tobiko coloured mayo. Presentation is pretty damn decent too.

More sake toro or premium salmon belly. Can't get enough of this stuff.

We ordered the Wagyu Suki Shabu. Look at the lovely, marbled & thinly sliced slivers from heaven.

Nice medley of vegetables to accompany the meat.

The whole point of shabu shabu. Dip, swirl and eat.

This is one of the things you can do with the raw egg that comes with every order. You're actually supposed to dip the cooked meat into the raw egg just before it enters your mouth but we decided to gently poach it instead.

The meal was washed down the gut with some lovely Shirataki sake. They have a comprehensive list of sakes available for the sake conoisseur.

The best part about the meal - one feels totally kiraku. You don't get the feeling of being overly full which is normally associated with overly oily and lower quality Japanese dishes.

Kiraku will be officially opened sometime this week and I have no doubts it will be a hit with the CBD crowd looking to satisfy their hunger pangs with some quality Japanese. Definitely Kiraku.