Fast, great tasting and reasonable food. Seriously this place is great and I’ve been here more times than I can count for both eat in and take away.
Lucy H.
Tu valoración: 4 Australia
Tucked away in a side entrance to Melbourne Central is the busy little Menya. Little is right — jammed in between other tempting eateries, Menya barely has any room to seat her patrons. Tiny block tables, each seating two run along the kitchen bar and out into the lane. Large flames are visible as the many chefs cook your order in minutes, dramatically tossing the contents of wok’s into the air before it’s brought to your table by one of the several cashiers. If you choose to take away — like I do often — you’ll be waiting in the laneway with your ticket, dodging shoppers and listening for your number to be called. A cashier will bring you your meal, complete with utensils and inside a carry bag — she’ll take your ticket so don’t lose it! If you choose to eat in, you must try the curious chilled water, served in jugs with a slice of lemon/lime, a large sprig of parsley and one lonely cherry tomato. The food(like any O-Bento franchise) is simply fantastic. It’s super delicious and enormously big. When I eat in, I ask for a container to take the rest home. I mostly order the Gyu-Tan Don(Ox tongue on rice) making sure to say YES to fresh chilli! It’s possibly the best thing I have ever tasted and I eat it religiously. It is the more pricey of the meals at $ 12.30, but very worth it. When I’m feeling cheap and cheerful I’ll pick up a nice katsudon($ 8.50) chicken or pork on delicious omelette and rice, served with bulldog sauce. I first though they might water down the sauce, based on the consistency but it’s very flavourful and you are given a generous amount in a separate container. Their standard sides are great, gyoza pretty nice, maybe a bit undercooked sometimes and awesome miso featuring tiny mushrooms and fried tofu. Price: Great value if you’re tight, considering the free tomato-water jugs and huge size meals. Service: Lovely, fast and polite. Cash only, know what you want before stepping up to the counter. Pros: Open til 9.30pm weeknights, good for dinner after the movies, not in a food court, authentic Japanese bottled drinks available. Cons: Two small for groups, to loud for a date, no desert items HOURS: Mon — Thu: 10.30am — 9.30pm Fri: 10.30am — 10.00pm Sat — Sun: 10.30am — 9.30pm
Alexander Y.
Tu valoración: 4 Melbourne, Australia
Only come here if you don’t mind cramped seats and rude staff with non-existing service(other than delivering the food). This place is ALWAYS crowded at lunch time, so be prepared to be turned away 9 times out of 10. However, if you are lucky enough to get a seat, you’ll appreciate the quick service, delicious food, massive servings and great value for money. My favorite is the tempura udon. The generous portions of tempura including two big prawns, tasty and warm soup make this a perfect winter food when you are cold, hungry and short on time.
Shara S.
Tu valoración: 4 Melbourne, Australia
This is not an overly comprehensive review as I only ran in and out quickly late one night prior to catching the train home. Located in the quirky and upbeat Knox Place lane-way of Melbs Central, I’ve always noticed the people who pile in here to grab sushi on the go, and the one or two tables out front are always packed. The décor and the location all make for an excellent atmosphere if you’re a people watcher and time waster. I’m afraid I only ordered a rice, I wasn’t trusting myself to order anything else to eat on the train! The rice was delish, the service was really friendly and I received loads of smiles which is always so nice and a guaranteed mood pleaser. I got served within about 30 seconds, and I mean in, order, get food, out, in 30 seconds — which makes it the perfect pit stop en route to the subway.
Clarissa Y.
Tu valoración: 3 Cardiff, United Kingdom
NOTES: ~ The shop is very narrow with small tables so do not come here with a large group. There is probably only room for 3 or 4 people maximum. ~ They get their food out FAST. My friend and I came here and he has NEVER had Japanese food before, so I was determined to find a place and order him something tasty to try. We stumbled across this location while wandering around Melbourne Central and decided to try it out. I picked Sapporo Ramen for him, which included pork, seaweed, bamboo shoots, 2 salted eggs, and crab meat with ramen. I ordered Ebi Don for myself(shrimp, egg, and a special sauce over rice) and Gyoza for us both to share. The portions are pretty big and are well worth the prices(which average around maybe 10 dollars). My friend reported that he really liked the Sapporo Ramen, but of course I cannot really tell if he was just being polite since I recommended it. However, my Ebi Don was fine, although I feel like there could have been a bit more sauce. The egg was just too overpowering in flavour as well. It was still delicious at the end of the day, but because I have better Ebi Don, I could not really rate it too high. As for the Gyoza… it was not that good. The meat inside was not a plump nugget as it should be, but a bit scattered and bits fell out when you bite into it. I wouldn’t be opposed to coming here again. The food was alright, but nothing to really look forward to. In retrospect, I should have picked somewhere else for my friend’s first Japanese experience. Ways they can improve: ~ Have a bit more variety in their menu. I understand it is smaller café, but a bit of variety can never hurt. ~ Improve their food quality, particularly the Gyoza. Although I appreciate how quickly the food arrives, I would trade a few more minutes for better quality.
