Aoba — Restaurant in Melbourne

Can't believe it's been 14yrs since I went to this little Japanese gem!! And when I say "little", it's definitely little with enough seating for around 10-12ppl inside and a couple of outdoor tables.

Aoba is a great little Japanese Cafe on Glenferrirle Rd in Malvern run by a husband and wife team. It's been around for 16yrs and the food was still as good as I remember it from my last visit back in 2011. I used to work in the area so it was fairly new when I first discovered it. It's great to see they're still around!

The bentos are what I used to go for, but saw the table next to us enjoying the big dinner platter so hubby and I had to try it for ourselves.

Definitely enough for 2 people with such a great variety. And on our visit (Saturday dinner date night) it was just the husband working at the cafe..I was in awe of how quick he got our platter out!

And I looooove black sesame ice cream and green tea ice cream. Despite being a little full, we had to try all the desserts and I'm so glad we did. Best black sesame ice cream, so creamy with a gelato texture, hubby enjoyed the green tea ice cream and we both liked the taiyaki. And what a bonus, both ice creams are home made too!

But what I loved the most, is seeing the joy and passion the husband had for his food and showed genuine gratitude for his customers being there. What a humble chef and owner!

Will definitely come...

I'm a repeat customer at Aoba. I think very highly of this place - good food, reasonable prices, and good service.

Note that sometimes it is just the chef that is running the whole place (serving food, taking payments, cleaning tables - besides cooking the actual food). This is possible because there are only a few tables in Aoba, however while this is a very impressive feat, be reasonable with the service expectations. There is a self service counter where you pick up your own cutlery, water and condiments.

The highlight is definitely the food - delicious and generously portioned (by Japanese standards). I go back often because I will have cravings for certain dishes...

It's always a hit to find a small shop that has awesome potential. It can roughly hold about 14 people only, and still, the food was not a disappointment at all. In fact, it was served quite fast. I was very surprised at how run down the shop looks, or maybe that's how local Japanese shops are back there 🤔. Anyway, we ordered big dinner for two and gulped it all with pleasure. The price was not that insane considering the suburb. The only thing that bothered me was lack of communication from the staff/chef. His English is limited, and he didn't even ask my friend's name or number while booking. I hope the store will work on...