Zen Japanese Restaurant — Restaurant in Melbourne

3s (Melbourne eateries with good solid tucker that I wouldn't mind eating fairly regularly. Food is competent)[63]: Allegro (CBD) Alma (Geelong) A Minor Place (Brunswick) Bar Idda (East Brunswick) Bekendales (Croydon) Bellarine Estate (Bellarine) Bistro Guillaume (Southbank) Bistro Thierry (Toorak) Boire (Collingwood)[RIP] Brunswick Flour Mill (Bunswick) Cafe Terroni (Yarraville) Carlton Wine Room (Carlton) Carsons (Yarraville) Chapelli's (South Yarra) Cheeky Monkey (Richmond) Chez Bob (Armadale) Chez Olivier (South Yarra) Chris's Beacon Point Restaurant (Apollo Bay) Cicciolina (St Kilda) Collins Kitchen (CBD) Cornershop (Yarraville) Di Palma's (East Kew) D.O.C. Mozzarella Bar (Carlton) Donnini's (Carlton) Dragon Boat (CBD) Emerge (Geelong) Empire Cafe Gallery (Brunswick) En Izakaya (Balaclava) Enoteca Vino Bar (Carlton North) Feast Of Merit (Richmond) Fiorelli (Hawthorn East) France-Soir (South Yarra) Grossi Florentino: The Restaurant (CBD) Ides (Collingwood) Izakaya Chuji (CBD) Kinya (Docklands) Kofi Beans Organic Cafe (Croydon) L'atelier de Monsieur Truffe (East Brunswick) Laurent Boulangerie Patisserie (Toorak) Lau's Family Kitchen (St Kilda)[RIP] Lindt Chocolat Cafe (CBD) Little Creatures Dining Hall (Fitzroy)[RIP] Miss Marples (Sassafras) Mr. Wolf (St Kilda) Orange (Windsor)[RIP] Pumphouse Hotel (Fitzroy) Punch Lane (CBD) Reunion Cafe Dining (Surrey Hills) Sapa Hills (Footscray) Secret Kitchen (Doncaster) Shujinko (CBD) Thanh Phong (Richmond) The Carlisle Wine Bar (Balaclava) The Green Refectory (Brunswick) The Hardware Societe (CBD) The Kent Hotel (Carlton North) The Perch At Lavers Hill (Lavers Hill) Tim Ho Wan (CBD) Truffles Patisserie (Balaclava) Vines Restaurant at Helen's Hill (Coldstream) Wing Loong (CBD)[RIP] Zelena Cafe Bar & Restaurant (Croydon) Zen (Hawthorn)

4s (Melbourne eateries with great food. Food is a strength[32]): APTE Cafe (Alphington)[RIP] Attica (Ripponlea) Bamboo House (CBD) Biagio's (Niddrie) Brae (Birregurra) Chin Chin's at Koto Moon (Carlton North) Choi's (Hawthorn) Cumulus Inc. (CBD) El Mirage (Brunswick) Estivo (Kew)[RIP] Ezard (CBD)[RIP] Flower Drum (CBD) I Carusi (East Brunswick) Igni (Geelong)[RIP] Jack Rabbit (Bellarine) Junior Tan Hawker Kitchen (Bayswater) Ladro (Prahran)[RIP] Le Petit Bistro (Kooyong) Locale at De Bortoli (Dixons Creek) Mule (Brunswick)[RIP] Papa Goose (CBD)[RIP] Paris Go Bistro (Carlton) Pioneer Kitchen @ The Grovedale (Grovedale) +39 Pizzeria (CBD) Ribs & Burgers (Hawthorn) Riche (Richmond) SUD Food And Wine (CBD) Tao's (Bulleen)[RIP] The European (CBD) The Grand Dining Room (Richmond)[RIP] Vue de Monde (CBD) Wall Two 80 (Balaclava)

5's (The Best Melbourne Eateries. Food is very much a strength)[5]: La Fantaisie (Richmond)[RIP] LeTAO (CBD) L'uccellino (Yarraville) Rockpool (Southbank) Tulip (Geelong)

Eatery of the Year 2011: Tao's (Bulleen) [RIP] Eatery of the Year 2016: Ladro (Prahran) [RIP] Eatery of the Year 2017: The European (CBD) Eatery of the Year 2022: Paris Go Bistro (Carlton) Eatery of the Year 2023:...

1st time visit to this restaurant due to my birthday is coming and I was having a high expectations of the food because of the 4.3 rating. I was drive here 25min to having a good food. But this is not what I expected. The seafood yaki udon is too salty and too much sauce. This is not the Japanese seafood yaki udon that I have been eat. And I keep hand up many times no one attending us because we a seating in room. After that we go out side and find a waitress to tell her that this food is too salty can’t eat after eating 1/4 portions (still have 4 prawns and 2 mussel). Then she take a seafood yaki udon to kitchen and another lady may be she is manager she tell us that this is the style or sauce that them normally or been use. So she also say next time if we don’t like too salty and tell the staff or mention it. But this is our 1st time visit how we know that your seafood yaki udon is so salty. And she say she will change the seafood yaki udon to us and make not that salty this time. After 10 min she back again and say can’t cook this seafood yaki udon without not too salty (i was wondering why the chef can’t just put half the amount of the sauce for a non-salty yaki udon?)and ask us change to other food and she point on chicken teriyaki Teppanyaki as a main. So normally if we change the food the price was different have to change the order to the price change. The chicken Teppanyaki is $22 but the seafood yaki udon is $28 at the end we pay the bill only she tell that she won’t change the order to deduct the price difference as she say we eat the seafood udon in half. I feel I have been cheated. But we no eating that much we only eat 1/4 portion. And then as the photo at above the chicken portion is ridiculous only 7pcs of chicken as a main?

Hope the owner of this restaurant will face up to this problem.

After she reply: If you are the manger who serving us this evening and you reply this message then I don’t think you will have any improvement due to your service and your explanation the dish is not complementary and we have been pay more than what we eat. Is not about the $6 problem is how you give us a...

Operated in a heritage building, it’s cozy and has a great atmosphere. Private dining rooms available upstairs for small to large groups.

Started off with a plate of fresh oysters. To my surprise I didn’t even have to use lemon juice. So fresh, creamy and great bite texture.

Moved on to the sashimi platter; salmon, tuna, kingfish. All prepared and served at its best fresh state. No fishiness at all, the salmon was preserved spot on. All the fishes had full tension and textures of great fresh raw fish.

Followed by agedashi tofu. Greatly fried and soft inside! Liked that the sauce was perfect and not overly done. The balance of flavours was great.

Chicken skewers were grilled perfectly with just the right amount of chargrill flavours. The sauce was not overly sweet and perfectly matched.

Prawn tempuras were great in size. The batter was on spot with the right amount of fluf batter, creating that extra soft texture at each bite. Sauce is in house made and flavours were great that it wasn’t over done.

Nirigi platters were served with a chargrilled version and a normal one. Both amazing flavours and textures.

Wrapped up the night with tempura nabe udon. Great flavours from the broth and the mixture of ingredients were perfect to my taste buds.

Overall, would definitely recommend this restaurant to anyone. Great customer service and the flavours are amazing for a hidden gem. The business has been operating for 17 years and the pricing is so affordable (compared to all the other restaurants raising prices due to...