Menya Makoto — Restaurant in Newcastle-Maitland

Great new Japanese restaurant in Newcastle CBD. Given the sparse offers in Newcastle it's good to see someone coming up.

The place offers a very wide range of the usual Japanese fare. You've got ramen, donburis, curry and Tonkatsu (That's pork katsu. Most places do chicken katsus, and this is a rarity unfortunately in Newcastle), sushi, sashimi and am assortment of Japanese soft drinks. They even have Cha dsuke (tea poured in rice).

Came for the Tonkotsu Ramen and unfortunately, it didn't quite hit the mark. The noodles were too overdone for me, leaving it soft and without bite. Broth had good flavour you'd expect of a Tonkotsu broth but it was way too thick in consistency. However they serve it with an amazing soft pork rib and great chasu. Eggs were properly done soft boiled onsen eggs. And everything else about the ramen was great. If the noodles and broth were better done (which is an easy fix) it'll be an amazing ramen.

The Cha dsuke was good and balanced but for a better aesthetic and experience, it'll be better if they served the tea separate for the customer to pour it into the rice by themselves.

The Karaage was simply amazing. Perfectly crisp, tender, juicy and marinated. Best Karaage I've had.

Agedashi tofu did not disappoint. Amazing broth, full of flavour and the tofu had a perfectly crisp and light texture that was not soggy like other Agedashi tofus. Brilliantly done.

Overall, this is a great Japanese restaurant with great potential. I do hope they'd take some of this feedback into consideration cause I'd love to come back and have a great ramen here and to try...

No customer service.

I went in and noticed some tables were dirty. The waitress didn’t clean them but asked me to sit at the high table. Then she told me to use the QR code.

Later, a staff member brought me the ramen. He didn’t place it close to me, which made it inconvenient to eat. He reminded me that the bowl was hot, so I used the tissue box to help move it. The bowl tipped to the side and I lost the whole bowl of ramen, and I also burnt my fingers. The staff focused more on cleaning than on whether I was okay or if they would replace the noodles. I went to the bathroom to cool down my fingers.

After I cooled down my fingers, as I walked past the kitchen, the chef offered me ice—finally, someone asked if I was okay. But I didn’t want to double-burn my fingers with ice, and I was already using running water to cool them down. Then the waitress asked if I wanted to order something and if I was okay. Instead of asking me to order, maybe they could have considered offering me another bowl or something else to eat.

In the end, I walked out. I didn’t know how good or bad the food was, but the price was not cheap and the customer service was "unbelievable".

The owner reviewed the comment and replied on the same date.

But the waiting staff asked me if I like to order * didn't indicate it I did not have to pay* due to this incident was costing...therefore If I can rate zero star I Would have...

Given the social media hype and the restaurant being packed when I arrived, I had high expectations of my experience. Sadly it wasn’t to be. I ordered takeaway, which wasn’t cheap. $34.00 for a small serve of karaage chicken and a ramen. I ordered well in advance and arrived about 10 minutes before the time I had arranged.

The food was given to me in a plastic bag at the agreed time and I left. When I had driven 5 minutes away I realised they had not given me any chopsticks nor spoons with which to eat my food !!! So I drove back and asked and the lady working the front area pointed where I could pick them up myself - this information may have been more helpful when I came the first time ! Especially since I am a first time visitor.

I drove 5 minutes away again, and started eating the food. It was in a word, inedible. Only 10 minutes after supposedly being freshly cooked, the chicken was soggy and listless. But edible… just

The ramen on the other hand. I would expect after 10 minutes for things to be a little cooler. Lukewarm at a stretch . But everything was stone cold. Not from the fridge cold.

Left out at room temperature cold.

I spat it out. And binned it.

Very disappointing and a disgrace to the food scene...