Sho Sushi — Restaurant in Sydney

Based on a friend's recommendation, I had dinner at Sho Sushi last night. While I encountered some interesting food pairings, such as monkfish liver and scallop foie gras sushi, I still feel that the price of the food does not match its quality. So, I'm unlikely to return.

We ordered a variety of dishes, including a beef tongue skewer, monkfish liver, two scallop foie gras sushi, two Wagyu sushi, Uni Donburi, a sashimi set, and a bottle of beer, all for a total of $180. Overall, the flavours and portion sizes were unsatisfactory. We even ended up going to Kosuke Ramen afterwards for a bowl of ramen.

*I should clarify that my wife and I are both passionate about food, and we are dedicated to trying different types of cuisine from around the world. So, all my comments are objective reflections of what I experienced, rather than a result of being unable to appreciate certain ingredients.

As I mentioned, some dishes were decent:

Grilled Beef Tongue Skewer: The beef tongue skewer was tasty and tender, though it seemed pre-made and not properly reheated or torched before being served, as it arrived only warm. I'd still rate it 3.5 to 4 stars.

Monkfish Liver: The monkfish liver was prepared in a vinegar-marinated style. Having not tried monkfish liver before, I can't compare different preparation methods, but it still had a strong fishy taste that might not appeal to those who dislike such flavours. While it's a rare ingredient, there may be better ways to prepare it. I'd give it 2 to 3 stars.

Scallop Foie Gras Sushi: This was the highlight of the evening. The foie gras was perfectly cooked, providing a burst of flavour in every bite. It paired harmoniously with the scallop, resulting in a rich and satisfying taste. I'd happily rate it 4.5 stars.

Wagyu Sushi: The Wagyu used had good marbling, and the meat was lightly flamed or pan-fried before being sliced thin. The texture was rather tough, possibly due to a lower grade of Wagyu or the choice of cut. I was hoping for a more tender, creamy Wagyu experience. Interestingly, when I checked the menu from a year ago, this sushi used M9+ grade Wagyu short rib with caviar, priced at $11.80 each. A year later, it’s been renamed "Wagyu Nigiri." The beef grade seems to have been downgraded, the caviar is gone, and the price has increased to $12 each (or perhaps even more, couldn't remember the price I paid). I’d give this sushi 2 stars.

Uni Donburi: This was recommended by a friend. It was a small serving, known as "Mini Donburi." The dish is hard to get wrong — fresh sea urchin and salmon roe on vinegared rice. The sea urchin was reasonably fresh, but slightly broken and watery. The restaurant used red vinegar rice, which I didn't think complemented the sea urchin well, with some odd flavours in this dish. At one point, I wondered if the unpleasant smell was due to the sea urchin not being completely fresh. I'd give it 3 stars.

Sashimi Set: The sashimi, which included tuna, kingfish, and salmon, was standard — I'd rate it 3.5 stars.

I'm not a professional food critic, just someone who loves good food, so I don't intend to judge harshly here; I just want to share my honest experience. I don't mind spending more on a meal; what matters more to me is the quality and value of the food. For a restaurant with a 4.4-star Google rating and an average price of $90 per person, I expected more thought to be put into ingredient pairings or cooking techniques by the chef. Even if it was just about using higher-quality ingredients, I hoped for something that would leave a lasting impression.

However, the reality is that I might return for the foie gras sushi, but the other dishes were neither impressively delicious nor unique. I even feel that for those who enjoy cooking at home, buying high-quality raw fish, sea urchin, and higher-grade Wagyu could easily replicate all these dishes. Even if it wasn’t a perfect reproduction, achieving a 90% likeness would be quite easy. So, what is the point of dining at the...

Well..I wish that I can rate zero for tonight dinner in Sho Sushi- Lane Cove.

I had a very disappointed birthday dinner tonight, I can’t find a right word to express my feeling now after tonight dinner. I spent more than 40 mins drive to here for my birthday dinner with my fd, read all the review and thought this must be a good restaurant. However…

1- We have waited 40 mins for our order, I was patient until I saw couple groups (all came later than us) already had all the food on table and the restaurant was half full only on Wed after 1930PM…then we found out they didn’t put our order in system ( they told us was the system issue..). The staff did apologize and offered free food/drink in menu, so we ordered the free assorted tempura as I don’t like to drink any soft drink and I can’t drink alcohol.

2-after they re-ordered the food, and most of the food arrived less than 5mins, I was happy for this but also surprised how fast for the food supposed to be.

3- we received our tempura, it was tasteless, can’t even find a word to describe the taste. I understand was a freebie, so I don’t mind until I ate a lot of RAW FLOUR inside the sweet potato tempura. I gave up (and I’m so regret now I didn’t take the photo of RAW flour tempura before gave to the staff, otherwise reader thought I just made up this story but I’m not) .. Anyway the same staff came for apologize AGAIN and explained this was actually a free food for my bday so she gave this to us as freebie and this is not the tempura we asked ? What?? I really thought you gave this for us as apologize for the long waiting of foods and the missing order. Anyway, I didn’t expect the restaurant gave RAW Food with Raw Flour for my birthday! Thank you but that’s not very nice ..

She did ask to offer us another assorted tempura or drink or dessert but I’m just over this restaurant, I declined.

When I paid for the bill and I have to ask them for discount becoz of the disappointing meal and they gave me 10% . Well.. I thought this suppose to be something the restaurant will offer first if they provided this kind of services and food.. maybe I’m wrong again ☹️

Anyway if you think I’m asking for further offer in here, I’m sorry but I’m not , I just want to share my terrible experience in here with all other people who looking forward to have the meal here, hope you don’t have experience like me. Good luck!

Ordered food: How’s the taste? No comment! Uni Ikura Don 15 pcs of...

It was recommended by a friend and I tried this Japanese restaurant. I was so disappointed that food and services were not match the price. I waited for almost 1 hour for the food to be coming and after that be advised it's time for my last order, as customer only allowed 1.5hr to finish the meal. Food wise, quality is really normal comparing to the price they set, you definitely can find a lot much better ones with this price level. The skewer I ordered the upside is hot but down side is cold when it came. Quality of the sashimi is similar to the supermarket level, like Harris farm opposite the restaurant.

Anyways, I will never come back again.

This restaurant prefers to spend time writing essay instead of improving their service and procedures, disappointed again and glad to see them close permanently in the near future!!!

Rediculous!!! I didn't curse anyone. I wrote my comments based on my own experience and shared with others. I am not making any false accusations. Please mind your words. Complain about the long time serving is common in a review of a restaurant, but pls have a look what you said, you asked your customer to go to fast food restaurant…

Hope you understand the fundamental things of running an excellent restaurant are food + service attitude, customers pay both of them.

I also hope Google can always pin my review to the top and let...