Sakura Japanese Cuisine — Restaurant in Christchurch

Sakura is one of my favourite lunch spots. Despite being a bit out of the way, it is well worth it.

Please take the time to get past some iffy first impressions before cementing your opinion on this place. Yes, it can be a rough process to find a car park during the day. Yes, it is a small restaurant in a pretty plain looking arcade mall. Yes, the menus leave a bit to be desired in their presentation with their sticky plastic sleeves. However, the service you get is great and the food is even better.

The staff are very attentive and pleasant. Your meals and drinks are brought to you quickly after ordering. The food itself is fresh, impeccably prepared, plentiful, and great value.

I would recommend the spicy chicken teriyaki (pictured), the pork belly, and the grouper sashimi if is is available. The Lunch Box du jour (also pictured) is a fantastic deal for someone with a big appetite or who wants to try a variety of delicious bites.

This restaurant really is one of Christchurch's hidden treasures.

Booking ahead is recommended due to the popularity of this restaurant and it's...

I ordered sashimi and sushi set. The sushi was really great as its rice was still warm which is rare is NZ, and according to Jiro, the best sushi chef in JP, the rice of sushi should be warm. The sashimi was great too. So far it is the best sushi i have had in Christchurch. They also have egg sushi omelette. It s not in the set and i ordered it separately, but the rice of this one was not warm enough. But it s still good. The bowl of rice came with the set was slightly tough, i guess more water was needed to cook the rice. An i suggest the staff should have some more training about how to serve the food. The staff put the dishes so far away to me, so i had to move them closer to me.... Though they were friendly. So to conclude, it is a great jap restaurant and i definitely will come again to try...

Update, year 2024. GF friendly restaurant.

So we visited Sakura after not seeing them for a few years because of covid. Their food is still excellent. To get the best value for money we suggest the lunch as the japanese always has a lunch set and menu which let's you try alot if the main menu but at more affordable prices. I chose the chicken teriyaki and tempura set and I was not disappointed. Tempura was still excellent and crispy and chicken was yummy. Miso soup also tasted very authentically jap. We also ordered the spicy salmon maki which was excellent. Salmon very fresh. All in all we will definitely come again.

Year 2019 The place has excellent consistency with food. Have not been disappointed yet with their food. If in doubt try their sushi rolls or their tempura and even their...