ima Project Cafe

I love how bright and modern the interior design is, staffs were very friendly and helpful. Highly recommended to try their Chicken Nanban, very juicy and crunchy deep fried chicken, full of flavour! We also ordered the Japanese Breakfast Teishoku, the fish tasted pretty good but the portions of the whole set (which costed $32) is quite small. Overall I personally think the food here is on the pricy side if you want to leave with full stomach.

If you're interested in the idea of ima Asa You - you won't be disappointed. Food was delicious, service is amazing. It's not cheap but when you order sides they are incredibly generous. The yuzu coffee spritz was just okay but the teas were all amazing. Not a single piece of food is anything but delicious. Will certainly be back!

The novelty has worn off, the food was bland and doesn’t feel special. Everything used to have more flavour but now it was all the same tasting.

Absolutely delicious chicken - and great drinks. Lovely atmosphere. Like a miniature Japan! Highly recommenced to Japenese cuisine enjoyers or fussy eaters like me - something for everyone

Ima Asa Yoru captivates with its exquisite Japanese cuisine and elegant ambiance, offering a seamless blend of traditional flavors and contemporary culinary finesse. From the delicate sashimi platters to the rich and flavorful ramen bowls, each dish is a testament to their commitment to authenticity and quality. The attentive and knowledgeable staff ensure a seamless dining experience, making Ima Asa Yoru a must-visit for anyone seeking an immersive journey through the tantalizing world of Japanese gastronomy.

The atmosphere is great and pretty fascinated. The food was detailed too, but it was hard to be satisfied with one meal.

Gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous setting! And the food was delicious. So nice to have Asian breakfast options around as I can’t stomach western breakfast options. We were a group of 4 and got a selection of options that we all loved.

The staff were also super lovely after we mixed up our booking.

Highly recommend checking out their store 2 doors down too.

Ordered the fish wing set & onigiri set. Personally I think the fish wing was more worth it as it was done quite well. The onigiri was big but on the expensive side. Very busy store even at 1.30pm.

As they have started serving dinners, the day menu has shrunk, so what was recommended by our friends before are no longer on the menu.

A really lousy dining experience here - the waitstaff is pretty unresponsive and doesn't seem to care. They don't even apologize when they mess up orders, and trying to find a server is like a treasure hunt. After you order, it feels like forever until your food arrives, and it's confusing how they decide who gets served first. Even folks who just walked in or came in later than me somehow got their food before I did (even if we ordered the same thing). I've been to this place twice now. I won't lie, the food is not bad, but for the prices they charge, this whole dining process seriously messes with your mood. It's a real downer.

Hidden gem! So beautiful, wonderful food and service.
We had the teishoku and kingfish donburi

IMA was a Japanese cafe serving Japanese-inspired cuisine located in carlton. We went here for lunch and got the beautifully presented Kara-age don and onigiri. The karaage chicken don was fairly average and similar to those at other decent Japanese cafes & restaurants, but I did love the rice balls onigiri; filled with grilled market fish served with ajitama egg and miso you had a variety of textures and flavours which was simply elegantly delicious. Their menu was very limited and so were seatings (very stuffy and packed inside), there was also a long line for a table (on a weekend day) which made dining here not quite worth it.

Good food, friendly staff, average drinks and pretty expensive bills. Got lunch on Sunday with 2 drinks, cost $48 per person. Both iced matcha latte and iced hojicha latte taste too powdery.

Visited from interstate and was looking forward to this cafe. About a 20 min wait ard 12pm. Service was very friendly. Ordered the special chicken namban set ($30), it was ok, not unlike other Japanese restaurant.

Horrible service - cafe is small but we (group of 4) wanted to sit inside, so we waited patiently for a table after speaking to the staff. After 40 mins of waiting (with no one ahead of us) for the 4 seater table it finally freed up but we were told last minute that the owner of the cafe had friends coming over so the table was reserved for the next two hours…Why in the world did the cafe not tell us this upfront?

I was excited to try this Japanese inspired cafe, i’ve walked far to get there. 10 minutes waiting with a couple in front of me, the floor staff seated me in the bar because i’m just by myself (it’s ok for me). I’ve waited for 20 minutes for a menu & water but the staff ignored my presence, she even served a man next to me for 3 times but didn’t bother to check on me. I was thirsty and plan to have proper lunch but i can’t be bother to wait any longer and be ignored. I’m just left after 30 minutes waiting, disappointing. At least, i saved my money from a business who didn’t respect my presence.

If you're this sold out at 12pm, you should just post on socials you're only doing coffee service.

Nice local cafe serving Japanese food and drinks.

Matcha is nice and bowls are good, sets are a bit too large to finish in one sitting.

Relaxed vibes, friendly staff.
Filter coffee is smooth as had the chicken Nanban with an added onsen egg will definitely be back to try the rest of the regular menu!

There was a long queue and we had to wait for about 45 mins before there was a table for us outdoor (unfortunately with sun on us). The staff was nice by offering to shift our table so we are not totally under the sun. We were disappointed when they had run out of the Japanese Breakfast Teishoku, so we had to settle for other items. The Chicken kanban and the grilled fish don was good but felt the Onigiri was a slight letdown for us personally as we were eating mostly the rice. Overall, I would say the food is great and definitely looking back to the try the breakfast set next time.

Love the lovely ima Project Cafe, which is fast becoming my new local! !
Delicious Japanese breakfast options, hojicha lattes and great service from staff.

Cannot wait to return!: ’)

Fantastic place to come for brunch. Small menu with delicious range of Japanese food, including vegetarian and vegan options. We tried a range of dishes including soba noodle salad, chicken don, and onigiri. All were really excellent. They also have good coffee sourced from Proud Mary. I would highly recommend!