Shinwa Izakaya

Our favourite Japanese! Food is always absolutely delicious, quick and lovely service. They even gave my young daughters gifts to entertain them during dinner.

Hidden gem!
I have recently returned from a trip to Japan and can’t get over it. When I went to Shinwa, it brought me all the beautiful elements that I missed! Service, food, drinks, decoration all got my heart.

I had a friend visiting from interstate last weekend, I took her to Shinwa Izakaya for dinner and we had a lovely time (the food is always delicious there).

We left, and later on my friend realised she left her bag at the restaurant. They had tried to call us (I saw a missed call on my phone), however were closed by the time we realised the bag was missing.

My friend's flight home was Sunday afternoon, before Shinwa would open - so I messaged them on facebook. They were so wonderful and accommodating, a staff member met us at the restaurant at 1030am on the Sunday to retrieve the bag. AND they gave US a gift (really should have been the other way around!) of these cute Shinwa pens to say thank you for being regular customers!

What absolute gems! So, everyone please go to Shinwa because they have awesome food, and AWESOME-ER humans running it: D

I’m j gonna do it short.came here with an empty stomach thinking i’d eat something decent / filling. Most of the time, when i’m hungry, I’m less picky. But when I came to Shinwa, not only my wallet is unhappy but my taste buds & stomach is unhappy. I ordered sashimi don and it took them 45 mins, it was disappointing because they wrote it as if they’ll give us SUSHI RICE, instead they gave me regular white rice without any vinegar / sugar. Just plain white rice. The menu stated that they have 2 different sushi rolls, i ordered the “special” one which is salmon & prawn roll, it was around $20 and i expected something decent. Instead, it was HELLA THIN and very BAD! I repeat, BAD! I don’t get why they charged us THAT MUCH for a very LOW quality food? The point is. DO NOT COME HERE OR YOU WILL REGRET!

Unexpectedly, it was a very perfect experience. The drinks here are also very good, with a very unique taste. The overall decoration style is also very comfortable. The seats are very special and a fresh experience. It is worth a try!

Amazing quality. Complimentary edamame were salty and addictive. The seared salmon sushi was amazing. Karagge was cut interestingly - more diced pieces but great texture. My highlight has to be the fried eggplant dish. It has a phenomenal spectrum of flavours and I was astounded that it could come out of an eggplant. The okanomiyaki was a bit odd as they put the egg on top rather than scrambled it inside the meal but the flavours were still good.

Coming back when I want to treat myself for $50pp

I absolutely loved eating at this place! It was a perfect Tuesday night meal and the eggplant was amazing!

We waited for 45 mins for food even it was not busy. And we found a hair in the food.when we asked they offered us to change the food we didn’t accept it bcs of the long preparation time. Then they offered us soft drink for free. We didn’t accept it as well. But they charged us for this meal.: (and sitting concept is so uncomfortable

Enjoyable meal.
Did not book, place was busy for a Tuesday and was seated at the back end.
They instantly turned the heater on which was considerate.

You get given a menu with descriptions of each dish, no pictures and drinks list. You place your order by marking a printed list of items on a separate sheet of paper.

Complimentary salted boiled edamame.
Ordered:
- King Crab Claw - the claw itself is exactly that - just a claw which was packed full with shredded crab. The wasabi mayo was subtle - not a fan of wasabi but it was a good accompaniment. Just be careful when you bite into it- it is just a claw shell end, right in the middle. Enjoyed it very much.
- Tori Karaage - the chicken pieces were very well marinated - juicy, succulent but not as crispy or crunchy but allow the grapefruit dressing to soak in, it is divine- better than just dipping in kewpie mayo.
- Spider Roll - crunchy middle, tasty but a little too much sweet teriyaki dressing - unable to taste any spiced mayo- could not really taste the crab but the middle was crunchy. A little overpriced for the serving size -but as a sushi roll, tasty enough.
- Unagi Don - pretty dish, with lots of toppings and for $1 more than the Spider Roll, this dish is filling and more substantial. It had a little too much unagi sauce and was looking for rice and pickles to balance the sweetness.
- Black Asahi Beer - rice based beer, a little bitter but went very well with the food we had.

Service was good, friendly and food dishes were well paced. The food portions were enough for two. You sit on the floor with your legs in a pit.

In love with this place. Pre booked for Saturday and they were very gracious in accomodating our reservation. Coolest vibe and set up with the best sushi I’ve ever tasted! Incredible flavours, service and decor. We’ll be back again

This place has sadly dropped in quality and service since we last visited. Apparently there are new owners and I’m not surprised. We went last night and found the food and service to be poor.

We ordered a few dishes, all of them small and bland. We had to send the Okonomiyaki back because it wasn’t at all what an Okonomiyaki should be. It was not a pancake, just a mess of onions and cabbage with a weird eggy/noodle hat on top. There was no four binding it, no presentation, no sauce on top and it tasted like nothing. When I complained the staff assured me that this is what an Okonomiyaki is.

The food in general was bland and overpriced. The service was non-existent, you need to mark down what you want on a sheet and take it to the counter to give to the waiter. When we needed a waiter I had to walk back to the front of the restaurant and get their attention.

It’s sad because it used to be a high-quality restaurant. Hopefully it’ll improve.

We left. Can't comment on the food. We booked in advance - arrived for our booking and were shown to an awful space out the back which was dark, cold and very lonely. We were asked to write on a paper menu our choices with a pen. So dimly lit we could hardly see. We had booked this for a birthday celebration. Online booking did not state there were 2 different areas. Pictures show the front area. Staff seemed disinterested.
Told we had to get there early, even though we had a reservation for that time, whiteboard even had my name on it with T2 next to it. Someone else was sitting at that table half way through a meal. We asked when a table would be free in the front section, were told "can't really say" So we left and went to another restaurant across Sydney road. 1st visit, won't go back. Looks like we may have made the right choice, we had a great meal elsewhere.

$50 for 2 rolls that tasted like they were made yesterday. Really over priced for the quality.
Spider roll and prawn roll were were not fresh at all.

I will say it is the worst Japanese food I ever had in my life. The curry of curry don taste the same as the one bought from Asian supermarket. The most shocking thing is it used sliced beef? It’s not Chinese hotpot ok? And why there is salad mix in the don? I will say dondon is much much better than this and so much cheaper. The okonomiyaki is even worst. Where is the pancake? It’s full of cabbage and pancake is just a really thin layer. The food is not even close to authentic. It’s so over priced as well. We spend $60 for two people and I am not even close to 50% full. Plz avoid this restaurant!

We’ve been there on my birthday with family.
Rice was like mochi (tice cake - too sticky)
Taste was under standard
Price was too high compared with quality

This is not Japanese food.

Nice Japanese restaurant, great food and service. On street parking near by, can be hard to find a sport during peak hour. Car park a few minutes walk near by. Worth a visit.

This is a beautifully sweet restaurant.the food is delicious and flavourful.the staff warm and welcoming, on a busy night they will always try to find a spot for you.my favourites are the pork gyoza pan fried, agedashi tofu, and special ramen.

Ducked in to this restaurant late on a Thursday starving hungry after a big day of shopping and singing sea shanties (don’t ask — so Melbourne!). Excellent service and friendly too. Food was very good — the agedashi tofu was sublime. Very reasonably priced and all in all a delightful experience.

Dined here last night, the food was good but the service really ruined the experience. Food came out in the complete wrong order, mains before entrees etc.edamame last? ! Our tiny table was overloaded with dishes which made it a very uncomfortable dining experience. Wasn’t able to order a second drink. Would happily order takeaway here but I don’t think I’ll be visiting the restaurant in a hurry

Went here for dinner. Food was really good sushi was amazing. Only complaint is when it's packed you might have to remind them about your meal as they forgot one of our orders and took a lil bit longer than usual.
Best avoid rush hour as food came out really quick! Definitely worth a visit.