Yakikami

Came to Yakikami as recommended by friends and was so blown away by our experience here! Every dish was flavourful, fresh and generously portioned. We mainly came here for the yakitori dishes but found ourselves enjoying the other dishes as well. The vegetable tempura and kaarage were so delicious, and the chicken skin rice was moreish. The mocktail we had was amazing too! They have booths for a more romantic/private setting, so it's perfect for intimate catchups and date nights. Will absolutely be back here again!

While the food itself was commendable, the overall experience fell short of expectations, particularly given the price point. The friendly yet untrained service staff detracted from what should have been a special occasion.

Seating arrangements were uncomfortably tight, and the pace of the meal felt hurried. Dishes arrived before the previous ones were finished, interrupting the flow of the dining experience. The premature inquiries about dessert preferences disrupted the enjoyment of the my main meal as she placed down the dessert menu asking us to pick while we were in the middle of eating our main.

One notable disappointment was the absence of any acknowledgment of our anniversary. Despite mentioning the occasion, there was no effort made to mark the event, not even a simple decoration on the dessert. Such oversights detracted significantly from the overall ambiance and personalized touch.

Overall it’s not suitable for special occasions and the service does not justify the price point.

Very good place, definitely high end. The waitresses were very friendly. Will he recommend for a date.

They have special dishes every now and then, I recommend the chicken ovary if you get the chance to try it! (Basically giant egg yolks)

Wasn't the best food they had when we came there, little bit disappointed food can be better.

GO CIM!
3rd being here and not disappointed!
Cim and the team always taking care of you!

Cim has been so accomodating and keeping it cool when it was a busy night. Really respect his way of work and attitude!

One of the best Japanese fine dinning restaurant our family have experienced. Customer service was outstanding, food was tasty and decor is beautiful. Our family is definitely coming back here again. Outstanding job team!

Stopped in here on a whim and was very impressed. Floor staff were amazing, they never missed a beat, always smiling and happy to help.
Cocktails were well balanced and delicious.
The staff recommended a few dishes which were perfect and I couldn't fault any of our other choices.
Definitely worth a visit

I had a wonderful experience eating all different kind of dishes, from chicken comb skewers to wasabi mayo king prawns, everything was delicious! Every dish felt fresh and perfectly served, for example the Tuna Chu-toro was fatty but not overwhelming.

Also the dark moody ambience felt like I was eating in a secret underground restaurant in Japan! All the staff was kind, polite, and helpful during our time there, definitely would come back just to see them again!

Overall a 10/10 experience for me!

Decor was nice, food was good.
Service was embarrassing. I booked a table of 10 for my birthday. Everyone arrived early and on time. We were made to wait 45 minutes to finally get a table even though I booked 2 weeks prior.
It was horrible, we booked another restaurant till they finally told us to come through.

They were stressed out. Offered us two bottles of champagne.
I wouldn’t really come here again.

If you want a classy yakitori experience in Melbourne here is the place to go.

The ambience, service and food was great. It is a fancier restaurant and their price is on the higher side.

The highlights were:
- knee softbone Chicken skewer
- Chicken oyster
- Tuna temaki (hand roll)

Skewers - Their skewers aren’t cheap but generous portion in my opinion. I do wish the skewers were generally less salty or less saucy so can taste the meaty flavour more.
It would also be good if they space out when the skewers come out especially when we order a lot, so we aren’t in a rush and they don’t get cold! I would advise you to order as you eat if you want to have them at their best taste.

A standard place, a bit pricey. The biggest issue was all the yakitori ordered came pretty in a quick succession, it was not space out enough. If I just received 6 skewers for 2 ppl it might worth considering not cooking the rest of the order.

The cuisine is outstanding, prepared with premium quality components and presented with charming and gracious service.

Love the place, Charcoal grill was legit and it’s quiet for chitchat around. Will recommend to friends.

Great yakitori and amazing sashimi. Thank you to Cim and the wonderful service team for the fantastic time.

High quality sashimi, flavoursome sushi rolls and delicious grilled skewers! Great date night spot.

Wow, the food is amazing! The meat is so tender and melts in your mouth. The restaurant gets really busy at dinner, so make sure to book in advance.

Booked a table and yet upon arriving at set time, there was a line out the door. Waited ten minutes to be asked rather impatiently if we had a booking. Had ala carte menu and the dishes looked really delicious on paper, but in reality, everything was quite bland and absolutely not worth the premium price tag. Sashimi was NOT fresh (smelled like the fridge?) and cut way too thick so it was chewy. We were pushed to order the most expensive wagyu steaks but avoided it as we weren’t sure if we wanted to drop $200+ for it, and thank heavens we didn’t. Yakitori was okay but again, lacked flavour and seasoning. Chicken skin rice was a let down, I did not expect it to be a risotto-style rice dish with fried chicken skin sprinkled on top. Overall this was an expensive restaurant with nice/fancy decor, but the food really does not live up to it. I suggest trimming down the menu heavily to focus on the best dishes rather than attempting to do 50 dishes sub-par.

The food was good, but unfortunately, it started and ended there. Doing the tally in my head having to hear the server recommend the most expensive items over and over again close to 20 times while barely asking for personal preferences or advising anything else left a sour taste. If I wanted the $200+ sandwich, I would order it! What if we were vegetarian?

Maybe our $400+ bill for a short 75 minute or so sitting didn't meet the quota, if that's the case I fear for anyone else with lighter pockets in these current times. Not to mention getting home and seeing on the receipt getting slapped with the surcharge fee despite today not being a Sunday or a public holiday.

I'm glad other people seem to have enjoyed it, but with how competitive Melbourne is and the choices we have to make, will be curious to see how this place fares once the novelty wears off if changes aren't made.

The service was great, and he explained the menu well. The food tasted amazing and received lots of compliments!