Those who’ve wandered the neon-lit streets of Tokyo – likely in an over-stimulated stupor – will know there are few experiences quite like spending a day exploring Japan’s cityscapes before seeking reprieve in a warm izakaya. And yet, a new Melbourne eating house has captured the energy of Nihon’s pulsating hum and is bringing the nation’s famed old-meets-ultra-new splendour to the ever-evolving 80 Collins Street dining and luxury retail site.

Yakimono, a name combining ‘yaki’ (grilled) and ‘mono’ (thing) presents an energetic inner-city offering from Chris Lucas (of Society, Chin Chin and Kisumé fame, among others) and acclaimed chef Daniel Wilson from Huxtable.

The buzzy all-day diner neighbours Society, another high profile restaurant by Chris Lucas. “We wanted to create something that was going to be complementary to Society, and that’s what Yakimono is. It’s this really great egalitarian, casual, fun place, where people can roll up for a quick meal – or a long one,” Lucas said.

“It was built around the sort of electric urban energy you would see in any restaurant in Tokyo – lots of lights, lots of music, lots of fun – somewhere to lift the spirits and enjoy yourself.”

The first thing you’ll notice is the bright neon lights, which offer a dazzling display, channelling the colour splashed streets of Tokyo at night.

“It’s a sensory explosion,” Lucas says. “We’ve tried to capture the essence of places like Ginza and Akihabara – the electronics suburb of Tokyo. When you go to Akihabara, you’re surrounded by a sea of different, crazy lighting effects, and it can leave you in a bit of a daze.”

The next thing that will hit you is the sweet, smoky smell of sticky glazed meats cooked over charcoal. Daniel Wilson’s extensive selection of snacks offers a creative interpretation of contemporary Japanese cuisine.

“We’ve taken the essence of Japanese food – the flavours and the style of cooking – and overlaid it with Australian sensibilities. You’re going to see a lot of dishes you would never see in a Japanese restaurant,” Lucas said.

The menu goes beyond the usual chargrilled sticks to include raw plates, handrolls, rice and noodle dishes, and charcoal barbecue.

Highlights include a mochi waffle, made with mochiko, a sweet glutinous rice flour, that adds a chewy, gummy texture. You can order it savoury, topped with salmon roe and jewels of kabosu jelly, or sweet, finished with hazelnut buttercream and macadamia praline.

For something familiar, there’s the bacon and egg handroll, which is a play on the classic brekkie item. The cone-shaped sushi roll is filled with a tamago egg omelette, crispy coal-grilled bacon pieces and a squirt of Japanese tomato sauce.

The kitchen even makes its own chicken salt. Miso-glazed chickens are roasted whole in the kitchen’s Josper wood-fired ovens. Once cooked, the chicken is shredded and dehydrated to create a fine powder. It’s then combined with garlic and onion powder and finely chopped salted kombu to create an Aussie-Japanese chicken seasoning, which is sprinkled throughout the menu.

Desserts include a banana cake spiked with dried shiitake mushroom powder and a yaki-kult and raspberry ice-cream sandwich, made from a yakult-flavoured frozen yoghurt with raspberry gel and monaka wafers.

Drinks are on tap – not just the beers but wines and sake too. “It minimises packaging, and also allows us to put on some really interesting things, that are affordable in price,” Lucas says.

Set across two lively floors, the restaurant seats 220 diners, with 80 seats surrounding the open kitchen.

“The kitchen is the centrepiece. As soon as you walk in you see this amazing open kitchen with all these barbecue pits, flames going up, and lots of smoke and lots of beautiful smells, the real energy is built around the kitchen.”

Yakimono
80 Collins Street, Melbourne
Open for lunch and dinner from 12pm daily
03 8616 7900
yakimono.com.au
@yakimono_au

Related restaurant news: Chris Lucas’s show-stopping restaurant, Society, has made its debut