The Roving Gourmets – Ebisu

Situated in the old Union Fish Company building is a harbour-side establishment of affluence and style that could easily be mistaken for a wrong kind of restaurant.  

Ebisu is the perfect picture of a present-day, corporate Japanese restaurant and a magnet where expense accounts can reign supreme. The cuisine at this calm and sophisticated inner-city diner is borrowed from the Japanese tradition of izakaya, where diners choose from either a range of entrée-sizes dishes designed to share, or larger plates of conventional fare.      

Not only does the synergy between western and eastern techniques work extremely well, but the flair and melding of the ingredients is executed with purpose and passion. The menu covers a lot of territory, is visually appealing and includes an intelligent assembly of miso, sushi, sashimi, beef, pork, chicken, beef, fish, prawn, salads and vegetable dishes.

First impressions count! With contemporary surroundings, polished concrete floors, exposed brick work and wooden beams, and chic, but simple, uncluttered décor, Ebisu’s food is left to speak for itself.

We began with sashimi that comes at a price: ($39) for fifteen delicate pieces of moist and freshly sliced yellow fin tuna, salmon and tarakihi served with wasabi and soya sauce. Pure and straight-ahead flavours came with such force and finesse that it proved to be the perfect appetiser and had us re-evaluating benchmarks. Mains kept up the interest; teriyaki chicken ($30) with rice rolls, succulent and meaty that melted in the mouth like giant marshmallows. However the wakanui scotch fillet ($35) served with wasabi ponzu, sesame and wafu sauces was chewy and hastily replaced.    

The dessert menu is less traditional, but no less exciting, offering little more than a selection of ice cream ($12.50), brulee and sorbet ($10.50), spiced ginger and apple doughnut ($10.50), seasonal fruit with sorbet ($10.50) or homemade dark chocolate truffle ($3.50). We broke all the rules and skipped dessert entirely opting for some more sashimi.