I admit that I don’t generally choose to dine at Crown unless I have visitors, the Yarra being the closest thing Melbourne gets to a glamourous harbour view. In my mind, all that shiny sleekness lacks personality – the strip just feels like a series of faceless, corporate expense account-style restaurants.
Which just goes to show that sometimes I can be really narrow-minded about my eating. Lunch at the Melbourne branch of the Japanese celeb restaurant Nobu (it’s part owned by Robert de Niro) turned out to be an experience where the worldwide hype was deserved.
The menu was quite extensive so for ease we all decided to try the Bento Box ($42) as it included Nobu’s signature dish, the black cod with miso. What arrived were two large containers holding a myriad of flavours, textures and colours. To wit: a salad topped with a few slices of fresh salmon sashimi and dressed with a Matsuhisa dressing (which tasted like the soup packet mixture you get in instant ramen); a generous pile of baby tiger prawns covered in a light coating of tempura batter and with a tart ponzu sauce; a small slice of the famed black cod with miso – very fresh fish cooked simply; oshitashi (spinach with roasted sesame seeds); a spicy vegetable stir-fry with rice; a colourful assortment of sushi; miso soup; and freshly ground wasabi. The spread was quite incredible and for a while, conversation came to a standstill as everyone devoured their different dishes, the eating punctuated only by the occasional ‘whoa!’ as the sharp wasabi hit the sinuses.
In addition, the service was warm and friendly and Melbourne pulled out a bright sunshiny day for our relaxing riverside meal. So I take it back – Crown can pull off good food in a high-class setting and Nobu is definitely worth a revisit.
For more Japanese fine dining, try Tempura Hajime and Shoya.
The bento boxes look so nice and fresh! I have been there for dinner and enjoyed it – I’ll have to try out the bento boxes. Expensive but hopefully worth it!
Hi Rilsta
Thanks for your comment. What would you recommend on the dinner menu? I’m keen to return to Nobu, maybe for a special occasion.
Jetsetting Joyce
I went to Nobu once for dinner and did not like it that much. Reluctantly, I went there again for lunch over the weekend and ordered the bento box. What a lovely surprise! It was AWESOME! I was especially glad to see the miso cod make an appearance too – it’s my favourite dish from Nobu
.-= Libby´s last blog ..Shell Shucked =-.
Hi Libby
Great to hear that you enjoyed lunch at Nobu. I think given the prices it’s definitely better value to have lunch there, especially as you say you can still get their signature black miso cod.
Jetsetting Joyce
I went to dinner at Nobu 2 years ago for a friend’s birthday. My experience was a bit hot and cold. The cod was definitely my fave. The hits were most things Japanese, eg sushi, sashami and tempura. They were excellent.
The misses were those that diverted from Japanese. Eg. abalone and mushrooms. Or vegies and garlic. They reminded me of Chinese stir fry.
I guess we shouldn’t have left the choices entirely up to the hostess.
So I’d strongly advise that you pick your own menu items. It’s a big menu but will be well worth it. After all, this is an expensive night out so make sure you enjoy every morsel.
Hi TruffleMe
Thanks for your tip – will definitely stick to Japanese menu on my future visits to Nobu.
Jetsetting Joyce