Kenzan Japanese Restaurant

Kenzan has been on my radar for a while — I’d heard a lot of good things from CBD locals, so I finally went in to see what it was about. For me, the sushi and sashimi were the highlights. Super fresh, clean flavours, and definitely the standout of the night. The cold appetisers/entrees leaned a bit too sweet for my taste, but the chawanmushi (custard egg) and miso soup were both excellent. From the mains, I tried the chicken teriyaki, steak, and eel on rice — all cooked well, enjoyable, but nothing particularly memorable. At around $40 per main, the pricing felt a little on the high side. Overall, it’s a place that’s hard to fault. Everything was prepared properly, service was smooth, and the sashimi alone makes it worth a visit. A solid experience across the board.

We always come here for the sukiyaki — it’s authentic, consistent, and never disappoints. Service is great too. Perfect spot in winter, especially for small groups of up to four. Other dishes are fine, but the sukiyaki is definitely the star.

Went here and greeted by friendly, smiley staffs. The place is clean and well spaced seatings. There’s 2 private rooms with tatami mats for private groups. Service is quick, food and drinks menu easy to understand. We had the sukiyaki and was cooked on our table by a very helpful staff. It was perfect for winters cold weather and it was really yummy. The beef slices and vegetables were well presented and generous servings and reasonably priced. This is place is easy to get to by tram from Flinders or a 10 min walk from Bourke’s on 86 or 96 from Russell st. Wheelchair and pram friendly with ramp outside.

I am glad I found this hidden gem in the cbd! It’s such an authentic Japanese diner. The interior and ambiance was so Japanese, all the waitresses were wearing kimonos. They got a sushi bar, common dining area and private tatami rooms. Menu was very authentic Japanese too! Their desserts were honestly so delicious so are their food and sakes. Have to say their service was amazing just like how the Japanese would do. I loved it and definitely will be back!

This restaurant is something special, the food was delicious, the atmosphere couldn’t be better and everyone was super friendly and extremely professional. Highly recommended.

Great service and very good atmosphere, food was nothing extraordinary just what you would expect from quite typical Japanese crusine dishes. The dessert was really well done matcha brûlées was top tier, the yuzu mousse was nice too if you prefer very sweet dessert the teriyaki beef felt too dry and the sauce kind of ruins the good steak for me, if you prefer Western style perhaps its not the one.

My partner and I just had our 5 year anniversary here! Incredible experience as always, my family has been coming here for decades, food is always incredible and the host and waitresses are lovely and attentive! The host offered us a room which was unexpected but very thoughtful! The yuzu mousse was amazing! Overall amazing experience, would recommend this restaurant to anyone and everyone <3

Almost a perfect experience as the freshness of the oysters and fish were phenomenal after having our last Japanese in Melbourne at Minamishima. We booked the private room and loved the privacy especially when the main dining room was packed. However, they were not soundproof and it was as if we were seated in the main area, minus the view of the customers. The service was polite but it could have been a little quicker and more attentive as we could not flag down a waiter so there was one point where I had to walk out to order more Sake. Even though we understand that it was busy, we did pay extra for the room so a more frequent check up would have been good. The oysters were probably the best we have had for a long time as was the sashimi. One slight criticism would have been the presentation of the mixed Sushi and Sashimi platter as we would have expected more precision for a place of this calibre and also the tempura could have been better presented. The 2nd criticism is the upgrade of the Tempura from entree to a main size which was really one extra prawn and one extra piece of fish for $18 extra ($48). There was no extra vegetables and the prawn size was small compared to the prawn on the sushi platter. The batter was excellent though. The Teriyaki beef would have been good if it was cooked medium rare rather than medium and slightly charred. The green tea creme brûlée was a little dense too so we were glad we only ordered one to share. Overall a pleasant experience.

This is my favourite Japanese restaurant in Melbourne. Very traditional place, just like Yokyo. Staff are great. Try the Toro "tuna belly" sashimi or sushi, it's incredible. Here the sushi has only small amount of rice, proper Japan style. The sushi and sashimi platter is amazing, the Prawn Dumplings, Sukiyaki, Shabu Shabu, everything here is just like real Japan! Love it!

Extremely friendly staff and very quick service. Quite expensive mains considering portion size but worth it for the quality of food. Amazing experience for anyone visiting Melbourne

Kenzan is a weird restaurant - it's tucked away in a weird office building, the vibe feels generally like a hotel restaurant, but if you can look past all that, the food seems quite authentic, and tastes delicious. I love the free little bite they give at the beginning of the meal. Once it was soba noodles in dashi, another time it was a lovely seaweed salad. The grilled eel entree is tasty - four pieces of beautifully glazed eel. We've had the medium sushi sashimi platter - a perfect amount for two, but I wouldn't recommend getting this - as you end up getting the same types of fish in both sushi and sashimi form. I'd recommend getting the deluxe sushi plate instead which comes as 12 different pieces of fish. Another visit, we tried the sushi rolls, which are cheap (most under $15), as compared to other places of nicer quality sushi. The eel roll was undoubtedly the best, but as you can see above, I 'eely' like unagi. Most of the locals appear to be getting the hot plates here, so we'll have to try that another time. Recommend making a booking, as the place gets quite busy on weekend nights!

This place is fancy as...but also extremely noisy. We had a work farewell lunch here and had the "private room" where we all sat on the floor (well on chairs with backs) and had closing doors (that did nothing to keep out the sound). The service is quick, waitresses are lovely and attentive but the food is average. We had the sushi and sashimi platters to start us off with. It contained some prawn sushi, some kingfish sushi, some salmon sushi, some tuna. The standard stuff and nothing exquisite. To me it just tasted like sushi. For my main, I ordered the teriyaki salmon ($38 wow) which comes with a bowl of rice. It was overly sweet. Just sweet salmon with a little bit of crispy salmon skin. Quite bland and could have been better. The winner was the delicious black sesame ice cream. I don't need to go back. I feel I can get the same kind of food at a cheaper place. Definitely suggest it for an expensive business lunch due to service and decor but try to avoid work lunch times - so noisy!

Oh man, dat chutoro sushi. Melt in yo mouth. We were told from someone that has lived in Japan for most of her life that this was the best Japanese restaurant in Melbourne. I haven't tried that many classic Japanese restaurants here to vouch for that but it's probably true! A very authentic Japanese experience. We couldn't get seats at the sushi bar as walk-ins to try the Omakase (chef recommendation) so opted for a sushi sashimi combo with chutoro sushi and wagyu sushi in addition to the asparagus tempura. Could not fault anything. In particular, we were most impressed with the toro nigiri. Holy shiz. It melted. There's something about how they do the rice, we were more impressed with the tuna in nigiri form than as sashimi so that speaks volumes for how they do their sushi. Yummo. Lots of people had sukiyaki around us (or possibly shabu shabu) and it smelled like awesome. Next time Melbourne, next time. Excellent service too.

PLEASE READ!!! I don't usually write review. But this time I shall break ice and say something. I vomited and having diarrhea 1 hour after eating the oysters from the sashimi and sushi combination (large size). I am still waiting for their respond on this incident. It doesn't matter how food is nicely presented and well serviced . But when it comes to food safety, I will take priority. Good luck on those who eat there from then and now.

Finally found a decent authentic Japanese restaurant in the CBD area! None of that spicy mayo tuna roll or cheesey dragon roll. Located in the basement amongst some fast food joints but the restaurant itself is nicely decorated and comfortable. Service was great, as well as the food. Sashimi was fresh and tempura lightly and freshly fried to order. Come for lunch and order the Japanese lunch sets.

Each time my friends and I drop by Kenzan we would get the large sushi and sashimi platter. On one visit, the table next to us was having sukiyaki which smelt really good too. The prices are a little on the high side but everything here is really fresh, and the service is amazing. Definitely bring your guests here if you want them to experience authentic Japanese food in Melbourne. Now, if uni I could eat here tuna-roll.

Probably best sushi I have had! Fantastic restaurant- food was incredible. Although it's not sushi, I would also recommend the Nabe Ryori- beef and vegetables, so flavorful.

After reading yelp review, I decided to go. I went for lunch and ordered sushi/sashimi combination large for two people. It was ok, fish was fresh, biggest shrimps I have ever seen on sushi but it lacks diversity. The only fish in that huge plate was tuna, salmon, yellowtail and some whitefish (I think it was kingfish), if I pay $95 for it, I would expect more variety. Maybe some shellfish, eel, oyster and more whitefish. Staffs were nice but not memorable.

Okay, I can't believe no one has written a review about this place yet. My husband and I have been coming here for over 15 years and it is by far one of the best Japanese restaurants around. The interior is warm and inviting and they have those little rooms where you can seat quite a few people if you go with a group. We even had one of those rooms when my mom and dad visited and there were six of us. Very nice. The food is just fantastic. There is no smell of fish, everything is so fresh that the sashimi just melts in your mouth. I love the gyozas here as they are done to perfection and not oily in the least. They are packed with flavour. The tempura is done so well also, crispy and the veggies cooked, but not oily. No matter what you order here it is fresh and done well. The price is very complimentary to the quality of the food. And the service is just right. One of the main owners remembers us every time we come in and asks us how things are going that we've spoken to him about on previous visits. Very nice people. You won't be disappointed here.

Tucked away in Collins Place, I sometimes have to remind myself that Kenzan is where it is. However once I get there, I am never disappointed. If you can snag one of the private rooms, do so; it's a really nice experience - service is still thoughtful and well timed, and you can easily enjoy a proper chat with your dining companions. Highlights: - Shiitake Ebitsumeage, which is Shitake mushrooms stuffed with prawn, and deep fried. Delicious and not at all heavy, even for a deep-fried dish. They were really, really tasty. - The sushi and sashimi platter was so beautifully presented, and amazing quality. A great option for Japanese in Melbourne's CBD; will be returning.

Chose Kenzan because I wanted a straight-up traditional sushi experience. There are plenty of Japanese restaurants in Melbourne but not many that take nigiri-sushi very seriously & that's all we wanted. Asked for seats at the sushi bar & and proceeded to leave ourselves in the hands of our friendly and skilled sushi chef. We were determined to go through the whole selection of underwater specials available that night, as luck would have it I was told later that tonight was fortunately a well-stocked seafood night. Service was excellent and experienced, and the Yamagata sake was smooth, dry and delicious. The ambience is low-key, understated but elegant. Towards the end of the night as the crowds died down it did sound a little quiet but that's because I'm used to some kind of playlist in the background. Onto the food! We had pair after pair of nigiri (small rice ball with topping) and in order of my favourites: toro (tuna belly), salmon, scampi, sea urchin, wagyu, calamari, salmon roe, Japanese scallops, kingfish, eel, John Dory. It was very fresh, very delicious, clean flavours of the sea bursting through. I say this with seriousness, the combination of say an expertly cut slice of tuna belly atop a perfectly seasoned, cooked ball of sushi rice is a spiritual moment for a food lover like me. Kenzan was very good, I left happy & satisfied and I enjoyed every morsel.

It's good I found this on my second to last night in Melbourne. Getting there: This place is tucked away in the corner or a mall-like area under the Sofitel, just 1 level (maybe 1/2 level) above the food court. It's just a little sign on the door, and it took me longer than it should have to find it, but it was well worth it. Once inside t was well decorated, clean, and nice. Service: I sat at the sushi bar (per usual) and upon inquiring found that I could order directly from the sushi chefs, which is typically my preference. Bot the chef I spoke to and the other staff were very responsive, the wait staff keeping an eye on my tea and water levels, etc. It was very good service and I did provide a tip (not customary for Australia). The food (sorry but no pictures, I was too busy eating all the fish!): I had a mix of very traditional sushi and sashimi, no rolls. As I'm a fan of the traditional style this was perfect for me. I'd asked the chef for him to do the selection and I would eat whatever he presented me (and to include Wasabi on the inside of any sushi), this was a good call. I believe that I sampled every type of fish they had that night, it was all fresh, tasted great, and the chef's presentation was good (not too fancy, which made the pieces come out faster). Initially he started me off with sashimi for 5 or 6 different fish, then moved on to sushi pieces. The selection was fair, I've had places with better and worse selections, and of course that varies by the day. They had, and offered me, a miso soup with prawn head in it, this was very good if you're a fan of shrimp head in your miso as I am. For dessert I had a scoop of the black sesame ice cream, which was as expected (that's to say good!). Price: The cost was a little on the higher side, but not unexpectedly so. As mentioned earlier I did provide a tip in addition, had it been terrible I'd not have done so. Overall this was a great dining experience. I wish I could give a 4.5 rating, it deserves it. On a subsequent trip to Melbourne I would return here again without a doubt.

After over two years in this city, I finally found a place with a good traditional sushi bar. The fish quality was fantastic, and they had a broader selection of fish than many of the other fancy-type places I've been in the city. I highly recommend sitting at the sushi bar; the chefs were friendly and their recommendations were all great. The place isn't cheap - about $160 for two including some booze - but totally worth it. It's one of the few sushi places in town I can wholeheartedly recommend.

We didn't know it was a 4$ when we picked it. Now we know why. The soup was quite small and was $5 AUD. We asked for a spoon for the soup but it never came. I got the sushi platter which only had 8 pieces but all but one piece was very fresh and delicious. One salmon piece was seared. My friend had the green tea crème brulee which she said was good. It could easily be rated 5* if they improved the customer service and made sure all the sushi pieces were fresh.

I love this place! The best oysters I've ever had. The tuna belly sashimi is amazing as well. The dumplings and teriyaki dishes are also some of the best I've ever had. A true gem!

There are a lot of Japanese restaurants in Melbourne, but this is something special. Not special in a gimmicky way, but in the care and attention lavished on the food and the customer. The best sushi & sashimi I have ever eaten, I ate here - and yes, I have traveled through Japan. The combo is a good start, but ask for some of the warm sushi too - the flaming adds the the flavor beautifully. For a main, I had the eel on rice - sweet and delicately flavored. Beautiful. The saki list is not extensive, but caters to most tastes. The service is outstanding - look out for Rio, the floor manager, whose smile, grace & charm lights up the whole restaurant. If you go, tell them I sent you!

Very good Japanese food. The plum wine is the best. It is a nice place for a dinner with the wife in a private room.

You'll find this place hidden in the shadows and you'll second guess going in. Go in. This is a very nice place and the dress code is very stylish to. This is a modern looking restaurant and I recommend sitting at the bar to watch them create everyone's sushi. This is Great place to come and quickly get some sushi to eat as service is fast and good. It's a bit pricey as you can see..... 6 rolls can average about $22-23 and 4 an average $15-18 but it's worth it. Other than sushi I recommend the miso soup. The fried prawn with roe and avocado is a great one to get. This place definitely deserves the rating it has. I would come back here in a heartbeat. Make sure to stop by here sometime.

Ate here for the first time over the weekend while visiting from New York City. Kenzan was delicious! Food, atmosphere and wait staff terrific. We will definite go back.

Had lunch here today with friends and colleagues. Had the first lunchbox listed on the menu. Gosh, what a delight it was. Great sashimi, fluffy tempura, tasty sushi etc, etc, I could not fault a thing. It was just superb. Add polite attentive and professional service and you have a terrific restaurant. It's not cheap but you certainly get what you pay for. I had been to Kunis the day before and enjoyed it, but goodness Kenzan is a long way ahead in terms of quality for not much more money. Love this restaurant. Can't wait to return.

Sushi and service were perfect... Only dinged one star for lack of white wine and a small bone in a piece of nigiri sushi! We sat at the bar as we usually do and the chefs' preparation techniques were fastidious. We ordered basically a chefs choice of sushi and every piece was perfectly cut/proportioned and melt in your mouth... Service was attentive and we had a chat with the friendly maitre d' on the way out. Nice also to have Japanese staff as opposed to Korean like we so often see in the US.

I'm from Japan and i must say this is the one of the best in Australia (i travel on a monthly basis) and eat at alot of different japanese places. I had the Omakase and it was very fresh and yummy. definatly recommend this place!

Best Japanese in Melbourne,fresh sushi sashimi platter is outstanding,good wine list attentive service ,best to book but sushi bar always available.Tatami rooms for privacy

Kenzan has definitely become my favorite sushi restaurant in Melbourne City. The service is great and the food is spectacular. What really makes the experience is the chefs attention the the freshness of the food. Not until I dined here did I realize how the temperature of the food makes a difference. If you want to have a nice night out with a date and are willing to spend a little more for a great experience, Kenzan is the place to be.