Wasabi Restaurant & Bar

I rarely give one star ratings but this one deserves it 100%. We went for a special occasion to this place knowing that it was expensive which in itself is a personal choice. The food that we got was bland, dry, with tiny portions and hardly had any resemblance to Japanese food. It was all cold food except for one item and they didn’t really know whether it was goose or pork. The staff explained robotically to us what it was without any real engagement whatsoever. We took the most expensive menu and drink arrangements thinking that it would be great. We were so wrong as we paid for two people $525 and only got six half glasses with drinks under which was a cider and a vermouth! It didn’t compliment the food at all. Ok, you can have an experimental menu and setup but this was just terrible quality, ambiance and the food isn’t even worth the menu it is written on. All the five star reviews must have never been anywhere else. The interior isn’t Japanese as some say and the windows with the great view were filthy. Wasabi implicates spicy food in a Japanese way but there was no Wasabi, no soy sauce and to come to full closure with this, it was a utter disaster so save yourself the trouble and go next door to Ricky’s.

Dining experience here is just amazing! Well created fusion food keeping the roots of good fine Japanese roots mixed with trending cuisine. The stag is very attentive and willing to make good recommendations and explanations! Decent wine and sake list!

We love this restaurant. Each time we have been the food has been different and exciting. The use of Australian and local ingredients Highlights the chiefs dedication to exceptional food. Would highly recommend the omekase menu as the kitchen and staff have never sent anything short of delicious! The staff were attentive but not intrusive and were very careful of my unusual dietary allergies (tomato, coconut and almonds) clarifying and then ensuing that I was free to enjoy the dishes as they came. An expensive meal but exceptional value for money.

Absolutely fantastic dinning experience. My wife and I had a lovely evening here for our anniversary. The set menu comes in a few options and if you choose so can be accompanied by matched wine with each course. This is my new favourite in Noosa.

Wasabi is an elegant restaurant. The perfect place to celebrate an anniversary, or any intimate moment with loved ones. Their wine list is extensive and the food delicious. Al l the Wasabi staff are friendly and helpful.

Beautiful setting and menu. Enjoyed the long menu for 165$ which had 9 courses, some with multiple dishes within them. Ask for a table by the window.

Top notch customer service and excellent food. It was for our first year wedding anniversary and they gave us a beautiful handwritten card. The drink options matching with each meal course were one of the best experiences. Definitely recommend for special memory!.

This is a very stylish restaurant. We chose the short menu with matching beverages, only one of which was wine, and turned out to be a really good choice. We also had a glass of champagne in the beginning of the meal, which I regret - as the matching drinks were really interesting and the champagne seemed quite bland in comparison. There were a number of highlights on the menu - foraging for croquettes in a bowl of petals and twigs was particularly memorable, as was the Sashime Tartar and green leaf tempura.

Took my mum here when we were visiting Noosa and both of us absolutely loved the meal we had at wasabi. Beautifully decorated, nice service and we enjoyed every single item on the degustation menu. However we did think that the nigri sushi was just average and shouldn't have been included on the menu since we could just get that from any other sushi places. The only other thing I wasn't too happy about was the credit card surcharge of 1%, and when they gave us the bill they automatically included that with the assumption that I would pay with credit card. What about me wanting to pay with cash? Also a big place like that should just cover the fees instead of having to pass it to us customers. However we did enjoy the food very much, they were tasty, nicely plated with really fresh ingredients and some of the ingredients come from their own farm so that adds a nice touch to the meal. I would definitely come here again and would recommend anyone visiting Noosa to give this place a try, it's worth every penny.

Update: I finally decided to give Wasabi another try, and am awarding an extra star. This time around I decided to avoid the omakase set menu and just order a variety of dishes a la carte. This seems to be the better approach, and delivered a much more enjoyable experience that my first visit. Most of the food was quite good to near flawless, although the sauce that accompanied the sirloin steak was far too sweet (though putting some extra wasabi from the sushi rolls onto it balanced it out reasonably well). Real wasabi is available here, though you have to explicitly request it. And they'll accommodate requests for custom maki rolls. Or at least they did when I tried it. I still cannot say that Wasabi represents good value for money. But it's the only show in town for high-end Japanese cuisine. Stillwater was the closest thing Wasabi had to a worthy competitor, but unfortunately Stillwater shut its doors awhile ago. -- Original Review, 11/24/2012, 3 stars -- The short version is, the food here is good, but not good enough to justify the price. I dined here once for a special occasion, my wife and I both ordered the 9-course Omakase set. They scored some big hits with this (ahi sashimi that was as good as any I've ever had, and a sea scallop that was perfectly cooked and flavored) and some big misses (two other scallops in the same dish that were rubbery and gritty, other courses that were under-seasoned, overcooked, and generally not very memorable). The main problem that I have is that for $100+ per person, I expect perfection (or damn close to it), and they fell quite a bit short of that. Also, the way the Omakase menu is presented you're led to believe that the chef will choose a set of dishes for you specifically. It's even stated that you should note any particular likes and dislikes so that the chef can tailor something specifically to your tastes. I was super-excited by this prospect. The reality of the situation, however, is that everyone who orders the Omakase set is served exactly the same thing. From a logistical standpoint this makes sense (full restaurant, limited number of chefs), but it falls short of the expectation that was created. And as far as I can tell, none of my likes/dislikes (like: unagi, avocado, cucumber, dislike: uni) were factored in at all. Well okay, I wasn't served anything with uni in it, but then neither was anybody else in the restaurant. Given the hit-and-miss quality of my experience this place just isn't worth the high price of entry. Had they knocked every single course out of the park like they did with the ahi sashimi then the story might be different. But that's not what happened, at least not when I was there. It's unlikely that I'll return for a second try.

What an amazing spot, the view was spectacular, the service was excellent and the food was exceptional. I highly recommend Wasabi for an amazing experience. I had high expectations after what I have heard, but wow, all my expectations were surpassed. An outstanding selection of fresh local produce.

Won't be returning. Among many issues we encountered with our meal at wasabi (wait time being a signicant factor), we had issues with both our entree and main meals. Entree meals had been miscalculated so one person had to have another made while we waited. 2 people from our table of 9 then received the wrong main. When this was highlighted to our waitress she said that we told her the wrong thing. I was one of these people and she had actually repeated my order back to me at the time so I was more than sure that my order was correct. The likelihood of 2 people being incorrect makes her argument even less believable. Either way, never should the customer be blamed in such a way and I would except more in a restaurant of this price. We were told we had to stick with the incorrect main or wait another 25mins for the main we ordered... after waiting so long to get the incorrect one in the first place we weren't going to wait any longer. We were offered no discount or complimentary meal for her mistakes. We were also charged a 6% service fee for service that was at best poor.

On a(n all too brief) holiday up to Noosa, I took a recommendation from the front desk at my hotel to visit Wasabi for dinner. I'm so glad I did. As you can imagine from the name, Wasabi is a Japanese joint, but one that's a significant departure from those sushi roll lunch joints dotting every Brisbane street corner. It's high-end, tasteful, expensive and certainly the type of place that sits squarely in the "splurge/special occasion" bucket. I was feeling adventurous, so I ordered seven courses at the chef's discretion. Rather than detailing every single bite piece-by-piece (though I certainly could, as fresh and simple flavour combinations are easier to remember than complicated chaos on a plate), I will say that there wasn't a disappointing course of the bunch, with a couple very strong standouts in the mix as well. Service was attentive, patient and descriptive. Given that Noosa's a resort town, and that service often seems like an afterthought to a lot of tourist traps, this was a refreshing discovery. Every bite of seafood I had tasted fresh, every course seemed thoughtful yet simple, and every interaction I had from making the booking to the thank-you-and-good-night felt warm and professional. If you're willing to splurge (and splurge you will - this wasn't an inexpensive dinner), leave yourself in the chef's hands. I promise you'll enjoy yourself.

Absolutely outstanding as usual fresh, clean, full of flavour, cheap no but a must when in Noosa

Wasabi generally gets fab reviews from gourmet and good food guides, but I find it disappointing. We ordered the degustation with matching wines - a pricey option, but usually a fun and interesting dining experience. There was one course on the degustation menu I mentioned I couldn't eat (scallops I think, as they make me feel ill) and I was told it was no problem as they would substitute that course with something else for me. The substitute was lovely, except that two courses later I was served the exact same thing again. I found this both bizarre and dissatisfying. Surely the kitchen could have come up with something else. The sommelier was great, but I didn't find most of the wines were a very good match with their respective courses. On the plus side, we had a lovely table right on the water where we could watch little fishes illuminated in the Woods Bay Area of the Noosa River.

We have been a fan of Wasabi for many years as we holiday at Noosa. In our view the best Japanese restaurant in Australia. The food is fabulous, service is great and the location and view outstanding.. Take the time to hear the story of the farm and their own spring water. We like lunch so that you can enjoy the view but nightime is also fun... look for the little fish in the water attracted by the lights..

Wasabi cancelled our booking because another client booked out the restaurant. Even though our booking was first. I can't believe they think this is the way to do business. Karma will always come back, so their time will come.

Incredibly fresh and authentic Japanese. Beautiful outlook on the water, great service but you have to pay a lot for it.