Review – Yoko’s Gourmet Cafe
On Wednesday, L and I went to Yoko’s Gourmet Cafe for lunch (sorry, M! All three of us can go when you are back in the office again!). This was my second time at Yoko’s.
You order at the cashier. There’s lots of pictures and info to look at while you’re standing there – it’s all very distracting (distracting-good, not distracting-bad!). There’s sushi packs for sale on display. And you can also smell all the food cooking, too, because the kitchen/food prep area is just behind the counter, off to the right of the photo.
You probably know by now I don’t like miso or Japanese green tea. These were L’s. Not very exciting or interesting as photos.
L’s lunch: Y24 – Sansai Udon. The menu description for this dish reads as follows: “Sansai- vegetables which grow in the hills of Japan, such as ‘Nameko’ (golden mushrooms) rich in vitamins”. It’s vegetarian, so there’s no way I’d ever order it! L said it was very good. She’s also had this dish with soba noodles instead of udon. Sprinkled over the top is a seasoning with chilli flakes. AU$9.90.
My lunch: Y5 – Tori Karaage Don. The menu description: “fried boneless chicken marinated in ginger soy sauce served over a bed of steamed rice”. This is soooo yummy. I also had this dish my first time lunching at Yoko’s. It was so delicious I had to order it again (well, I didn’t take photos of it the first time! Next time I will have to order something else, just for this site!). I did consider the Tori Teriyaki Don (“BBQ fresh tender boneless chicken served with teriyaki sauce over a bed of steamed rice” AU$7.90) and the Oyako Don (“Topping of freshly steamed skinless chicken and egg served over a bed of steamed rice” AU$9.50), but I really love chicken karaage (I love all variations of fried chicken of course!). The fried chicken is topped with barbecue sauce and a very light sprinkling of sesame seeds, and the white blob on the right is Japanese mayonaise (tastes like that yummy ‘baby’ mayo to me!). All of this sits on a generous serve of rice which goes perfectly with the strong flavours of the chicken and the barbecue sauce. It is so good – the chicken is freshly fried, served piping hot, and satisfyingly crispy. AU $7.90.
There are a few tables to eat at in the cafe; we got there after 1pm, and there were a couple free. Around noon though, you might find it hard to get a table. Yoko’s does do takeaway though. Both times I ate there the staff were very friendly and our food was cooked really quickly. Both times I enjoyed it immensely.
Yoko’s Gourmet Cafe is at Shop 27B, Kardinya Park Shopping Centre, Cnr South Street and North Lake Road, Kardinya. Yoko’s is open 6 days, Monday to Saturday, 11:00am to 9:00pm. There’s lots of parking available, but I reckon it’s one of the tightest car parks I have ever seen! Next to Yoko’s is an asian supermarket, which is handy. Yoko’s have *new* fried seafood gyoza, which I haven’t tried yet. They also do the usual Japanese favourites of tempura, various sushi, green tea ice-cream and an assortment of bento sets. And they sell Nudie juice too! As I am not Japanese, have never been to Japan or eaten food cooked by a Japanese friend, I have no idea how authentic the food is here, but it is definitely delicious. The value for money/serving sizes are excellent – we both left feeling really full and happy (I fell asleep at my desk later that afternoon!). And those star-shaped carrot garnishes are cute, aren’t they?