Kadoya Japanese Restaurant

I've probably walked past Kadoya a few times before without paying it too much attention, but a few factors aligned recently for me to go looking for it. This little eatery in Elizabeth Arcade claims to serve "the REAL Japanese taste", and I for one don't challenge that claim. The meal I had was enjoyable enough that I think I'll be back soon to try more from the menu.

Kadoya Japanese Restaurant
Shop 29 & 30 Elizabeth Arcade
Brisbane QLD 4000
P: 3229 3993
www.sushicatering.com.au
Trading hours: Mon-Thu 10am-8pm, Fri 10am-8:30pm, Sat & public holidays 11am-8pm


It's not often these days that I find myself in the CBD looking for a place to eat dinner. I ventured out recently to check out the Winter Festival (the first year it's come to Brisbane), and was on the look out for some wintry Alpine food. It was a damp and drizzly evening, and I was underwhelmed with the offerings that didn't seem to extend much beyond hot dogs and pancakes. Since we were already there, wifey and I sampled a frankfurter from the German Sausage Hut. This was unexciting enough for us to ditch the festival and go looking for something else to eat.

I did a brief browse of urbanspoon without much enthusiasm. Then I remembered a friend of mine recently telling me about a Japanese eatery in the Elizabeth Arcade, so off we went to see it for ourselves.

The dining half of the restaurant

The restaurant occupies two shop spaces in the Elizabeth Arcade - one half is the ordering counter and kitchen, the other half is the dining area. It looked fairly full when we arrived, as did the other eateries nearby, so I was initially half hearted about staying. But then we spotted some seats and decided to settle in for a meal. Wifey rarely declines Japanese fare anyways.

There are multiple copies of the menu on display. You order from (outside) the counter, pay, take a number and sit down. The restaurant seats around 30 people cosily, with another table outside. Water and cutlery are self-service by the door. Whoever did the decorative woodwork along the walls either didn't know about miter joints, or for whatever reason opted for the much uglier shortcut. But I digress...

#23 Pork Katsu Bento Box - $13.80

Our meals were served within 10 minutes of ordering. Wifey had the bento box - all bento boxes come with a crab meat croquette, prawn cutlet, tartar sauce, salad, agedashi (deep fried) or yakko (cold) tofu, rice, and miso soup. I had a few nibbles of this and found it as good as anything else of a similar nature that I've tried in other places.

#16 Eel Don with egg - $10.50

My meal. I tend to be partial to eel when I'm eating Japanese. In hindsight I should have probably ordered something else (non-rice) given that wifey said from the get go that she was giving most of her rice to me. I managed to polish off most of both serves of rice, but that was just being a bit gluttonous... especially after having already eaten the bigger share of the earlier hotdog. What can I say, a good sauce on rice is often all it takes to make me satisfied :)

Conclusion: Recommended
Good range of authentic dishes at reasonable prices, friendly and speedy service. We enjoyed the dishes we tried on this visit, and can see that it's a well patronised establishment enjoyed by Caucasians and Asians alike. The food might not blow you away, but that's not their game - probably more in the tasty comfort food category for me, and sometimes that's the stuff that will really hit the spot without taking too big a hit on your hip pocket. I do think some of their entrees are a bit expensive though at $7.90, eg. the karaage crispy chicken works out to almost $2/piece. You can essentially pay up to $2 more to turn it into a meal with rice, like a donburi for $9.00 or a curry or noodle for $9.80.

Likelihood of return? High. I'd be keen to try a few other dishes on the menu (PDFs available online here), including the curry. I might start at the medium and go upwards (over several visits, if I have the chance) to see hot their hot is. Not so sure about paying $5 extra for the champion level though :p

PS. they also do catering of finger food, sushi platters and lunch boxes. For more info check their website.