Genzo

Bright new entry channels the neon, flavour and excitement of Tokyo.

November 11, 2024

1 / 8Genzo’s neon-lit dining room.Supplied

2 / 8Yellow fin tuna onigiri, stracciatella & umeboshie.Supplied

3 / 8The yakitori menu includes chicken thigh, wing, breast and tenderloin. Supplied

4 / 8The ceiling is equipped with colour-changing LED lights.Supplied

7 / 8Yakitori is cooked on a robata grill.Supplied

14.5/20

Japanese$$

If Melbourne’s Yakimono is the Australian restaurant that most successfully pulls off a Blade Runner 2049 aesthetic, then Genzo – from the team behind Loulou and The Charles – is a close second: futuristic finishes, bowls of noodles and a pulsing light installation that casts a colourful glow over wood and stone.

Sure, the deserted backstreets of North Sydney are more “dystopian future” than the owners might have liked, but there’s no denying the appeal of the cooking. Nori-wrapped cobia, say, with grapefruit ponzu, or a stack of small bites, ranging from epic stracciatella-filled tuna onigiri, to skewered chicken thigh (word is a more chicken-focused yakitori menu is incoming) or sweet scampi glazed in Japanese curry.

Noodles and grilled Murray cod for mains don’t pack as much excitement, but how can you compete with a bowl of charred octopus to spike on sticks and drag through cream cheese and chilli? And the colourful cocktails? Right on theme.