Address: 467 Dean Street, Albury NSW | www.zen-x.com.au
We made it to Albury! And then found not one, but three different Japanese restaurants/outlets within a two minute walk of each other. And the one that we went into, Zen X, was staffed by Japanese people – winner! Most of all the other ones we’ve been into so far have spoken Cantonese! Ari Hashi has probably been the only other exception.
So the butchers paper on the tables, complete lack of other patrons (it was 2pm already, I guess) and surprisingly high-ish prices was a bit of a turn off, but we stuck with it. Especially since by then they had served us with some complimentary wasabi peas and pickled vegies. We ended getting a sashimi plate, chicken nori maki and gyoza, which came to $38.50.
Sashimi plate, $20.50. The white fish at the front was awesome. The what-we-thought-was-tuna (brownish-pink fish) was a little odd tasting and we ended up arguing about who had to finish it off – no wastage!
The chicken nori maki, price a bit hefty at $8.50. There were four pieces, but bubsy shoved one in his mouth before I could get a photo. You could call them “rustic-looking” or “ugly-looking”, depending on your preference.
And the gyoza, the surprise hit of the meal, $9.50. Contained mushrooms, some greens, pork and something spicy – possibly wasabi. My taste buds and knowledge of food isn’t quite Matt Preston enough to break it down.
Verdict? I think we came at the wrong time. Looks like it’s a place to be at in the evening and splash out on their teppanyaki. Otherwise we generally felt a bit underwhelmed and underfed – you could get a lot for $38.50 at a sushi take away outlet!
Would love to come back and try their teppanyaki, but alas we have no time. Let me know if you’ve tried it before and would like to guest post!
Rating: Two Mochi
