Harada Japanese Restaurant

Harada, named after the chef who runs the place, recently opened to mixed reviews on Google Reviews - but a closer look will suggest that the score has been artificially lowered by those who gave spiteful 1 star reviews for being denied service. One reviewer even referred to Harada as the "Soup Nazi". Those who have enjoyed Harada-san's food, it seems, have all given their meals rave reviews. 

The fact that the chef turned people away for a lack of booking did nothing to deter me. In fact, my faith in his establishment was strengthened many-folds: this suggests to me that he is an artisan who believes in fresh ingredients, buying what he will cook on the day, and not resorting to wasteful or freezer-dependent practices. 

I am quite positive that I have found the best Japanese Omakase restaurant in Sydney. 

Omakase means chef's choice - you eat what the chef puts in front of you. It is intimate, liberating, and a surefire way to make sure you are eating the very best ingredients of the day. 

The chef will of course cater to dietary requirements - though I would suggest that unless you were at least a pescatarian, you might want to forgo this option. Seafood is the name of the game at Harada, and indeed, most Japanese restaurants. 

The first course is a selectrion of amuse-bouche. From top left hand corner we have two types of tunas - the slightly irregularly shaped one is the famed toro, or tuna belly, which has a beautifully fatty, melty texture. The other morsel is firmer and bouncier. Then, we have a baby squid resting on a little pool of miso-paste. In the glass we have crab meat, which is so sweet by itself but perfectly accentuated by little bursts of salty salmon roe. Bottom right, a freshly shucked oyster that tastes just like the ocean, and a spoonful of pink shrimp ceviche with a subtle, refreshing tartness. Right in the middle is a tuna terraine.

The second course is a Japanese-style egg, cooked in a double-boiler. The egg custard has the most deliciously silky texture that melts upon contact with one's tongue. It is accompanied by a thick, gelatinous broth filled with umami-ness (I'm sure the mushrooms helped on that front!) and there is a piece of prawn meat right in the middle to give a surprising texture change. 

The third course is a bass grouper with sweet miso and Japanese pickle. It is interesting that such a fearsome-looking fish would have such fine-textured, delicate meat. The cooking and seasoning are also restrained and gentle so as not to overpower the taste of the fish. Even the pickle is only very slightly tart. Even though this dish does not look particularly striking, the perfection to which it is cooked is what makes it special. 

 

The fourth course, being the tempura course, is served directly from the frying pan onto your plate. The prawn tempura is cooked so perfectly that the flesh has not even an ounce of toughness, yet the entirety of the prawn - tail included- are crunchy and soft enough to eat. The light, delicate batter is particularly impressive. The whiting is also cooked so the flesh is almost flaky - and I have to say, the tempura sauce is beautifully balanced - rich, deep, yet not overly salty. 

The fifth course is the sushi course. They are freshly made and put in front of you one by one. The chef asks whether you have a preference for wasabi - and if you say yes, you take wasabi, it is incorporated into the sushi. Also, you do not get given soy sauce - rather, the fish is already smeared with just the tiniest hint of soy sauce. 

The first is a tuna - full flavoured, firm-fleshed. 

Next is scorpion fish, which has a very sweet, almost raw-prawn-like texture. I have never had it before, but I really enjoy the delicate flavour and bouncy texture. 

The mackerel cured in vinegar is a little more challenging for me, because of its very strong fishy smell and taste. The curing in vinegar takes away some of the fishiness and replaces it with a tartness of vinegar. 

And now, the piece-de-resistance: the toro. The most prized part of the tuna, this fall-apart, fatty piece of the fish is what all these documentaries about tuna auctions are all about. The texture is so interesting, and the flavour, in my view, is a little more gentle than other parts of the tuna. I thoroughly, thorougly enjoyed this and would say it's something that one must try if one likes Japanese food. 

The final sushi is a scallop smoked directly before us. When the cloche is lifted, the room is filled with the saliva-incuding smell of gently barbequed scallops - and I say gently, because the flesh retains its delicacy and the only thing the smoking does is adding a hint of flavour. 

The sixth course is one of the most special things I have ever tasted in my life. It is a beautiful wagyu beef paired with a cloud egg - the egg so fresh you can see just how bright and perky the yoke is. It is positively glistening. Once mixed together, the umami salty beefiness of the wagyu is enhanced by the rounded creaminess of the egg, and as a final gesture, a mouthful of perfect, high quality, japanese rice. 

By the time the seventh course rolls around I am positively groaning with satisfaction - but nothing, not even an enormous food-baby, can stop me from finishing the best ramen I have ever had. I know this is a big call, and I have previously reviewed many ramen places (Sydney is very lucky - we are spoiled for choice!), but nothing compares to this. The broth is very light - it tastes like the essence of prawn. There is a perfect, paper-thin leaf of prawn meat, with a beautiful umami foam. The noodles are so chewy and bouncy they are like no noodles I have had before. 

Finally, we come to the end of our adventure. The dessert is a spoonful of rich cheesecake - and I say rich only in terms of its mouth-coating texture; the flavour is a refreshing, tart, yuzu and not very sweet at all. It is dotted with berry coulins and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil, which, when combined with something as creamy as cheesecake, tastes delightfully fruity. A crack of black pepper completes this deceptively simple-looking dessert and gives it such a depth of complex flavours. Perfect end to a perfect culinary journey. 

Score: 5/5 

Price: POA. I'm not kidding - depends on what fresh, seasonal ingredients the chef has been able to procure. There are reasonably-priced options available, for example a $100 degustation and a $70 degustation, as well as medium-priced a la carte menu. 

Address: 18a Wentworth St, Glebe 

Website: https://www.harada.net.au/