Delicious Australia – (03)March 2020

THEYHADMEatfish
collars.Forgetthe
crisp-skinpremiumfillet
(well,fora briefmoment),
becausethegelatinous
scallopingfleshonthe‘collars’just
behindtheheadis arguablythebestbit
ofmostfish– plusyoucan even hold
themlikea lambchop.
Inthisinstance,atBrisbane’sYoko
DiningonHowardSmithWharves,
kingfishcollarsaremarinatedin teriyaki
andcharredonthehibachigrillsothe
skinis crispandthefleshpearlescentand
slippingoffthebone.They’resodamn
finger-lickinggoodI couldworkmyway
througha halfdozen,butin doingso
I’dmissoutonallthejoycomingout
ofthekitchenofco-ownerJonathan
Barthelmess(TheApollo,Greca,ChoCho
San),groupexecutivechefBenRussell
(AriaBrisbane)andheadchefKitak Lee
(Kisumé,MomofukuSeiōbo).
YokoDiningis a watersideizakayaof
sorts.In Japanthey’remostlyrowdy,dark
densfilledwithlocalskeenfora drinkand
a decentsnack,buthere,onthebanksof
theBrisbaneRiver,it’sallsunshineand
cocktailsandjusta littleMediterraneanin
a longlanguidlunchkindofway.It may
bemorerestaurantthanizakaya,but
they’ve managed to capture the izakaya

spiritandhavedeliveredit in a mannerin

whichweliketodine.

Thetimberframeworkoftheheritage

venuehasbeengivenrenewedenergyby

interiordesignerGeorgeLivissianis,with

burstsofyolk-huedyellows,concrete,

blondetimbers,booths,mirrorsand

Japanesenorencurtainsthatflowwiththe

breeze.Downstairsthere’salfresco,bench

seatingandindoordining,whileupstairs

there’sa functionroomandbarwhere

vinylsarespinningandarmsarebending

tothecrackingcocktailandsakelist.

Pleasinglycreamykingfishsashimi

wadesin a sesameoildressingandplays

nicelyagainstsliversoflightlypickled

kohlrabiandamaranthleaves.Sweet

Hokkaidoscallophidesbeneathsilken

tofufoam,salmonroeandyuzukosho.

Steamedmushroomgyozaaredelightfully

lightpastryparcelsservedin a puddleof

ponzu,anda golden,crisppankopork

chop(tonkatsu) revealsblushingpinkflesh

insideandis smartlypartneredwitha bowl

ofJapanesecurrytodunkeachmouthful

in.It’sallsimple,beautifullyexecutedand

soenjoyable.Adda sakeortwoandyou,

too,willbeflowingin thebreezelikethe

norencurtains.Finishwiththerefreshing

andpalate-cleansingpineapplewith

umeshu(plum)andlimebefore you float

off into the night. Brilliant.

AnthonyHuckstepvisitsYokoDining,newlyopenedonBrisbane’s

HowardSmithWharvesprecinct,andfallshardforthestellar

homage to Japanese cuisine, with all the spirit of izakaya dining.

YOKO-MANIA

@huckstergram @anthuckstep

For more of our critics’ dining picks.

REVIEWEDONLINETHIS MONTH

Mimi’s,Coogee,NSW

LePlonc,Armadale,Vic

Gaea,Fitzroy,Vic

Nikkei, Surry Hills, Sydney

YOKODINING

CUISINE

Japanese

CHEF

JonathanBarthelmess

VISIT

5 BoundaryStreet,Brisbane

OPENINGHOURS

MondaytoFriday,12pm– late

SaturadaytoSunday,11.30am – late

BOOKINGS

yokodining.com.au/book

PRICE

$$

BYO

No

delicious.com.au

BOOKA
TABLENOWAT
FROMLEFT:Yoko’sdiningroom
featuresneutraltoneswith
popsofcolour;(L-R)Jonathan
Barthelmess,KitakLeeand
BenRussellarethegunteamat
Yoko; kingfish, sesame, kohlrabi.

INSIDER REVIEW.

30 delicious.com.au