The Unbearable Lightness of Being Hungry | A Sydney Food Blog

Izakaya Fujiyama, Surry Hills

July 20th, 2011  |  Published in Uncategorized  |  7 Comments

Izakaya Fujiyama, Surry Hills

The Chocolate Cake with Baked Quince and Condensed Milk Ice Cream ($11.50) is one of many good reasons to check out the new Izakaya Fujiyama. (And I say that as a choc-cake skeptic, given how people will over-praise a floury brick ‘cos it has some cheap cocoa thrill inside.) The choc in this cake is not a cover-up for anything substandard – it’s just a gooey, choc-stealth delight, nicely teamed with baked-through quince and a clean, uncloying scoop of condensed milk ice cream.

Izakaya Fujiyama, Surry Hills

Other items on the menu include the Kenji Fried Chicken, Lime Kingfish and Fried Tortilla, Asazuke Salted Pickles and, one of my favourites, the Miso-Cured Tofu (thanks to its salty miso goal-kick). And yes, I am dessert-curious about the Vanilla Ice Cream that comes with a toffee and Japanese vinegar topping (next time!).

Izakaya Fujiyama, Surry Hills

Earlier this year, Kenji Maeneka announced he’d be opening Izakaya Fujiyama as a Japanese version of Bodega (the much-loved tapas joint where he has also worked). It’s an ambitious and thrilling idea, but also nearly impossible to live up to. This place is good, and definitely worth checking out, but going by first impressions, it doesn’t have the blow-me-away impact that Bodega does – yet. But maybe that’s too early to say, plus it’s a nice excuse to revisit and see if it might get to that level – perhaps one day someone will be inspired to offer their own international take on Izakaya Fujiyama.

Shop G09, 52 Waterloo St, Surry Hills NSW (02) 9698 2797 (yes, it’s in the same complex as the great Orto Trading Co. and El Capo – what an excellent batting average for one building), www.izakayafujiyama

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7 Comments

  1. fried chicken! condensed milk ice cream! yes please!

  2. FFV says:

    Chocolate cake sounds delish!!
    xox*

  3. Y says:

    Looking forward to checking this izakaya out. Thanks for the reportage 🙂

  4. minibites says:

    izakayas are a hard act to follow, izakaya den in Melbourne is one of the best I’ve been to (apart from those in Japan of course!) 🙂

  5. I had the vanilla ice cream with toffee and Japanese vinegar topping when I was there last week. Quite enjoyed the topping. The other dishes were a bit more hit & miss alas, and I’m not sure what the deal was with the okra in the Agedashi Tofu. Great ambience and good host, though. [aptronym]

  6. Sounds interesting, i’ll have to check it out… The name of it sounds like a place that’s been around forever? Miso cured tofu = 2 of my fave things, woo!

  7. Anonymous says:

    Izakaya Fujiyama, so nice to have relaxed little Japanese pub in Surry Hills. Happy, friendly, traditional izakaya style food and probably one of the best sake selections you will find in Sydney. I’m making it my local! Ja mata ne!

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Hi, I'm Lee Tran Lam. When not blogging with my mouth full, I'm usually writing, presenting Local Fidelity on FBi radio, making zines, producing podcasts or continually breaking promises about how I really am gonna get through my book pile one day.

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