It’s impressive any time a restaurant can keep going so long in the tough and fickle Sydney market, and remain busy, buzzy and popular. Izakaya Fujiyama has been around for yonks and many friends consider it a favourite place to go to.
I hadn’t been for a long time myself, so hanging out with an old flatmate, one of my longest friends in Sydney, was a good excuse. We couldn’t go by all the specials and in fact, didn’t order anything from the regular menu. We ordered five dishes, and probably could have gotten by with four. They’re pretty generous servings.
I loved the texture and combo of the Yellowfish tataki, but it did need the soya sauce and there wasn’t quite enough of it. Grilled cauliflower with radish and either onions or perhaps fennel? In teriyaki sauce was also a nice combo of flavours and texture and a generous serve.
The cheese sausage was delicious! And the grilled brussel sprouts with labne and I think a pumpkin mash was really tasty, and a huge dish. The Fumé Blanc that we ordered (about 50 bucks) went really well with it, and the service was impressive, keeping the wine cold for us and pouring modest amounts when our glasses were empty.
I think they forgot about the wagyu beef cheeks sliders (actually a soft rice flour bun). This was SO delicious. They might have brought it out, and then decided to serve it to us later or something; we had to ask for it twice and it took forever to come. Oops.
All in all an impressive meal. With Katsu Yachiyo just around the corner, this is a fabulous little corner of Surry Hills for Japanese food.