Tuesday, 22 March 2016

Oiden Bowl Bar

Looking for a quick service, cheap and cheerful restaurant in the CBD?  Look no further than Oiden Bowl Bar.

As the restaurant names suggests the base of the dishes are rice topped with choices like BBQ wagyu beef, stewed or hashed beef, chicken kara-age, curries and, salmon. You can mix it up and top your bowl with kimchi or my all time favourite, an ontama (a soft gooey boiled egg).

I love little places like this. The casual, laid back feel. The charm and atmosphere is abuzz with people dashing in and out and about.

We grab a tray and join the cafeteria style line. Placing our order, I poured a honey and lemon house made drink, a pick and mix selection of deep fried treats, grab a dora yaki (a pancake filled with sweet red bean) for something sweet to end the meal, a miso soup and pay at the end. This honey and lemon water is thirst quenching. The bowls can also come as part of a value set which includes a miso soup and a drink. Grab one of these little laminated cards so that cashier knows the value set you have (they come in a few different options). So this is what value set A would look like.  A rice bowl, a miso soup and a house made drink.  Value set A was $2.50 extra.  A great meal deal. Head for the nearest communal table and dig in.
Tonight we chose the BBQ Wagyu beef with ontama rice bowl and the garlic butter chicken teriyaki rice bowl with a few choices of deep fried snacks and a serve of rare roast beef.  A feast for sure! The BBQ Wagyu have large pieces of BBQ beef atop fluffy rice with shallots and pickled ginger.  As the egg spreads through the beef and rice it makes it creamy and gooey. The garlic butter is a burst of flavour in your mouth paired with tender pieces of the teriyaki chicken. raised cabbage adds a slight crunchy texture. I enjoyed this very much. A side of deep fried treats includes pork loin, crumbed yellow tail, chicken kar-age and takoyaki balls.  The chicken is super crispy, hot and juicy and the pork loin is a fantastic. We also indulged in their new dish of rare roast beef, seeded mustard, yoghurt mayo and black pepper. The beef is served cold and is tender and juicy. The mayo and mustard seeds are creamy and subtle.  This was a highlight. The dora yaki is a sweet pancake filled with a sweet red bean paste. Although ‘sweet’ it’s not overly sugary sweet. You might notice similarities with the restaurant next door, which is Mappen.  Similar but offering udon and soba noodles and Dera Uma offering donburi style bowls across the way. They are all related but all slightly different in their own way.
The restaurants are also part of the Washoku Lovers programme. Sign up here and mention your membership for some great deals.
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