Some of you may recall that last year for one of my birthday dinners, we went to the (then) recently opened Greca on Howard Smith Wharves. It just so happened that a few weeks before my birthday, the same company opened their newest venture Yoko, a Japanese Izakaya, also on Howard Smith Wharves. Which is why it didn't take much thinking this year for me to decide that this would be the place to go for annual festivities.
Having made a booking well in advance of the date of opening, we were still left with super early or super late slots. with prime times being booked out. I opted for the earlier spot right after our locked room adventures had wrapped up. Being the middle of summer, we were glad to be given an inside seat rather than one without the comforts of air conditioning.
The menu was definitely a modern take on Japanese, with most of the dishes leaning towards fusion creations rather than traditional washouku. Having gone through it extensively, we were very keen to try out most of the dishes. Although there were banquet options, we decided against that for the opportunity to customise what we wanted instead.
Starting off with the drinks, I had the Yoko Spritz and a companion had the Yuzu slushie. Perfect for the hot muggy Brisbane summer, they made for a good appetizer for our meal.
First dish to arrive was the Scallop, yuzu kosho, silken tofu. Perfect to start off the meal, it was delicate and refreshing. Served chilled, the tofu made a good texture contrast to the bouncy scallop. Both elements were fairly light in taste, so neither overpowered the other.
Of course we couldn't have Japanese without ordering a Sashimi Platter, so that came up next. For the price point, I definitely expected a larger portion of fish. Having said that, these were fresh and well presented, but I just wish that there was more.
Other small dishes we had included the Mushroom gyoza with chilli and ponzu and the Miso-glazed eggplant. The gyoza were surprisingly fairly spicy, even for my moderate tastes. It had a good texture to it and was filling despite the lack of meat in the dish. The eggplant was well seasoned with miso, and thankfully texture was improved with the addition of copious amounts of puffed rice on top.
The most underrated dish of the evening was probably Chicken karaage. It was perfectly crisp with a light batter and moist meaty interior. Definitely one of the best karaages I've had in a while.
Onto the larger dishes, this was the Charcoal chicken with sansho pepper, which was quite well received. With a caramelised toasty exterior, it was definitely flavoursome. I would have enjoyed it better if it were less bony though.
To balance out the meatiness, we also had the organic soba noodle salad with mushroom and snowpea. Offering some light wholesome reprieve from heavier dishes, this was served chilled. I found there to be a lot more toppings than there were noodles, so more balance would have been better.
Of course we had the signature Tonkatsu, a fried pork chop served with Japanese curry and rice. The pork chop was massive as you would expect for the price point and it was fried to give a delicious crunch, although the moisture didn't retain well inside the somewhat thicker panko crumb.
Another side we had was the Shredded Cabbage. It went well with our large dishes with its crispy texture and light vinegar dressing.
The highlight for the evening (for me) was definitely the Wagyu intercostal served with onion salad. For those of you who are curious, intercostal refers to the meat in between beef ribs, with the bones having been removed, perfect for lazy people like me. The wagyu was fatty and melted in our mouth, the flavours were deep, smokey and super intense, balanced out only by the onion salad and shredded cabbage which we had ordered on the side.
Great food and wonderful company, what more could you want on your birthday? :) Will definitely be back sometime in the new year for more.
Price Range: $50 - $70pp
Taste: 7/10
Value: 7/10
Service: 8/10
Environment: 8/10
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