Sushi Bar Makoto
336 Victoria Ave
Chatswood, NSW 2067
I’ve been gagging to check out Makoto for ages now, but never seemed to get around to it. They have 2 restarants in the City that I’ve walked past a couple of times, and they’re always packed to the brim. The other day, I realised that the sushi joint at Chatswood is ALSO Makoto! I’d been there once with Mum and Dad, but it was ages ago.. so tonight Chris and I went there for dinner.
Makoto have a “$2.60 for all plates” special on some weeknights, so the place is always SO packed that people huddle outside under the heaters, waiting up to an hour or more for a table. But we went tonight (Saturday) and it was still packed! However, the wait was only around 10 mins, which was reasonable. It’s lovely and warm inside and everyone’s eating in full swing – it’s a bustling, cosy little restaurant with really pleasant wait staff.
The unfortunate thing I have to point out is that… I really don’t seen the point of their sushi train. It had about 5 different dishes that just kept cycling and cycling around – the entire POINT of a sushi train is a huge smorgasboard of different dishes going past you, making you salivate and reach out to grab “just one more plate!”. It’s disappointing, because with such standard and few dishes going past, it makes the customers lose interest and leave after just a few dishes.
We ended up ordering the sushi dishes straight off the menu, which was a really good idea – we got the dishes fast, and they were MUCH better than the ones going round and round in front of us. The sushi was fresh, with very generous portions, and everything was just lovely. All in all, a good sushi place, but I don’t really see why it would warrant such massive queues on weekdays (even factoring in the discounted dishes). The other sushi train joint around the corner is just as good with more unusual dishes, IMHO!
Sushi Bar Makoto
Ordering from their photo-menu
Prawn and mayonnaise sushi – this was superb
Prawn, Eel and Egg sushi box – too cute!!
Soft-shell crab and egg sushi, served with almonds – so good but quite $$
Fried fish sushi with mayonnaise – like Japanese fish & chips, mmm!!
Spicy Dragon roll (eel, egg, cucumber, avocado) – one of the best dishes
Spicy Salmon sushi – nice but nothing spectacular
Fried prawn sushi – LOVED this! Got it because they didn’t have
Green Tea Cheesecake, which I really wanted for dessert 🙁
We got some 1-for-1 coupons, yayyyyyy!
Watched Pirates of the Caribbean in the afternoon.. I enjoyed it but didn’t like the ending ;( I hate set-ups! Orlando Bloom and Johnny Depp are :)~~~ though. Great action movie punctuated with cute funny parts.
Oh yes, and Chris finally graduated to his Green P plates. He did the Hazard Perception driving test this morning.. and passed. Well, see, he actually didn’t pass – he said he thought he got far too many questions wrong. But do you know why he passed? Because they’re silly computer stuffed up after the test and they couldn’t figure out how to work it, so the lady said to the other “Oh nevermind, just pass him” *gasps*! I was a bit disgusted that they would do that… because if they do that for him, they’d do it for others. Makes me wonder what kind of drivers we have on Sydney roads :X Anyway, but at least he *ahem* passed (kind of), hahahaha!!! So dodgy.
That sushi looks so pretty and really delish! Dont even know which one looks best, they all look really good!
Havent had sushi in ages! Must do it soon 🙂
That sushi looks so pretty and really delish! Dont even know which one looks best, they all look really good!
Havent had sushi in ages! Must do it soon 🙂
Sushi! Yummmm!!! You guys have the best seafood in AU!
Okay I definitely have to agree with that 😛 AU has by far the freshest and best seafood IMHO! And cheap too.. I really miss it when I’m in SG
Sushi! Yummmm!!! You guys have the best seafood in AU!
Okay I definitely have to agree with that 😛 AU has by far the freshest and best seafood IMHO! And cheap too.. I really miss it when I’m in SG
aw man am i glad i added you! ahah those photos are making my mouth water lol..
that hazard perception test seems so dodgy.. but congrats to Chris anyway! my friend went for hers last week and got in too, apparently it’s easier than the red p’s test?
Heh yes, i’m glad Chris passed.. albeit dodgily 😉 Congrats to your friend too! I can’t wait to get my full license in Jan..
Wow that is a strange way of doing it! We get our learners at 16, then P’s at 18 and then onto a full license at 21!
In AU, you can start off at 16… but chris and I left ours ’till REALLY late, hence why we’re still on our P’s and everyone else we know is on fulls 😉
yes, I agree they are mouth-watering pics.. makes me hungry! hehehe
sushi photographs really well too, hehe. esp when the restaurant has bright lights! Dim restaurants suck, as the flash on my camera also sucks so the pic just turns out bad 🙁
Those pics are mouth-watering! Oh, how I love Sushi. I love the one in George Street at the movies, they usually have a really good selection going around.
Ohhhhhh I haven’t had a chance to check it out! last we were there, they were so packed and we didn’t want to wait 🙁 Next time we’ll try it 🙂
… and they have all plates for $2.50 or something, don’t they?
Yeah they’re pretty cheap!
Mmmm, cheap and delicious! I’m drooling now, thinking about the tempura prawns with avocado and special sauces…glub glub..
In the USA, very few places have the conveyor belts. It’s common in LA, in Japan Town, and I have seen it in a few other states but very, very rarely. Many times they aren’t used at all, or they are set up well when the place first opens and then the chefs have no time to replenish things once people start ordering off the menu. Having had sushi in 35+ states though I can tell you that the place you went to is extremely innovative and has stuff I have never seen before. That menu was to die for. 🙂
Yeah, the menu was extensive which I really liked.. it’s nice ordering straight from the menu too, I feel it makes it fresher! But I also like the instant gratification of just grabbing something off the train 😉
aw man am i glad i added you! ahah those photos are making my mouth water lol..
that hazard perception test seems so dodgy.. but congrats to Chris anyway! my friend went for hers last week and got in too, apparently it’s easier than the red p’s test?
Heh yes, i’m glad Chris passed.. albeit dodgily 😉 Congrats to your friend too! I can’t wait to get my full license in Jan..
Gah! I want sushi now!!!!!
Mmmmm…Johnny Depp is muy SEXY!!!! Orlando is starting to grow on me too 😉 He’s really nice whenever I see him on late night talk shows!
I know! He’s so yum, only he could carry off black eyeliner like that 😉
Wow that is a strange way of doing it! We get our learners at 16, then P’s at 18 and then onto a full license at 21!
In AU, you can start off at 16… but chris and I left ours ’till REALLY late, hence why we’re still on our P’s and everyone else we know is on fulls 😉
The plates of sushi certainly look better than the ones I had earlier on. Never a fan of those going round the belt, they always seem unfresh. You can just tell!
What’s the Green P plate about?
Yes! I’m always so anal, I peer closely at the ones going around to check if they’re fresh first, or I watch the chef like a hawk and see which plates he puts down, then I pick ’em up when they come round to me – hehehehehehe
Green P plates are just the final plates before you get your full license here
yes, I agree they are mouth-watering pics.. makes me hungry! hehehe
sushi photographs really well too, hehe. esp when the restaurant has bright lights! Dim restaurants suck, as the flash on my camera also sucks so the pic just turns out bad 🙁
I wouldn’t worry too much about the RTA test – all of their computer tests are ridiculous, and pretty much just there to help them justify charging yet another fee…
I saw Pirates of the Carribean this afternoon, too. Some bits were okay, and I thought it was better than Superman Returns, but couldn’t take much more towards the end and walked out. Apparently the ending was imminent, but according to the ticket there was half an hour left. Glad my ticket was free. 😛
I really do usually like movies. I thought the first Pirates movie was good. I’m trying to figure out whether my sudden dislike for movies is me changing or Hollywood changing…
Perhaps the sushi place puts out a wider variety of plates on weekdays, since they’re busier? Is that place the one on Victoria avenue sort of near Chatswood Chase, perhaps across the road from the Apple store?
Yeah, the tests there are a bit strange, and you generally wouldn’t even act like that in real life anyway! The $$ is just insane, esp if you fail and have to repeat :X
Yep, Pirates was better than Superman IMHO too.. but I was more keen on the 1st one – it made me go all ga ga and eager to see the 2nd, but the 2nd doesn’t make me feel lik ethat for the 3rd.
I think the sushi place you described above IS Makoto 🙂 the one that has more variety is Sushi Train, which is next to Create Cafe, just outside that huuuuge escalator coming down from the cinemas. they’re really good, and cheap too!
Like I had to Google “Green P plates” too. And what exactly does the “Hazard Perception test” entail? It’s interesting to see how different countries have different licensing requirements.
And what exactly does the “Hazard Perception test” entail?
Tapping on the computer screen to prove to the RTA that you still have a pulse and a body temperature above 10 degrees celcius. 🙂
Incidentally, I thought I had failed mine, too. I had done things in the test that would have resulted in accidents in real life. I passed.
Heh yes, the test is a bit strange.
It’s basically poking the computer screen when you feel it’s safe to make a turn, etc, in the video playing in front of you. And you do it for around 20 situations or something like that. but it’s REALLY tricky as when you poke the screen, suddenly they’ll have a person walk out or show you a speed sign or whatever.
Those pics are mouth-watering! Oh, how I love Sushi. I love the one in George Street at the movies, they usually have a really good selection going around.
Ohhhhhh I haven’t had a chance to check it out! last we were there, they were so packed and we didn’t want to wait 🙁 Next time we’ll try it 🙂
… and they have all plates for $2.50 or something, don’t they?
Yeah they’re pretty cheap!
Mmmm, cheap and delicious! I’m drooling now, thinking about the tempura prawns with avocado and special sauces…glub glub..
Now I want some sushi!
I love sushi, one of my fave foods 🙂 PLus we needed some healthy food, since lunch was laksa and chicken rice *oops*!
The sushi all looks so yummy!
I think it’s normal for sushi train places not to have a lot of interesting sushi out on the train since they are usually more expensive and less people order them? When I go, I usually order most sushi from the menu rather than pick them up from the train 🙂
At other sushi trains here though, they have pretty much the whole selection going around, not just 5 dishes! Even in SG, they have far far more going around.. dunno why, maybe the chefs coudln’t be bothered 😉
I know I could probably gooogle it, but what Green P plates? A special driving designation. Anyhow, all the sushi looks so good.
Here, we get our L plates first, then our red P, then green P, then full license.. the whole process takes over 3 years and at each stage, they charge you $$$ to take a test to progress to the next one. It’s just a money making machine, IMHO 😉
In the USA, very few places have the conveyor belts. It’s common in LA, in Japan Town, and I have seen it in a few other states but very, very rarely. Many times they aren’t used at all, or they are set up well when the place first opens and then the chefs have no time to replenish things once people start ordering off the menu. Having had sushi in 35+ states though I can tell you that the place you went to is extremely innovative and has stuff I have never seen before. That menu was to die for. 🙂
Yeah, the menu was extensive which I really liked.. it’s nice ordering straight from the menu too, I feel it makes it fresher! But I also like the instant gratification of just grabbing something off the train 😉
Gah! I want sushi now!!!!!
Mmmmm…Johnny Depp is muy SEXY!!!! Orlando is starting to grow on me too 😉 He’s really nice whenever I see him on late night talk shows!
I know! He’s so yum, only he could carry off black eyeliner like that 😉
The plates of sushi certainly look better than the ones I had earlier on. Never a fan of those going round the belt, they always seem unfresh. You can just tell!
What’s the Green P plate about?
Yes! I’m always so anal, I peer closely at the ones going around to check if they’re fresh first, or I watch the chef like a hawk and see which plates he puts down, then I pick ’em up when they come round to me – hehehehehehe
Green P plates are just the final plates before you get your full license here
I wouldn’t worry too much about the RTA test – all of their computer tests are ridiculous, and pretty much just there to help them justify charging yet another fee…
I saw Pirates of the Carribean this afternoon, too. Some bits were okay, and I thought it was better than Superman Returns, but couldn’t take much more towards the end and walked out. Apparently the ending was imminent, but according to the ticket there was half an hour left. Glad my ticket was free. 😛
I really do usually like movies. I thought the first Pirates movie was good. I’m trying to figure out whether my sudden dislike for movies is me changing or Hollywood changing…
Perhaps the sushi place puts out a wider variety of plates on weekdays, since they’re busier? Is that place the one on Victoria avenue sort of near Chatswood Chase, perhaps across the road from the Apple store?
Yeah, the tests there are a bit strange, and you generally wouldn’t even act like that in real life anyway! The $$ is just insane, esp if you fail and have to repeat :X
Yep, Pirates was better than Superman IMHO too.. but I was more keen on the 1st one – it made me go all ga ga and eager to see the 2nd, but the 2nd doesn’t make me feel lik ethat for the 3rd.
I think the sushi place you described above IS Makoto 🙂 the one that has more variety is Sushi Train, which is next to Create Cafe, just outside that huuuuge escalator coming down from the cinemas. they’re really good, and cheap too!
Like I had to Google “Green P plates” too. And what exactly does the “Hazard Perception test” entail? It’s interesting to see how different countries have different licensing requirements.
And what exactly does the “Hazard Perception test” entail?
Tapping on the computer screen to prove to the RTA that you still have a pulse and a body temperature above 10 degrees celcius. 🙂
Incidentally, I thought I had failed mine, too. I had done things in the test that would have resulted in accidents in real life. I passed.
Heh yes, the test is a bit strange.
It’s basically poking the computer screen when you feel it’s safe to make a turn, etc, in the video playing in front of you. And you do it for around 20 situations or something like that. but it’s REALLY tricky as when you poke the screen, suddenly they’ll have a person walk out or show you a speed sign or whatever.
Now I want some sushi!
I love sushi, one of my fave foods 🙂 PLus we needed some healthy food, since lunch was laksa and chicken rice *oops*!
The sushi all looks so yummy!
I think it’s normal for sushi train places not to have a lot of interesting sushi out on the train since they are usually more expensive and less people order them? When I go, I usually order most sushi from the menu rather than pick them up from the train 🙂
At other sushi trains here though, they have pretty much the whole selection going around, not just 5 dishes! Even in SG, they have far far more going around.. dunno why, maybe the chefs coudln’t be bothered 😉
I know I could probably gooogle it, but what Green P plates? A special driving designation. Anyhow, all the sushi looks so good.
Here, we get our L plates first, then our red P, then green P, then full license.. the whole process takes over 3 years and at each stage, they charge you $$$ to take a test to progress to the next one. It’s just a money making machine, IMHO 😉