Waqu Japanese Restaurant

really attentive staff, took great care of us and even let us know cooking times
food was amazing — the lamb was great!

Great food, nice dim lighting, affordable, great service (very standard. But nothing unpleasant).
Their salmon was just to die for! Enjoyed their 6 course tasting menu!

I love how Waku sticks to traditions and brings a great sense of culture.
The food is good, but nothing that would blow critics away. The sake selection impresses more.
You pay for an experience here which is always worth it if you have prepared yourself for that and don’t have unrealistic expectations.
Incredible place for a date, or a group of people, however, like most SYD restaurants, good service does vary. Be prepared for a hit or miss either way.

Disappointing.
First thing first: The website for Waqu needs to be updated so that the menu online is the same in the restaurant.
The selection is poor and is a perfect representation of a «modern Japanese» restaurant that is confused and excels at none of the different styles of Japanese cuisine. We ordered several dishes (2 tempura dishes, king prawn, scallop sashimi, wagyu steak, duck breast, chicken fillet, green tea dessert and chocolate mousse). None were outstanding. I feel like if you just want to experience a somewhat okay steak, salty easy appeal food or high end mcflurry style dessert this place is okay. However, for the price tag and the flavors… this place was a huge disappointment.
The prawns were super dry, the tempura dishes were nothing special, the scallop sauce was horrendous, the chicken fillet tasted like a simple barbecue fillet, the Wagyu steak (medium rare) was swimming in blood, the green tea dessert was a oreo green tea McFlurry and the chocolate mousse was three brownies, a 2 cm piece of bannana and some fancy concoction that tasted like nothing.
Now, I hate being this harsh but for a restaurant that has great reviews online this is well deserved. I understand how innovation is interesting and appealing but I draw the line at innovation that rests on sounding good but tasting horrible (or just relying on how normal deep fried and/​or salty food taste).
A very sub par place for confused food. Would recommend Sokyo instead.

Waqu remains one of our favourite degustation restaurants. The flavour combinations and the intricacies presented on each and every plate would have you believe you’re dining at a restaurant with world class reviews, but without the price tag. An experience we have only ever thoroughly enjoyed and will continue to venture back to as a local degustation favourite.

Well I was just going to write loooooooove but apparently someone beat me to it. I went here on a date and obviously he impressed me with this place, he impresses me anyways but the food was delicious. We started with some warm sake and sashimi and had the flash fried prawns, salad 10 ways (which is just vegetables but nice), octopus (a bit chewy) and the tempura mushrooms (delicious). Then we shared a wagyu steak and it was unreal. So tender and perfect and it comes with a few salts and sauces to try which were also a nice treat. The server was friendly and the table was intimate enough despite being sat next to someone. We certainly enjoyed our time here and I just want that steak again.
Go here, do it, you deserve it… and bring a date or treat a friend!

Service: ³⁄₅
Food: ³⁄₅
Money: ³⁄₅
Environment: ⁴⁄₅
The service was soso. No one was smiling inside. Food was ok. It is a little too expensive for its value. Not bad and not good. Very average.

We went to waqu a few weeks ago and decided to try the newly opened Kappo section which serves Japanese style tapas. The tapas dishes were pretty good albeit quite small.
We had ordered the foie gras, Japanese fried chicken, tempura mushrooms which were all good. We had also ordered the sashimi platter which was a standout with the fish being very fresh.
The biggest let down however was the mussel, clam and scallop taikikomi rice. The bottom of the rice was horribly burnt, not sure if this the way it is supposed to come out?.. But we were not fans.
Nice place to go for some Japanese tapas, with great service and ambiance.

Japanese kappo style food with an Aussie accent. I usually like traditional And authentic Japanese but waqu nails it Aussie style. The sashimi; especially the Tasmanian salmon was fantastic, snapper carpaccio was also good, the mussel, clam and scallop takikomi rice was absolutely great and the wedges with ginger aioli was marvellous.

Truly impressive, delicious and pleasant place for a diner. Great service and food!

The selection of local and international wines is really good. Try a perfect combination of a tasty meal and a glass of wine. You will have a great experience there.

My friend and I visited Waqu a few weeks ago for the first time. We went on a Wednesday evening where they have a discounted 5 course menu ($ 55 pp). I was impressed from the minute I arrived. As I was a vegetarian and my friend wasn’t they had set us each separate 5 course menus.
I thought the service was impeccable. We had several different staff throughout the course of our dinner. Each one was friendly, knowledgable on the menu and professional. The service felt streamlined and effortless.
The food was very nice. As with a fancier place the portions are smaller, but otherwise one would struggle to get through so many dishes. The presentation was great and each time the staff presented our dish they gave us a run through of what it was. The matching wines per meal was also a nice touch.
The ambience was great, quiet even though the restaurant was full. The lighting was perfect and we didn’t feel cramped or rushed.
By only tip for dining here. If you want tap water you must clearly specify. I wasn’t clear so the waitress served us expensive still water ($ 10 a pop). I was barely bothered though because the whole experience was so great. But if I went back again I’d be clear to get tap water. I’ve no need to spend $ 20 on water.

Great place to eat.
Unique environment, good service, and the meals are good.
I love the entrees.
Great sweet potato soup and nice crispy spicy baby crab.
They serve the steak on a tile…
The wagyu steak was not hot enough when its served and little bit salty…

Amazing place. The degustation menu is divine, augmented by friendly knowledgeable staff who explain each dish with expertise and an amazing sommelier. Incredible value too. This is seriously one of Sydney’s best secrets.

I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO­OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO­OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE THIS PLACE…
You probably haven’t heard of it right but I was lucky enough to be taken here for my birthday with my family and I loved it.
This restaurant is Japanese Degustation (yum) and there food is excellent (more awesome) their presentation is stunning (super cool) AND their staff are lovely (WOW) AND AND their prices are reasonable (YAY!!!)…
I can’t tell you enough how special this place is and if I could give it 6 stars i would… it’s completely underrated and unknown… so… i hope you grab some friends and discover their WAQU goodness for yourself, they’ll love you for it — it’s really really REALLY REALLY good!
Price review —
5 course menu ($ 60pp, $ 100pp with matching wine) and
6course menu ($ 75pp, $ 123pp with matching wine)
Amazing right? And when you see the food you’ll be even more happy!

This modern Japanese restaurant is a stand out from the usual Japanese restaurant that I’ve been to. I wasn’t expecting much when visiting this restaurant, however, it turned out very impressive. The food was very well presented and inventive. Tried out the degustation menu and enjoyed the overall experience. The degustation menu was very reasonable given the quality of food served. Food was fresh. Service was good. Great atmosphere and food!