Chocolate Buddha

What better way to see in the end of a looooooong Monday working day, than dinner at this wonderful restaurant, with some of the most gorgeous ex-​work colleagues a speechie could wish for? The service at Chocolate Buddha has always been attentive and friendly; the food exceptionally fresh, perfectly portioned, and delicious; with staff happy to offer suggestions, & patiently wait as we split the bill & fumble with PIN numbers — tonight was no exception. I chose vegan options from the main menu, with the edamame, tempura pumpkin rolls, and miso soup hitting both the taste and aesthetic spot. The food here is truly a thing of beauty! Added bonus to be located in Federation Square — so easy access by train /​tram, & a pretty stunning city view (well, part of Melbourne city view) as dusk turns into night. The only slightly sad thing if you have a sweet tooth & are of the vegan inclination, is the lack of dessert options on the menu. In the scheme of the broader Chocolate Buddha experience however, you really won’t mind!

Let’s hang with the tourists on a busy Wednesday night at Federation Square.
Sashimi don
Broccoli Gamae-​ae
Vegetable Maki
Kingfish maki
Ramen
Chocolate spring rolls
Great service and the food was all delicious. This place is right by fed square so you get to enjoy the view and enjoy great food. What more could you want?!

This restaurant has a great location (right in Federation Square). I was impressed with the delicacy and care with which the food was made and presented. Never experienced communal Japanese dining before, but it was a cool experience. However, be advised: it is quite pricey.
Let’s break it down:
Edamame: good. Edamame almost always is.
Kingfish and salmon roll appetizer: delicious! One of my favorite dishes.
Tempura soft shell crab salad: this dish wasn’t really salad; the vegetables were vastly outweighed by the noodles and crab, plus it was bit too spicy for me.
Sashimi don: delicious, but ratio of rice to sashimi was way off. Too much rice, to be precise.
Spicy/​shake ramen: thoroughly decent.
Overall, walked away feeling pretty satisfied! I suppose it was a 3.5 star experience with the price, but most of the food tasted great so it’s bumped up a bit.

Excellent service, but food far from amazing. Does the job, just not impressive considering the price. Guess you pay for the location here, not the food. Been thrice now over the years and have the same experience each time. In a nutshell it’s the kind of place you’re happy enough to go back to when a friend is organising dinner, but you wouldn’t pick it yourself.

Not bad for a bite to eat at Federation Square. I suggest you take the approach of ordering share plates in in a group.
Service can be a bit spotty, especially if they are busy outside. Food should not arrive before the drinks!

Nice place with good views. Not the best Japanese food I’ve had. Avoid the chicken karaage. Probably the worst I’ve had. Very floury batter which made it taste a little gluggy and very little chicken content. The soft shell crab salad is very nice. Best thing about this restaurant is the location and views. Oh, and the service is good.

Must have changed ownership, very disappointing and nothing like it used to be. I would rank the food as an example of the worst Japanese I’ve eaten.

What a shame it is that this restaurant takes up such great location and view. I went here with a group of friends for what we expected would be a quick bite and drink before seeing a show. We waited over 40 minutes for our food, asked multiple staff members when it would come, none followed up on our requests. When our food finally arrived we were really disappointing. In a nutshell: small serves of over priced mediocre food. Their ‘ramen’ was a joke; Maggi noodle equivalent, canned corn and powdered stock.
Would not go here again. For much better Asian cuisine in Mlb CBD try Kokoro on Lonsdale St… or basically anywhere else.

Great loc. Excellent service. Tasty food. Went there with a group of internationals. The bento boxes were great and looked amazing. A little over priced but I would go back again.

Chocolate Buddha was the lunch go today and I can honestly say I was underwhelmed. The wait staff got the orders wrong twice and it was not busy at all so that wasn’t the reason for the lacklustre service. As for the food well I can say for the price I probably would like my teriyaki don to be a little more flavorful and chickeny rather than the huge bowl of white rice I got with a small portion of chicken. The highlight was the lotus root crisps but even then I wouldn’t be rushing back in a hurry to grab those.
Mediocre food in my opinion and bad service experience leaves me not keen to head back. I might have hit and off day but cannot say I would rush back to find out.

I cannot count how many times I have eaten here. And I’ve been for every occasion: date nite, a quick bit before a concert or game at the G, catching up with friends and family.
Initially I wasn’t too keen on the whole share tables and food coming whenever it’s ready, not necessarily ‘entrée’ and then ‘main’ but now I think these are parts of Chocolate Buddha’s charm.
Sitting on share tables means you can easily see what others have ordered which can help you decide what you want, and the food coming as it is ready means there is an element of surprise!
Often there is a soft shell crab roll which we always get and the edamame which comes in a range of flavours. The sushi is always fresh and the hot dishes never disappoint.
In the warmer months (when it’s not too hot) I love having a seat outside and watching the sky change color as the sun goes down and the world walk by.

Chocolate Buddha is easy to find, its glass walls exposes an open area with plenty of indoor and outdoor seating. It’s convenient, next to ACMI and situated in Fed Square.
Other than this, there’s really not much else going for the place.
The name, why it’s called Chocolate Buddha is hard to tell. There’s no chocolate anywhere, and there’s lots of Buddha statues, and it serves Japanese food. I’m confused even writing this review.
The menu looks good at first glance, but unfortunately nothing special once you’ve tasted them. My eggplant was bland and undercooked, my salmon tasted plain, and worst of all, the meal was expensive.
Save your money and go elsewhere.

Don’t let the name decieve you. I first stumbled across the Chocolate Buddha almost 10years ago in search of chocolate. Instead I ended up in a Japanese restaurant with a lot of potential. Which has never been truly grasped and thrown out to the rest of the world.
After nearly a 5yr absence I took a rather sad friend here for a quick meal and pick me up. The menu has changed to a more izakya style, with dishes designed to be shared. We were informed by a fresh faced waiter that this change has just happened. Other than a large entrée menu and smaller general menu I couldn’t see this.
The thing to remember is this place is Japanese inspired. Not a Japanese restaurant. The dishes are simple and reasonably priced. The dishes are far more inner suburb then CBD high-​class.
The highlight for me in the simple seating and menu message. Dishes arrive as they are ready, not when the tables entire order is ready. So enjoy while it’s hot!
A serve of edamame, yakotori chicken and wafu steak was suficent food for two. Both dishes came with rice. Surprisingly the yakotori chicken arrived on a bed of rice and spinach leaves. For $ 49 it was a reasonable price for a meal in the CBD, late on a Friday night.
I wont be rushing back anytime soon.

It’s not that the Japanese food here is bad, or that the service is horrible. It’s just it’s not worth what you pay for it. You really are just paying for a venue and not the food.

I’ve read the other reviews and while the criticism can sometime be fair, I’ve given it a higher score for personal reasons. Chocolate Buddha is a favorite for date, because my wife and I can sit close to each other (not at a face-​to-​face 2 seat table) and both watch the sights and activity of Federation Square (TIP: NEVER get seated at an internal communal table, WAIT for an outside or window seat).
We have never been disappointed with the food but admit that it is an Anglo-​ised version of Japanese, and it is overpriced. However we find that the superb location, free entertainment in Fed Square and easy access to the river and Hoddle Grid it makes a great, easy date night.

Japanese food. Modern and nice atmosphere but food is only ok. Pumpkin sushi rocks but everything else is ok. Expensive!

I would love to be more positive about Chocolate Buddha, but my last two experiences have left me wishing I had chosen somewhere else. I am a huge fan of Japanese food and eat it pretty regularly. perhaps I have been spoiled by Izakaya Den and Kenzan @ GPO.
It’s not terrible but it’s not amazing either.

Basically an overpriced Wagamama.
For those of you unfamiliar with Wagamama, it’s a Japanese chain found in the UK and elsewhere that you sit at large communal tables and eat decent dishes somewhat on the cheap. Chocolate Buddha isn’t cheap and the service is worse. Tourist trap. The food isn’t bad but I’ve never paid so much for a bowl of udon. $ 28 AUD! Much better finds elsewhere. The décor and view are interesting but you get the distinct feeling you’re paying for the location and not the food itself. Service was terrible – 20 minutes just to get some water.

I’ve been in here a total of twice. First time, I just passed by and took a look at their menu — and their prices. Too much for my tiny university-​student budget. The second time it was my birthday and I figured that I’m just going to treat myself to a massively expensive meal with absolutely no care for the consequences. Birthday entitlement? You bet.
Customer Service: Actually really really good. All of the servers were incredibly kind, courteous, and attentive. The restaurant was pretty popular so I figured that my food would arrive a bit late but it actually came decently fast which was a pleasant surprise.
Ambiance: Very trendy. After all, it’s in Federation Square which is a lot more classy and high-​end than the typical little café in a laneway. You have a nice view of Federation Square, and the restaurant is brightly lit so everything seems really fresh.
Food: I ordered Nabeyaki Udon and Edamame.
Edamame: Was kinda weird actually. Not horrible, just not what I’m used to. A bowl of Edamame, heated up and sprinkled with salt. Typically I’m more used to Edamame served cold which is honestly what I prefer but that’s okay.
Nabeyaki Udon: Pretty good. A tempura shrimp, chicken, poached egg, veggies, and shitake mushrooms in udon soup. The serving was pretty large and filling and all of it was pretty delicious.
—
2 stars off for the value. The food was good, but definitely not worth the prices. You can probably find better Japanese restaurants that are far more delicious than this place. I probably wouldn’t come here again, honestly. But the food was alright.

Chocolate Buddha has a great setting and atmosphere.
On the edge of Federation Square and occupying a large amount of space the restaurant is decorated with the namesake in various sizes, and modern-​meets-​japanese fixtures.
Its setting is perfect for a quick meal on the go, and opposite Flinders Street Station it is perfect for a quick stop if you are on your way in or out of the CBD.
Long tables and a simple menu makes for carefree and relaxed dining.
Service is relaxed too and not as efficient as it could be. When the restaurant is busy you may struggle to get served, but the staff are well meaning and the setting distracts you away from any bother.
The tempura and teriyaki are consistent, and the gyoza tasty, but the restaurant can’t seem to hit the subtleties or innovation that modern Japanese cuisine embraces.
Chocolate Buddha is a great place if you are on your way somewhere in the CBD and don’t have time to explore.
If it’s high quality Japanese food you are after then you may need to look somewhere else.