First look: A surprising ingredient takes centre stage at this new Japanese restaurant

Sushi, ramen and teriyaki have long dominated Melbourne’s Japanese dining landscape, while other staples of the cuisine have lingered in the margins. Oden – a hotpot of fish cakes, daikon and tofu where the broth is key – is one of the wallflowers.

It’s surfaced sporadically, mostly at pop-ups run by homesick expats or at casual stalls like Now-Oden in the CBD. But Melbourne has never had a restaurant devoted to the dish until now.

Oden, from the team behind two-hatted kaiseki restaurant Ishizuka, officially opens on Bourke Street on September 5. Owner Melanie Zhang says the goal is to create a relaxed counterpart to her first restaurant and introduce a dish unfamiliar to many Australians, much as she did with the kaiseki fine-dining format when she opened Ishizuka eight years ago.

“I feel like Melbourne is ready for the next challenge,” she says.

In Japan, oden traditionally simmers in a soy and bonito broth, often for hours at a time. Here, executive chef Katsuji Yoshino and head chef Saki Yamamoto, who both grew up with the dish in Tokyo, are offering two lighter broths.

There’s a clear, savoury soup made from Great Ocean Road duck bones, kelp and bonito; and a 12-hour chicken, dashi, kelp and bonito blend. Both are seasoned only with salt, not soy sauce.

The shift is an attempt to refresh the 600-year-old dish for a new audience, following the path of new-wave oden shops in Japan.

“Recently in Tokyo, everyone is doing a chicken stock base for the younger generation,” Yoshino says.

Previous SlideNext Slide

While Oden is humbler than its sibling Ishizuka, it’s just as refined in its execution. Unlike street stalls, where ingredients can stew until their flavour and texture fade, most items here are made in-house and prepared to order before being placed in broth.

Diners are encouraged to build a bowl from two or three elements – perhaps translucent shirataki noodles, house-made prawn balls flecked with edamame and tobiko (flying fish roe), and abalone.

Those who want guidance can order a signature bowl: one features daikon crowned with a slice of foie gras; another has a rolled eel omelette that nods to Yoshino’s grandparents’ eel restaurant in Tokyo.

There are grilled skewers too – wagyu, ocean trout with roe, chicken yakitori – but the focus remains firmly on the pot. Dessert is a single choice: a petite pudding (or purin, as it’s known in Japan) quivering in a pool of dark caramel.

The 38-seat space, once a real estate office, has been transformed by architects Russell & George, also responsible for Society and Yakimono. Copper accents echo traditional oden pots and a grid ceiling recalls the segmented vessels used to separate ingredients. Diners can settle into booths or perch at the bar for a view of the open kitchen.

The drinks list, developed with Nick Tesar (co-owner of Marionette Liqueur), centres on crisp, unfussy highballs made with local and Japanese spirits – designed to complement rather than overshadow the broth. There’s also a sake range curated by sommelier Marie Chiba, who oversees the list at Ishizuka, and a concise offering of Victorian wines.

Oden is currently open for walk-ins until its official opening day.

Lunch and dinner daily.

Ground level, 137 Bourke Street, Melbourne, theoden.com.au