Torrisong is a Japanese restaurant that recently opened in the city and whether you like sashimi, yakitori, rice bowls, dessert or sake, they have it all. They also house a good selection of Japanese beers. Handpicking seasonal produce from the market each day is their jam, so the menu can alter depending on the freshness and availability of the vegetables, meat and seafood on offer that day. This ensures top quality ingredients but also means that there are a limited number of dishes so you can order what’s available until they run out. This just means whatever you choose will be super fresh and super tasty.
The decor is sleek, modern and minimalistic.
We started with the Torissong fried cauliflower which had a light deep-fried tempura batter and was glazed with a sweet and spicy sauce, topped with spring onions. I love when vegetables taste this good.
The tataki tuna was fresh yellow fin tuna seared on the outside and raw (like sashimi) in the middle. It came with some creamy avo slices and a citrisy ponzu gel which complimented it well.
I love kingfish and this sashimi Harimasa king fish was delightful. It had was paired with some pickled seaweed and cucumber and topped with miso yuzu kosho which is kind of like a Japanese salsa with savoury and citrus flavours.
The grilled squid was simple but delicious. It was soft and had an awesome charred flavour and was served with wasabi mayo and a squeeze of lime.
The baked camembert was baked with honey so the cheese was melted and had a sweetness to it and was served with a sweet soft milk bun. I’m not sure if this is Japanese but who cares it was fantastic.
We had the chef selected yakitori set where you get a selection of five different pieces of yakitori. Otherwise you can hand-pick which yakitori skewers you want individually if you prefer. All of them, delish.
When there’s a chicken katso sando on the menu I can’t help but order it. It’s basically a chicken schnitzel sandwich, Japanese style. Soft bread with a fillet of juicy chicken breast coated in crunchy panko with a bit of lettuce and some wasabi mayo. What dreams are made of.
The Tasmanian wild clover grilled ox tongue was sliced thinly and grilled over charcoal so it had a really nice flavour and I totally forgot it was actually tongue. Didn’t taste very offal-like at all which was good for me.
The pork belly chashu don had slices of tasty chashu pork belly with a teriyaki glaze, onsendamago (slow cooked egg) nori and house pickled ginger on a bed of rice. Definitely what I would order for myself if I popped in for lunch.
For dessert we had a smooth chocolate mousse with crispy gold farro and dehydrated candied clementine.
Some cheese. It was a special cheese from Switzerland called Tate de Moine which was shaved on a round wheel block that cuts paper-thin shavings which is fun to watch and helps develop the odour and flavour of the cheese which is subtle and delicate.
And to end, we had the matcha ice-cream bun. The homemade matcha ice cream had a good kick of matcha and there were crunchy caramel peanuts thrown in and sandwiched in a Hokkaido milk bun which was super soft. A nice way to end our Japanese feast.
I heart Torrisong!
Olives x
Torrisong
Address: Shop2/143 Queensberry St, Carlton VIC 3053
Website: https://www.facebook.com/torissongmelbourne/
Phone: (03) 9029 5922
Trading hours: Mon-Fri: 11.30am-3pm (lunch), 5.30pm-10.30pm (dinner), Sat: 5.30pm-10.30, Sun: 5.30pm-11pm
