kambei japanese restaurant

always high quality food and experience. i love everything about kambei - the atmosphere, quality and authenticity. the setmenuis recommended and a great way to experience traditional meals i would otherwise not know to order. the service is always exceptional!

kambei is the best restaurant in ballarat. this is the must place you should go if you are after authentic japanese. the food is amazingly fresh - especially sashimi. i selected their coursemenuwhich restaurant staff recommended. i was glad to take their recommendation. i enjoyed the beautiful food and nice friendly service. i will definitely visit this restaurant again!

i somehow found myself dining at this quaint little japanese restaurant this past valentine's day. thinking about it now, i'm wondering how i found myself in such a position... oh wait, that's right. i have a girlfriend now, hahaha!

anyway, the gentle souls at kambei were serving a valentine's day setmenuwhich we -- yes, we -- decided to try out.

the sashimi, seaweed, maki and miso soup were all great. the beef on the other hand... well let's just say it wasn't really anything special. to me anyway, because i'm asian and i feel like i've eaten that kind of stir fried beef too many times to count in my life that it's just become something... meh. the decor is nice and fancier than mcdonald's, which is a plus if you are like me and have a girlfriend (if i was single i'd gladly go to mcdonald's, every day in fact.. but alas, i didn't choose the boyfriend life, the boyfriend life chose me).

being possibly the only authentic japanese restaurant in ballarat, i would recommend these folks. pop in and say konichiwa if you are so inclined. wait, is that inappropriate?

a nice option for lunch when heading to sovereign hill, as an alternative to a pie and chips. just need to grab an exit pas from the post office before leaving sovereign hill. nice and friendly service. the lunchmenuis all lunch sets with option of salmon teriyaki, chicken teriyaki, and tempura with miso soup, rice, and pickle. all food was very delicious.

on a recent trip to ballarat, we booked in for lunch at late notice. they were very accommodating on the phone and we were greeted warmly on arrival. there were only two service staff on and it was reasonably busy. a little disappointing to be offered a limitedmenubut when i enquired we were offered the full a la cart menu, although they did not have sushi on the lunch menu, the kitchen was very accommodating and made sushi for my children.

overall the quality of food was very good, particularly for a regional restaurant, the only disappointing point was that the sashimi plate - although incredibly fresh and fantastically presented, the fish itself was cut too thick.

i highly recommend this restaurant to people who are visiting ballarat and for locals alike!

amazing!!. kambei is an amazing restuarant - definitely one of ballarat's best, if not the best! i have been here with my family, and it's always a delightful experience. the food is amazing - definitely get sashimi, no questions asked. it is so delicious. the setmenuis always delightful, and i've also enjoyed the lunch menu. the staff are incredibly friendly, and the service is always impeccable. the ambience is perfect, and i'll definitely be back. thanks kambei!

this is the best japanese you're going to get in ballarat. the restaurant is quiet and clean, the food is delicious and the setmenuus great value for money. i highly recommend this for a great night out.

best japanese restaurant anywhere. we had our wedding anniversary dinner here on tuesday night. we had the dai kambei banquetmenuwhich was amazing. the ambience of the restaurant is warm and quiet, the service is attentive and impeccable. i happily watched the maitre d do the best wine service and decant on a bottle of vintage wine brought by another customer.

my husband was not able to eat the dessert due to a food allergy and the kitchen was wonderful to supply us with a delicious yuzu granita in it's place with no issue.

i will be returning to the kambei for all major celebrations for as long as they are open.

i highly recommend this restaurant, in fact i cannot recommend it highly enough.


-----11 jun, 2013-----

amazing!. just finished dinner here, had the dei kambei set menu.

the food is amazing, the service is wonderful and lovely ambience as well. 10/10

fantastic restaurant. authentic, delicious japanese food. as good as any japanese food i've had in melbourne, and rivaling what i ate in japan. we ordered the $40 weekend setmenuand were more than satisfied with the quantity. smart, professional and friendly service in a lovely setting. can't wait to go again!

authentic and delicious. we stayed overnight in ballarat and felt like a japanese feast. our hotel was just down the road from the restaurant so we wandered down and were absolutely blown away by the food and the value.
we had the $40 set weekdaymenuand were not left wanting. each course was delicious and well presented. each dish was explained also.
we spent a month in japan earlier this year and this ranks up amongst the best japanese food we have had.
our only criticism would be that each course was brought out too quickly.
would definitely recommend and if we're ever up that way again would definitely return.

brilliant. we'd seen many a good and enthusiastic review for kambei and had almost decided to visit when i realised that they have a setmenufriday and saturday nights. for me this conjures up images of poorly prepared meals and mothers day dinners at local pubs and i almost let it put me off visiting. fortunately i didn't and so on friday night we made a booking for our usual group of 2 adults and 2 boys 14 and 11.

our visit to kambei certainly ranked as one of the best i have ever had to a japanese restaurant. the food was of very high quality, excellently prepared, pleasantly served and completely enjoyed. there were a couple of optional tasters in addition to the setmenuwhich we also sampled. whilst the eel was not to the taste of our party - it was still a good dish. it was us that let the eel down rather than the other way around. so do not let the fri/sat fixedmenuput you off.

i should also mention the "chicken and rice" on the kids menu. the youngest elected not to try the fixedmenuand opted for this instead - and then had a second serve. this dish was far and away the best kidsmenudish i have ever seen in any restaurant anywhere. if my youngest could have licked the plate clean he would have. for a more timid diner not wishing to face "japanese" foods of his fellow diners this would be a good option!

the wine list is excellent and includes sake (of course) as well as far less common (in australian japanese restaurants) japanese beverages.

like the thai restaurant in bendigo that we visited the previous night this restaurant in ballarat was well worth the drive - and since we had come from adelaide this is really saying something!

went to kambei for the first time in june. our group had the setmenuat just under $40 - it was incredible value, very authentic and the service was excellent. everyone voted the sashimi as the star dish - three types of the freshest fish with daikon, wasabi and a dipping sauce plus two side dishes. this was followed by tempura like salmon and vegetables (delicious) then rice and miso with a beef dish that was the only disappointment. byo is $10 a bottle but the wines sold are very reasonable (a number of wines are from $28-$32). we will go again and try the a la cartemenuwhich looks amazing.

we chose to eat at kambei after reading the great reviews (especially the review by mel, a well-known ballarat food critic). kambei did not disappoint. the food was amazing (agree that the setmenuis a good option), the staff attentive and helpful. i appreciated that the staff explained what each dish was and how it was prepared as it was served. it helped me to expand my knowledge of japanese cuisine and i imagine it would help someone eating japanese food for the first time to understand what they are eating. would travel from melbourne just to eat here. highly recommend.

magnificent. we are so pleased to have a proper japanese dining experience in ballarat - as opposed to the "miscellaneous asian with extra soy sauce" style eateries that claim to be authentic japanese.
brilliant service, delicious food and two very satisfied diners.

take the set coursemenuand enjoy every single bite.

this restaurant is fantastic! authentic, delicious and excellent service. the setmenucourse is top pick. very surprised to find a real japanese restaurant in the suburbs of ballarat - please support this new place, its a gem!! 5 stars!