masu by nic watt

after rave reviews i was left very disappointed.

the seats for starters are too low for the table, making it difficult to relax.

the food was ok, just ok. at $296 for two i was expecting excellence.

service was great however , although was a little strange that we had 7 different waiters/waitresses delivering our food throughout the night.

i will not be going back for dinner, maybe the sashimi though.

the french cafe is better value for money in my eyes.

the best in auckland! i went with three foodies and they all agreed. we rated it and three of us gave it a 10 and one gave it a 9.5 because "there's always room for improvement." we've been everywhere (french cafe, vinnies, clooney, the grill, the grove, etc) and this place beats them all. first, the atmosphere is great. very modern, chic but welcoming and relaxed. the bar is fabulous with cocktails to die for...very refreshing with surprising mixes. the azure sake was a revelation. google it! the black cod that they fly in (kept at a certain temperature and not frozen) from alaska was orgasmic. it's a must. all of us had sake, cocktails and heaps of food including the dessert platter and the bill was only $140 per person. that is not bad at all for auckland and a steal for the best in auckland. the waiter was japanese and very proud and knowledgeable about the food and really enjoyed explaining the dishes as they were presented to the table. he added that extra something to the experience that put this place over the top. nic watt was there and we made sure to thank him. he was very cordial and seemed to genuinely appreciate our comments. this is the way dining should always be!

make reservations early because after winning the metro's best restaurant and best new restaurant this place is not easy to get in to.

i have been to masu several times and tonight did not disappoint! we had the chief's selection of 8 sashimi, pickles for two and black cod amongst other things. the black cod was incredible, the true highlight and my dining friend rated it and he has had it fresh before in north america. the service was attentive, the atmosphere just buzzing especially sitting at the grill area. we also had four rounds of sake curated for us by a lovely senior staffer who proceeded to explain the regions and the style of manufacture. all round, this was a fantastic evening.

have been wanting to tick this restaurant off my bucket list.i did on my birthday.we arrived for lunch with the restaurant half full.service was brilliant .i was guided through the sake menu to ensure i enjoy something to suite my taste bud. the miso soup was great as per usual,spicey edemame beans were really good.the tempura veges were crunchy and fresh but the sause that went along lacked flavour.the prawn dumplings were the highlight and the scrumptious sause was veru tasty.the balanese baby chciken had a great amount of herb falvours and the lamb cutlets were spicey and moist and cooked amazingly.
we didnt have room for desserts but was still presented with a little birthday dessert.
i wasnt disappointed:).

had the buffet lunch !! the choice was limited and although the sashimi was relatively fresh there is nothing special so i guess i would recommend the resturant for its decor rather than its food!!

came in to masu with the family for lunch and we were highly impressed. we didn't even know what to order because there was so much to choose from and something for everyone. the servers were extremely nice and made sure our table was always clean and that we were happy. we ordered the 'yasai uramaki' maki rolls which were vegie sushi rolls with - avocado, green bean, ginger, cucumber and carrot. they were so good we ordered another roll straight after. we got both of the edamame beans, the normal ones and the chilli garlic sesame ones. my parents had 2 beef tatakis and they were raving about them. we also had the 'crayfish tacos' and my dad ordered so many because he loved them. then we got: the steamed rich with masu seasoning and the seasoning was incredible!!!!! we got ginger miso eggplant, bbq'd green beans, teriyaki glazed kumara, chicken skewers &  lamb cutlets and shared everything and it all tasted amazing. for dessert we got the famous 'cedar roasted marrou- chocolate and hazelnut pudding, umeshu ice cream' and the 'shiromiso pavlova' and they both were nice but the choc pudding was amazing. the food is also so pretty and so good for photos. 100% recommend :)) friendly staff & amazing food. definitely going to be back very soon.

went to masu with my wife to celebrate our wedding anniversary. it was a faultless evening! the food was amazing as we sampled from throughout the menu - sashimi to start, then red chilli tiger prawns, scampi tempura, eggplant, black cod and the beef fillet. no wonder the black cod is the signature dish - it just melts in your mouth. the tiger prawn was my favourite so i had to order a second one. on to desserts where we tried the chawan mushi and maccha to banana no pafe - both very original but highlighted and complemented by the sparkling sake mio which was recommended by the waiting staff ((who by the way were exceptional). overall, a perfect evening hence my rating of 5.

very excited to dine here!

dined here for a dear friends birthday! now the restaurant itself is beautiful and spacious. well staffed and we were seated.

the menu is. . is strange. the menu is designed for sharing so for a table of 6, it was a bit of mission but our waitress was so lovely and set up tabs for us individually or as couples.

browsing through the menu, there was only a few highlights for me. i loved the crab dishes, the taco, hot pot and leg! also loved the salmon tataki.
the hot pot was definitely my favourite, generous servings of crab meat, caviar, and rice. this dish was the most filling.

very well balanced flavours but portions are on the smaller side.

friend along the table did enjoy their dishes but for the price of each dish. . i was expecting a little more in terms of portion size.

would i be back? definitely for the hot pot but other than that i'm glad i tried and maybe in the foreseeable future.

we planed to go to masu for my birthday. we ordered a selection of dishes which included chicken skewers, rice with masu seasoning, salmon maki rolls and a cauliflower dish. everything was immaculately displayed and tasted extraordinary. 

for dessert i had a selection of ice cream and sorbet. both the presentation and taste were out of this world. if you have a special occasion i recommend you come here.

feel like something fancy?

masu japanese robata restaurant and bar has been receiving a load of buzz lately. it’s taken out a load of metro magazine 2014 restaurant awards recently too.

last weekend i was fortunate enough to hear we would be heading to masu for a family dinner. typical last minute plans became what was one of the best dinner experiences i’ve had in a long time - which is why my review is a 5.

the attached picture is the “plumberry sawa” – and it is a divine cocktail. i’m getting cravings just thinking about it. masu has a fantastic drinks list. cocktails, wine, sake, beer…

how about the menu? it’s designed so you order many small dishes and they just continue to roll out from the kitchen. because we were a group of 7 and we all love to eat we ordered loads:

fresh sashimi, chicken wing skewers, chicken yakitori, baby chicken, delicious spicy tuna sushi, the black cod, beef, gyoza, kumara with teriyaki glaze, tempura… i’m probably forgetting some. let’s just say it was a continuous stream of tastiness and everything was amazing. the black cod is a stand out - it came recommended by our waitress and we were all raving about it when we left. the service here was really helpful overall just great.

now, the dessert menu! i got the sesame elderflower pannacotta. don’t be intimidated by the dessert options – my brother got the tofu cheesecake and man it was amazing. it’s not like eating actual tofu (i’m not a tofu fan).

you know a meal’s good when everyone won’t shut up about it afterwards.

be adventurous and you will be rewarded!

jenna
http://hellorelax.com

really enjoyed masu, all the dishes ordered were done to perfection. awesome service as always and beautiful drinks. however the matcha brownie dessert i found was overly sweet and therefore could not finish otherwise was a perfect meal!

let’s start this review by letting you know that this to date is the best restaurant i tried in new zealand, every aspect of our dining experience was perfect, the food, the staff, the location, communications and all. masu is a japanese robata restaurant and bar located in federal street. located beside the grill by sean connolly, depot, huami and gusto at the grand, this place is located in a prime dining precinct of auckland’s cbd.

outstanding!
just got in on shared table without booking on a friday night! in a hurry to make a show an food was surprisingly speedy!!
we ordered the signature blackened cod with miso; was delightfully tasty an succulent centre with a charred outside cooked in a banana leaf although eater overpriced for the small dish. also got the hapuka which was also tasty an cooked perfectly an accompanied by a small salad garnish an avocado. the eggplant miso was delicious an juicy an the broccoli nice, the prawn leg was a little overrated as wasn't a fan of the sauce/cheese like stuff on top, however other whole king prawn with chilli was very very tasty! all round very delicious food but a little frustrating how everything comes out separately so some dishes begin to get cold. a little pricy but never the less very tasty good quality find!

excellent food. everything was outstanding but for those prices i would expect nothing less.

sashimi is stunning and the wagyu is melt in your mouth heaven. for two people we ordered six dishes which was enough. small sashimi, wagyu, eggplant, spinach salad, kingfish tataki and black cod.

kudos to the service and kitchen team. we had an 8pm show and they had us out by 7.30pm and we sat for a 6.30 booking.

a group of us went to masu one sunday night for dinner. the place was busy and there seemed to be plenty of staff to look after everyone. a friend whom had eaten there before chose the table. it was suggested to the waitress to give us a mix of dishes and we would say when we had enough. we were disappointed with a number of the dishes especially the prawns as they had so much chilli it was super super hot and not enjoyable at all. most of the other dishes were average. tempura veg were nice as was the spinach salad. when we said that was enough food we were told there is more coming and it can't be stopped. lesson learnt don't do that here at masu. couple of bottles of felton road pinot noir 05 went down well. certainly won't rush back and if we do we will definitely order ourselves and not get their help. not sure why they won restaurant of the year.