Friday, July 27, 2007

Mikaku - Spawn of the Devil


Quite simply the most disgusting meal I have ever had.

I'm a sushi pig. Everyone knows that. And in general I'll eat anything not nailed down. But ...

Mikaku in Salamanca Place has been famous for its sushi buffet for years. Almost as famous is the filthy carpet and nauseating toilets. But hey, we'd figured we're not eating off the floor or the toilet, and so over the years the sushi buffet has been an occasional indulgence in gluttony for gluttony's sake.

That is, until a recent weekend.

We arrived just after opening. Being just after opening, we thought we'd be first-ish in line for a super-fresh sushi buffet hog-fest. Maybe God was trying to tell me something about gluttony (a bit late now), but instead of super-fresh sushi, this is what we found:

  1. The mayonnaise tasted tinny - was it off?
  2. The omelette atop the "egg sushi" was grey around the edges. How long had it sat there?
  3. The rice in each piece of sushi was stale.
  4. The tonic in my g & t was flat.
  5. And then there was the tuna ...
The "raw tuna" was chewy, very chewy. It was chewy for a very good reason. It wasn't tuna.

Sitting on the counter behind the sushi bar was a lump of silverside sitting in its open supermarket packaging. This is what was being sliced up and passed off as tuna.

Silverside.

Raw silverside.

For the sake of your health, for the sake of all that is holy, avoid this place. I'm of a mind to call the health inspector. Look out, here comes another wave of nausea!

GW

p.s. If you want sushi there are only two things you need to know:
  1. Orizuru in the Mure's complex
  2. Kawasemi in Moonah

Both have Japanese masters in the kitchen. The only authentic Japanese to be had in Hobart.

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

That is so nasty and totally unacceptable !!! You should definitely report them to the health authorities. I have never been there. But from what you have written I am very surprised nobody has reported them already. Yuck ……Yuck…..Yuck!!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Oh no!!! We were going there for our next monthly get together. Not now. After your rave about Golden Harbour and the review in todays paper, we might try there.
I wasn't feeling confident any way so this just confirms my fears.

Anonymous said...

I had a bad meal there last time HRB. Not off or suss, just very ordinary.
Yet, it had always been reliable before. What has happened?
Mind you, anyone who eats raw fish or steak tartare etc is just asking for trouble!
But. if sushi is your thing and the eatery advertises such, that's what you should get.
Sir Grumpy

Anonymous said...

Sushi Georgie?
Salmonella - Upset - Stomach - Hell - Incarnate.

Uncooked, not properly cured Fish with the harbinger of bacteria that is rice,Always best avoided unless you know who is serving it, how often the fridge door is opening and shutting etc.
Yea, on the face of it I'd report em.

Anonymous said...

I remember my only visit to Mikaku, last year (I was hungry for Japanese and Orizuru was fully booked).

Steamed dumplings were burnt on the base, made for an interesting crunch.

Sashimi was not fresh.

Caught a glimpse into the kitchen when paying the bill and was disgusted by the filthy pans and benchtops (and carpet).

Hence I've never been back.

I've noticed that Orizuru has been a little lacklustre lately though.

Might have to get my own fishing rod out, with wasabi for bait.

Anonymous said...

You mean you didn't find the seafood extender as well?! As if the carpets etc are not enough, this 'restaurant' is so truly dreadful, it should be investigated by the Salamanca Standards Police. Even a McDonalds would be better than this (just joking, folks).

Anonymous said...

How can this place tumble so far?
The Japanese are so clean and trustworthy when it comes to food.
I go for their soy sauce often and bonito powder, etc etc.
I am always confident of their standards.
So what has happened. Is it not being run by Japanese?
I can't see any honourable Japanese person allowing this.
A real mystery.

Sir Grumpy

Anonymous said...

Have been reading for several years but until today had nought to add - but today I have gossip! Mikaku is gone, gone, gone - one of you must have contacted the Health Dept, or someone equally disgusted individual did, and they were shut down forthwith. Owner of Ball and Chain (who owns the whole building) is currently refitting/rewiring, possibly as a new private dining room?

Shall return to lurking now, leaving all further revelations to our very own HRB
*bows*

Anonymous said...

[polite applause as Ginger exits stage left]

Anonymous said...

i have only 2 things to say...

1. They served me sushi made with WARM rice and gave me complimentary deep fried chicken..like wat the hell....

2. I heard that they are CLOSED. *applause*

Anonymous said...

Sounds worse than the Paella I had at Amigos in North Hobart. They spooned some tomato sauce on top of yellow rice. I asked if I ordered the correct dish and the reply was , "Thats how people like it here"

Anonymous said...

Some years ago I was involved in research into parasites found in the flesh of fish. The most notable were the Anasakid parasites which can be particularly nasty (depending where they lodge) in humans if consumed in uncooked fish cuisine such as sushi. The disease anasakiosis is well known amongst the Japanese. The results of the research suggested that farmed fish (in Tasmania being salmon and trout) were very unlikely to have any of these parasites, whereas wild caught fish, especially Striped Trumpeter certainly had them. So watchout for the crunch. Perhaps this would be one advantage of the possibly 'silverside' tuna.

Anonymous said...

A quick internet search indicates that Ginger's warning is not without substance. The following extracts were obtained from the site:

http://www.cmaj.ca/cgi/content/full/172/3/329

New food safety regulations for commercial establishments in Ontario require fish that is intended to be consumed raw to be frozen before preparation and serving to a temperature of –20°C or below for 7 days or to a temperature of –35°C for 15 hours. Deep freezing kills the larvae of the nemotode (roundworm) Anisakis simplex that may be embedded in the fish and prevents cases of anasakiasis....

Anasakiasis is most prevalent in cultures and regions in which consuming raw fish is popular (e.g., Japan, the Pacific coast of South America, the Netherlands)....

Acute anisakiasis typically presents with abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting within hours of ingestion. Vomiting may quickly dislodge the larvae from the gastric mucosa. Occasionally the larvae are coughed up. If the larvae pass into the bowel a severe eosinophilic granulomatous response may also occur 1–2 weeks after infection, causing symptoms mimicking Crohn's disease.

Anonymous said...

Well...long time no post...apparently the industry goss is that Lucks lost alot of money and closed down...someone from melb bailed them out and now they are back trading again (thank god, heaven forbid I was made to dine at stillwater one more time *YUCK* though I suppose what do you expec to happen when they invest so much money in such a large wine listbefore they are even established). As printed in the mercury Gondwana has been taken over by ex henry jones staff...two of their chefs (one sous) and some of their ex floor staff (here's hoping they can better the henry jones menu though with their current menu that can't be hard....11 herbs and spices anyone?!?!?!)..the new restaurant in salamanca place that was supposed to be called pinc has apparently run into finacial difficulties before they even opened hrm what else? oh lets' see there must be plenty...The final Moorilla degustation (it was a series of three) was well...according to staff...beyond a joke (I would have used a few other CHOICE words to describe it) Mikaku has yes (FINALLY closed down thank god) leaving Suwan as one of the only asian "cusines" still open for trading in the salamanca area (well apart from the "Vietnamese Kitchen"...thank god). Lenna has lost one of their senior food and bev staff and are looking for others, Moorilla is looking for decent F&B staff, Meadowbank is looking for new functions coordinator, Peppermint bay is lookinhg for decent staff full stop & well I think that wraps it up? add your gossip if you know of any ! ! !

Anonymous said...

Good riddance to bad rubbish - Mikaku. Well... Mikaku Salamanca.

I was in the foody capital (hello: Smokey Joe's!) recently and the Mikaku in Yorktown Square was still packing them in.

That might account for the preponderance of pavement pizzas i had to sidestep on my way to get the papers!

Anonymous said...

Hmmm I have not been to YUME yet but I wonder if the silverside tradition lives on ?

Anonymous said...

Thankyou so much for this review, even if it is old. I was thinking about going there, but now obviously I won't.

Cheers.

Anonymous said...

Is that woman still the same owner? Old, bitter Japanese woman with a fake smile and a nasty mouth. The place is dank.