I’m so stoked to see many more tea and coffee concept restaurants popping up around Sydney. I also love that this city has embraced Japanese fusion shops like Edition Coffee Roasters, Cafe Kentaro and Cre Asion. The latest addition to this scene is Juan by Anna Ishiguro. Chocolatesuze and I went to check this new joint out!
This tea and bowl concept shop is probably one of my most anticipated restaurants to open this year. Chef Anna has a pretty impressive culinary background including working under renowned Sydney Chef Tomoyuki Matsuya. Juan’s space is minimalist with a touch of refined chic and colour theme mixtures of cream, grey and white. Lots of natural lighting flowing through, concrete bars and a sketch like bamboo wallpaper mural. I really dig it and it reminds me a lot of restaurants around Omotesando and Jingumae in Tokyo! Menu has some classic Japanese Western-style dishes like tonkatsu and modern twists of other Asian dishes like Hainanese chicken.
They have a great range of premium tea choices ($6-9) from Hojicha to Long Ching Dragonwell. Beautiful filter coffee ($4) from Artificer in Surry Hills is also available.
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| Wagyu rice bowl |
The Wagyu rice bowl ($22) consists of rice with butter garlic, 2hr slow cooked Wagyu, onsen egg, fried lotus root, beetroot miso paste, fresh wasabi, snow pea sprouts and and sweet onion sauce. The garlic butter rice was so addictive and it went well with the Wagyu and runny onsen egg. The beetroot miso was nice but the wasabi alone with the beef would have suffice. A delicious dish nevertheless!
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| Tonkatsu |
I loved the tonkatsu bowl ($21)! It was like a tonkatsu and omurice hybrid. It had rice with onion gravy covered in fluffy buttery flavoured blanket of scrambled eggs just like an omurice. Paired with a super fatty perfect 2hr slow cooked then crumbed bangalow pork. It also has roasted tomato which was full of umami, apple mustard mayo, red cabbage and miso sesame sauce.
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| Unagi hitsumabushi |
The unagi (eel) hitsumabushi ($21) was nothing short of excellent! The rice was mixed in some sort of caramelised sweet soy sauce, shiso, okra, kaffir lime and generous pices of unagi . The rice was aromatic, flavoursome and full of umami from the eel. It was also topped with fluffy scrambled eggs and haloumi. To mellow down the flavours and add complexity, pour some of the hojicha dashi.
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| Sakura matcha tiramisu |
We ended our lunch in the most perfect way with their sakura matcha tiramisu ($9).
This place exceeded my expectations in terms of food quality and portions! Each dish was actually quite generous. The service was excellent. This is a place definitely worth checking out and I will definitely return for more! Omedetou gozaimasu Anna-san!
Juan
Shop 5
94a Pitt Street
Redfern NSW 2016
(Update from the restaurant) Soft opening: Booking essential by e-mail juan.redfern@gmail.com
Open Wednesday to Sunday
Lunch 12:00pm to 3:00pm (Last order before 2:30pm) and dinner 6:00pm to 10:00pm (Last order before 9:30pm)
Closed Mon & Tues (this may change)
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Raff, I saw you post about this place on your Insta and was wondering what it was like and so I am grateful to have an ultra-detailed account of Juan now. That tiramisu sounds so ace. Looking forward to trying it. Thanks for another excellent discovery!
ReplyDeleteYasss how amazing is that tonkatsu! So juicy!
ReplyDeleteRaff your photos are absolutely 10/10.
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