Eat. @ Akachochin

33 Dukes Walk, South Wharf 3006 ph (03) 9245 9900

I have always wanted to visit Akachochin (named after the distinctively Japanese Red Lanterns) after seeing beautiful pictures of the food there on instagram.  I love shopping at South Wharf DFO, but for some reason had never figured out that South Wharf Promenade is just on the other side of the building!  We've been here for lunch a couple of times now, and to our delight we have found delicious, freshly prepared food and surprisingly kid friendly service.

On weekdays, Akachochin offers a $20 set lunch menu.  Essentially this is a Bento set with miso soup and steamed rice, with a side of yasai ohitashi (pickled vegetables), with an entree choice of either salmon or kingfish sashimi, and a choice of main.  Pictured below is the one with the grilled chicken with a spicy teriyaki sauce.  

The chicken was incredibly tender and the sauce was a perfect teriyaki sauce - not too salty, adequatetly sweet, with a hint of spiciness to make it interesting.  

Mini Me had the one with the grilled pork belly main.  I was really impressed that they thought to serve the sauce separately, as they were worried the sauce would be too spicy for children - something that I hadn't even thought of until they mentioned it! (Naughty Mummy!  Mini Me loved the sauce by the way, it wasn't too spicy for her!)

The other option for a main was a crumbed, fried fish fillet with a special tartare sauce.  There are also options available for vegetarians and for cold soba on the lunch menu.

On another occasion I tried the Fish Ochazuke ($15) from the regular menu, which was soy marinated sashimi on rice, served with hot green tea, wasabi, kizami-nori, spring onion and oshinko.  I quite liked this as a lunch, it felt like a bowlful of tasty, healthy Japanese comfort food.

We've also tried the Unagi Avacado Roll ($14 for 6 pieces).   I love unagi, and these rolls are a refreshing take, using cucumber as a wrap rather than nori.

We were fortunate enought to try their Nabeyaki Udon which was a special of the day during one of our visits.  A hot pot of udon topped with an abundance of seafood and a wonderful broth.

To be honest I had been really keen to try Akachochin but was worried that bringing kids there would be difficult, so was resigned to the fact it's one of those places I would eventually get to try on one of our rare dinner dates.  I'm really glad we tried lunch here, as the service was excellent and friendly, and we felt quite welcome (even the time we went as a party of 11, with 5 children, 3 of those 2 and under).  We kept the kids entertained at the table and got to enjoy some excellent freshly prepared Japanese food.  I'm already looking forward to my next shopping trip to South Wharf!

Toilet - Yes, spacious enough for a pram
Highchair - they have one!

Eat. @ Caffe Cino

2 Convention Centre Place, South Wharf 3006 ph : (03) 9027 2000

We stopped and had lunch at Caffe Cino the last time we were at South Wharf DFO, which I had visited for the first time only a few weeks ago and quickly fallen in love with! (It's way better than what Spencer Street DFO used to be, and the parking is much more reasonable at $2/hr with any purchase!)  Caffe Cino is the Hilton Hotel's little cafe and is a surprisingly good spot to grab a bite with the kids as a break from the shopping!

It has a mix of large communal dining tables and smaller square tables.  The cafe is quite spacious and pram friendly.

It has the standard cafe offerings of baguettes and sandwiches, salads, pies and quiches, with hot and cold drinks and a few sweets.

The mocha is fairly average, but not offensive.

The chicken baguettes is very pleasant and a hit with the kids, who loved the slightly chewy bread and a delicious and fresh filling of chicken, mayo and greens.

The real winner was the BLT though.  The crispy bacon was nicely cooked  (we like them crispy but not burnt!) and there was a decent amount, unlike most BLT which usually only contain a thin slice of bacon. 

The rolls were around $10 each, which is not exorbitant considering that I spent $8.90 on the most awful chicken and avo sandwich from Healthy Habits in the South Wharf DFO food court the week before.  There was a nice ambiance, and perhaps because it was a nice day and we were in a Hotel cafe, there was almost a holiday feel to the meal.  Certainly the other patrons were quite tolerant of the kids and pram, and everyone there seemed to have a smile on their face!

Toilets - in the hotel lobby round the corner, very, VERY clean!

Highchair - didn't seem to have one but we didn't ask, as the pram pulled up nicely next to our table.