OKAMI Japanese Restaurant

This review is broken up into a number of sections that will provide the user (you) to use your preferred browser's "Find on page" function to skip to the area of interest. [Summary] [Product/Service] [Package] [Pros(+) vs Cons(-)] [Final Thoughts] [Summary] Wanting to try Japanese food within the CBD of Wodonga, this was one of several… Read more

establishments in the area. Locating one that had the highest reviews and overall experience, we walked out of our Quest Apartment accommodation just recently past, Easter 2026, and walked directly to this venue.

Hmm, and I have to say that this venue is a hit and miss. Which I will further unpack in the next headings.

[Product/Service] I am unsure as to whether OKAMI is a franchise or that the impression upon offering true Japanese food with the expected experience in mind.

I did not look this up as when you do your research as would any one rationally, you rather experience this in-person rather than read some marketing materials. Noting this is about food compared to anything else.

Ideally I would have thought this was a geniune Japanese restaurant and served Japanese food to a relatively high level.

[Package] Is supposed to be an all inclusive package of Japanese authenticity in both decor, seating and especially the food. Unfortunately this is up for interpretation and for me writing this review, there are some concerns.

[Pros(+) vs Cons(-)]

Pros: * The decor was excellent. * the way that they had tables together like booths, were innovating whereby using a white cloth material to create that separation while creating a sense of privacy. * many different offerings but a fusion - be mindful of that fact.

Cons: * Google's information about where it implied where it was located is completely and utterly wrong. It says it is located inside Wodonga Plaza. My partner and I walked around the entire complex two to three times and could not find it. Upon exiting the plaza and contemplating to go elsewhere, we discovered in the last minute where it was.

Let me expand upon what this meant, it was NOT inside Wodonga Plaza, it was on the outside of Wodonga Plaza facing in close proximity to the car park that wraps around the plaza.

* Not exactly Japanese, it was mixed ethnicities, though highly suspect Malaysian.

* Music was not of Japanese or classical ambient music, but instead of Australian pop/rock culture music.

* The food offerings are an interpretation with a fusion of different cultures embedded into Japanese food to make it taste and presented differently. I ordered the common type of Japanese food offering to test it against what Japanese food in its most common and staple format. Unfortunately it was not and subject to interpretation.

[Final Thoughts] If you are a connoisseur of Japanese food and are after a complete 100% authentic experience? Unfortunately this is not it. However, in comparison with other Japanese food offerings within Wodonga, this is the best version thereof. It is a hybrid fusion of an attempt of Japanese food with a mix of other Asian cultures.

Would I come back to this place, I think I will honestly say yes most definitely.

First time to try it here love the teriyaki steak and the eggplant salad tofu the beef carpaccio will try the others next time.

Sashimi plaster is not a real sashimi. There are only 4 very small/thin raw salmon and the rest is sushi with a lot of rice for a whole dish. Not really all you can eat as the foods are served with too much rice and not allowed to leave rice without penalty.

Love their sushi boat highly recommended! This has become my family's go to feed

No explanation on pricing / all you can eat. My children and I ordered what should have cost $30 (snacks only) and were changed $90 Show details

Lovely place to dine – Met with a few friends, the ambiance is good and the food is great! Lovely place to dine - I had Chicken Katsu and the beef udon.

Amazing Food – I recently dined at Okami Restaurant in Werribee, and it was an amazing experience! From the moment we walked in, the welcoming atmosphere set the tone for a great meal. The menu offers a fantastic range of Japanese dishes, and I loved the all-you-can-eat option, which is perfect for trying a little bit of everything. We started with some… Read more

delicious sushi rolls, which were fresh and beautifully presented. The highlight for me was the grilled dishes—absolutely mouthwatering!

The service was excellent; our server was attentive and friendly, making sure we had everything we needed without being intrusive.

The ambiance is cozy and inviting, making it a great spot for both casual dinners and special occasions. Plus, the prices are very reasonable for the quality and variety of food you get.

Overall, I highly recommend Okami Restaurant if you’re in Werribee and craving Japanese cuisine. I can’t wait to go back and try more dishes!

Crap Food – I took my family to the all-you-can-eat sushi bar in Unanderra after hearing a lot of hype about it. However, it turned out to be the worst experience I've ever had. The service was practically non-existent. It took 30 minutes for our bottled drinks to arrive, and our food came out 20 minutes after the drinks. The food quality was poor and it took… Read more

an incredibly long time to come out, despite the time frame they stipulated. We were so hungry that we had to make a run to McDonald's afterwards. We spent $200 on terrible food and service. I will never go back there again. Moon Sushi, on the other hand, beats this place in terms of food quality and service.

Want money back or prepare proper Japanese FRESH, VIBRANT food to make up for a non celebratory b'day 'lunch' – Sun, 14 July 2024 B'day lunch 12-30 pm, 7 pax, Okami Japanese restaurant, Chelsea Heights. HEGIHT OF RIDICULOUSNOUS FOR A JAPANESE RESTAURANT Rating: below freezing. There was NOTHING redeeming about it & I'd like my money back or to be prepared proper Japanese FRESH, VIBRANT food again for making up for a non celebratory b'day 'lunch' … Read more

NEVER AGAIN! Nigari not fresh looking or vibrant. DID NOT look appetising, withered, dry, stale, off colour, made at least previous day, pulled straight out of the fridge, froze my taste buds off, tasted like cardboard, rice dry looked a sorry excuse for food, miserly filling which almost exclusively contained only rice with a sheet of nori wrapped around. 2 of the waiters were NOT welcoming & were off off hand. ONLY 1 paid attention to an inquiry about the ingredients in a dish. MY GOD, HOW HAVE YOU GOT AWAY WITH IT FOR SO LONG???

An expensive food court – "The ambience is like a food court, cold and unfriendly with music playing so loudly that we couldn’t hear the waitress or each other. We had 7 people on a table which was meant for only 6…so very cramped. Also the tables are too close together so we couldn’t go to the toilet unless everyone got out of their seats so I could get out. The… Read more

waitresses are so busy that they aren’t even polite or pleasant. (Not their fault). I will never come back or recommend this restaurant.

Great customer service! – I like the atmosphere, I recently dined at OKAMI Japanese Restaurant and was thoroughly impressed. The ambiance is warm and inviting, with tasteful decors that sets the perfect mood for a relaxing meal. The menu offers a wide range of authentic Japanese dishes, from sushi and sashimi to tempura and ramen. Each dish is beautifully presented and… Read more

bursting with fresh flavours. The staff is attentive and knowledgeable, enhancing the overall dining experience. Whether you're a fan of Japanese cuisine or trying it for the first time, OKAMI is a must-visit.

Organise and great location – The place was wonderful, and the Japanese food are so authentic flavours. Really happy with the serving and absolutely delicious.

very bad service – I was in this restaurant for my wife's birthday.17 people Two of us never received the food I ordered and they gave me a bowl of fried rice and carme that I had not ordered when everyone had already eaten. and I had to pay for something that was never served to me and for a 4 year old child who ate from other people's dishes that they gave him because he was already hungry. I would never go back to a place like this, very bad service Show details

If you have a love for Japanese. Don’t go here – We went on a Thursday night and it was busy. We are in our 60’s and have been to many Japanese restaurants. This is one of the worse by far. Because it’s an “all you can eat” you can’t even take dishes off your bill because you didn’t receive them. The main waitress was good but obviously run off her feet. The young male waiter looked like he… Read more

simply hated being there. As far as we could see…. There was one chef preparing everything. The rice was gluggy. Japanese know how to make sushi for goodness sake. Very disappointing all round.

Great fresh food, – Great fresh food , great service , excellent price. Well worth going Show details

Bad experience – The waitress was rude never come back greensborough. Offended rude

Amazing experience! – Delicious Japanese food, amazing! Easy to reserve a table. Quick service and relatively large serving. Lovely staff. Will be back!! Show details

First of many visits – For a all you can eat Japanese restaurant, this is great. We ate at the Albury restaurant and for a first time visit, the food was better than you would expect. It caters for non Japanese food as well as Japanese. There is lots of options to choose from, and it does not take long for the meals to be served. Be mindful that if you order something… Read more

you must eat it, as you pay additional for wastage, which is fair. So please try it out as you will be pleasantly surprised and content.

Okami in Caroline Springs – Dinner 31/12/2022 8.00pm sitting Absolute filth . Front door disgusting. Tables - sticky . Had to ask for wine glasses at least 5 times . They had lipstick marks on them TWICE!! Service was terrible . Wait staff didn’t speak or understand English. Food was ordinary. Waitress dropped glass on our table , drink spilled everywhere, glass shattered everywhere. Never Again!! Show details

amazing ! – great service , great food …very happy would recommended this to everyone !

BEWARE! MISLEADING! – Attended last night for all you can eat and food was average to good. There were a few dishes which weren’t great and after a few deep fried dishes the oil content really got to you and then other dishes were pretty good. Ultimately though, there was no portion adjusting for the size of our group (2 adults and a child), despite their cute little… Read more

menu cartoon. After ordering a bit of almost everything we ended up having a bit left over. At this point a manager came over to advise us of their no waste policy and the potential surcharge. We pointed out we weren’t aware of this so she pointed out the FINE PRINT of the menu. Ultimately we were charged an extra ten dollars, I know, a small cost, but given we were told we’d been advised the policy before ordering, which was a LIE and our concerns and frustrations were disregarded it was where our frustrations and rapid decline of our experience really was. There was also no manner in which the fee was decided apart from arbitrary impression and the policy is applied inconsistently as my partner went previously and wasted much more with no mention of wastage surcharge. Won’t be going back and you should read the full menu so you know the fine print.

Great value, great food – As a fairly regular customer, I felt compelled to leave a review for OKAMI because no prior reviewer seems to have mentioned the most important thing: the food. For years, I've occasionally treated the family to a night out at OKAMI because the value proposition is fantastic. Unlike most all-you-can-eat restaurants, OKAMI don't have a… Read more

buffet/smorgasbord where you can serve yourself. Instead, they provide table service where you can order as much and as often as you like during your sitting.

The good: - For $36.80 per person you get all-you-can-eat Japanese food. - The size of the all-you-can-eat menu is impressive and there's a little something for everyone. - Every time I've dined at OKAMI, the food has been exceptional. By no means is it the best Japanese food I've had, but for all-you-can-eat, it's certainly better than most would expect. Personal favourites are the Potato Croquettes, Miso Steak and Misoyaki. - For sushi lovers: The all-you-can-eat extends to endless sushi, sashimi and nigiri - and they're delicious. - The table service works well. There's always someone around, and the dishes usually take less than 5 minutes from order to table.

The bad: - The restaurants, deservedly so, are often busy - and that means they're prone to being loud and a bit cramped. This isn't a big deal to me and I don't think it justifies any amendment to my rating. But for others, this may be more important.

Payment Dispute – I’m disgusted by this situation, my partner hasn’t been paid for the 3 weeks of work he’s done, he’s spoken to his manager about the situation and has continually been told “Next Monday”. Fair Work Ombudsman knows about the situation, if this isn’t resolved soon then we will have every right to take legal action. Show details

Racially profiled – OKAMI Japanese Restaurant (Melton) would not allow my family and I to be seated unless we show them a drivers licence or ID with pictures confirming our vaccination certificate was actually ours. We showed them our certificates from the mygov app and they were still insistent that they cannot be sure that was actual names and therefore need a… Read more

photo ID to indicate that meanwhile those before us were not questioned and those after us weren't either after just showing a a picture of their certificate.

We got a friend to check out this place a few days after we were treated like that and they were not asked for picture ID either.

This is shameful to say the least, we are in 2022 and we all need to be treated equally regardless of your race. Shame on the staff who couldn't even construct common English sentences but thought it wise to discriminate because of our race.

More Noise Than Food ! – $36.80 for "all u can eat" ... does sound inviting until seated on a very small table meant for one (there were 3 of us). The noise was "deafening", couldn't hear the waitress to order so I took our order to the bar, still had trouble communicating. Only ordered 3 small entree's! We were charged $36.80 then left for another restaurant. To think… Read more

I spent 3 days trying to book into this place....impossible outsourced reservation system which goes round in frustrating circles with zero outcome!