Makoto (sushi train), Sydney

Ever since I went to Makoto (city store) back in 2009 after our trip up to Sydney for the Jay Chou concert, I've been dying to go back. Makoto's one of those beautiful existences that Melbourne lacks. As most Melbournians know, we have NO really good sushi trains here. Just thinking about it makes me cringe with sadness (for my taste buds). Anyway, since I had been preparing to go to Makoto for so long, this trip was like heaven for me and to match, I went to Makoto twice (over a period of only 4 days). :D

Makoto, for those of you who don't know, is a sushi train restaurant under the Masuya Group family where there are 5 Japanese restaurants in total, all in Sydney. I will also be posting about Masuya shortly as we also visited this restaurant twice. :) Makoto doesn't take bookings as space is quite limited and really rarely needs to fill their space (there will constantly be a line outside). So, in order to get a seat, going early to beat the peak hour lines is essential.

Unlike the first time we visited Makoto when we had to wait outside for 45 minutes and everyone were served hot green tea to warm up, this time on both occasions, we were able to get seats fairly quickly. All the staff here are Japanese and work very diligently when they prepare and serve their famous sushi. There is also a great variety of sushi to choose from, including the ones I ordered below.

Out of the sushi I tasted, I especially liked the grilled salmon (below). It just melted in my mouth every time and has a beautifully charred aroma. Coupled with the slightly salty sea flavour of the salmon roe and the subtle sweetness of the mayonnaise, the mixture of flavours and textures are just superb.

The grilled tuna is also quite nice, although for some reason, the fattiness of the salmon makes it taste better when grilled.