Fuku

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It sounds like something that might be yelled during a road rage incident, but in reality translates to 'good fortune', and is an intimate and somewhat exclusive little restaurant in Mosman Park specialising in Japanese Omakase and teppanyaki.



Omakase is a type of degustation: numerous small courses of food, specially chosen by the chef. The menu changes weekly, so you are never sure exactly what you will be served. That's not to say you don't have a small degree of control if you have significant allergies, aversions or are pregnant. But you can't just show up on the night and expect a special menu: as you can see by the food provided, these things take time.



's exclusivity comes from its size (it only seats 16) and the fact it has only four menu options. Access is via an intercom buzzer next to the front door. The door might look like solid brass, but a word of warning: it's actually glass and those inside the restaurant can see out at people waiting to come in: it's not the right time to check your teeth or reapply your lipstick.

Not so long along, did not take bookings, and you would only know if there were seats available if the little red lantern on the wall outside was on. Luckily, you can now book online (or via phone), but you need to be prepared to cough up $50 per person as a booking fee (it comes off the final bill). So far, it's not feeling overly welcoming.



That all changes when the door soundlessly slides open and you hear a call of 'irasshaimase' welcoming you to the restaurant. The small room is windowless, though you don't tend to notice that immediately as you take in the beauty of the room. The teppanyaki grill takes up most of the room, with all the seating lined up around the edge. Behind the grill is a beautiful back lit Japanese mural. Behind you, a wall of enormous sake bottles provide a dazzling (and intoxicating) display.

With choices of starting times from 6pm to 8.30pm, we elected to have the earliest possible. It meant we were the first – and only – customers in the restaurant for the first half hour. My husband and myself, plus two chefs, wonderfully eccentric and friendly owner Brett Carboni – who plays host and serves drinks – and a young waitress who was being trained. If you like anonymity when you go out for a meal, then the first sitting at might not be your thing.



By 7.30pm the restaurant had filled all but two of the seats, and the atmosphere had changed completely. Enormous bottles of sake will tend to do that. There was a group of five – parents surprising their adult daughter for her birthday, two couples on a double date and other couples or small groups. is not designed for groups larger than four: the layout of the seating means you cannot really speak with people unless they are seated directly next to you. It also means that if you go as part of a couple, you will both also be sitting next to a stranger.

As the first couple to arrive we were lucky to be given the best seats in the house, directly in front of the teppanyaki grill. While all seats can see the action of the chefs cooking the meals, the seats directly in front get all the best eyebrow raising (and singeing) views.



There are four ways to order at : the good: four courses ($100pp), better: seven courses ($135pp) and best: nine courses ($220pp). More recently they have introduced the more affordable walk in menu for $65pp which is available Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sundays and allow you to choose a starter and three mains from a number of options.

Apart from the number of courses (and therefore the quantity of food), the main difference between the various menus is the ingredients used: for example the couple next to us had ordered the 'best' menu, and they were receiving dishes with abalone, crayfish and truffles, which we were not.



We had ordered the 'better' menu, and were offered an amuse bouche to begin with: a cold edamame bean soup with lobster.

It was a tasty start to the night, although a bit challenging getting the chunk of lobster out of the little shot glass without dribbling it down your chin.

Next was a tasting plate, some of which came from the kitchen accessed by a mysterious black sliding door behind the grill, and some of which was prepared in front of us. Tempura oyster, a dish made with liver, salmon and avocado sushi and a baked custard with prawn. As the dishes were placed in front of us, the chef would politely and quietly explain what each of the dishes were. My favourite was the custard with prawn and the tempura oyster.



Perhaps one of the best things about being seated directly in front of the preparation area is to see what goes into making the dishes. While the presentation was not quite as beautiful as the omakase at Nobu, the experience at was richer by the very fact that you were more involved and could see the dishes being made for you. While it was just us in the restaurant, the chef only had to focus on our meals, but as the restaurant filled, it was like watching a well rehearsed ballet as the chefs prepared multiples dishes for groups at various stages in their menu.

A sashimi platter followed: simply but beautifully presented. The quality was excellent, and like everything else, over too quick.

Free range quail was next on our menu, prepared on the grill with mixed mushrooms and a yellow pepper sauce. I don't normally like capsicum, but I was prepared to make an exception in this case – it was delicious.



Following this came a dish with a fat, perfect scallop and a soft juicy prawn. The head and legs had been removed and flattened on the grill, cooked until it was crispy. I have to say, crispy prawn heads are pretty awesome.

The fish of the day followed with a sweet sauce and single green bean. It was very delicate and I spent a lot of time chasing the final morsels around the plate with my chop sticks.



While some earlier stories I had read praised on its complimentary bottled water, unfortunately that seems now to have finished (they are $7 a bottle). Although they do sell wines and champagne, it is the Japanese sake and whiskeys that take pride of place on the drinks menu. My husband elected to try the $25 tasting boats, which provided three small cups of different sakes. He quite enjoyed it, so decided to try another.

Other groups bypassed the tiny cups and instead ordered the massive 1.8L bottles of sake instead. The bottles start at $72 and head all the way up to $360. (Don't worry, if you can't drink almost 2 litres of sake, you are allowed to take the rest home with you.) Alternatively, you can order smaller pots which cost between $25-$45.



After the fish course came the Wagyu beef. Although the piece was small it was top quality, graded 9 (the 'good' menu only get grade 7). I asked for my piece rare and my husband wanted his medium rare: I couldn't detect much difference between our cooked steaks to be honest, but I like to think the chef cooks it to what he considered perfect. And I thought it was probably one of the best pieces of meat I have ever eaten. It came with a single onion slice and some dried garlic, so the dish wasn't much to look at, but it was melt in the mouth (even the onion).

We were given a little dish with three sauces to dip our steak in, but it was so perfectly seasoned, the sauces weren't necessary. The Wagyu course also came with a bowl of Wagyu fried rice. Compared to the size of all the other dishes, the fried rice was enormous, and for once I couldn't finish it. It was fascinating to watch it being made though, especially the show involved in flipping knives and other cooking utensils around, then landing the eggs perfectly on the blade so it cracked neatly onto the grill. I don't think I will try that at home.



The final course was dessert. Admittedly the Japanese aren't as well known for their sweets as say, the French or Italians, but you have to admire a chef who decides that he will be dishing up wasabi icecream (and yes, it was hot) and cheesecake custard. The desert platter was finished with a chocolate truffle and a tiny mountain peach (be careful of the stone).

By the end of the meal I was feeling very full and satisfied. I had been pleasantly surprised at the sheer amount of butter I had seen make its way onto the grill over the course of the night (butter not being an ingredient I had associated with Japanese cuisine) and the joviality of some of the other diners had filled the room with happy laughter and conversation.

A night at is well and truly special occasion territory. In fact, the chef seemed to ask everyone if they were celebrating something special. In our case, it was simply a rare night out without our three young daughters. It isn't a cheap night, and there are some spectacular Japanese restaurants in Perth where you could get a top quality meal for much less. But you could also consider a meal at to be entertainment as well – dinner and a show. It's pretty special, and is a lovely way to celebrate with your loved ones.

#asian_restaurants
#degustation
#dinner
#food_wine
#japanese_restaurants
#mosman_park
#quirky
#restaurants
#western_suburbs
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