Kaizen BBQ, North Ryde, Sydney

All. You. Can. Eat.

with wagyu.

Ahhh.... now I have your attention.


All-you-can-eat BBQ $29.90

With a protein free-for-all on offer, Kaizen draws us in like moths to a flame. The boys have been looking forward to this all day. I guess it's the same type of excitement sweet tooths get before a high tea buffet.

The decor is modern and uncluttered, an emphasis on clean lines with plenty of timber in the form of tables, chairs and as hanging cubes overhead. Splashes of colour come from painted round-edged rectangles afixed to the wood above our heads.


Artwork - I kept thinking of thongs (flip flops)

The all-you-can-eat yakiniku-style barbecue allows you to choose from a list of dishes nominated from their a la carte menu. We're allowed unlimited ordering from the following barbecue list:

Beef
Marinated scotch fillet $16
Eye fillet steak $19
Marinated rib $18.50 (limited to 2 orders per person for all-you-can-eat)

Wagyu beef
Marinated wagyu rib meat $18
Marinated rib finger $16
Wagyu beef skirt $18
Wagyu chuck roll $20

Chicken
Marinated thigh fillet $15

Pork
Pork belly $15


Kimchee amongst our panchan (banchan) complimentary side dishes

Our waitress takes our first round of orders and whilst we wait, we nibble on panchan, the complimentary side dishes that are quickly delivered to our table.


Potato salad


Mixed leaves with salad dressing


Seaweed salad


Miso soup

Covered bowls of miso soup are generous with squares of seaweed but before we have time to slurp even a spoonful, the onslaught of meat arrives. MEAT.


Wagyu beef skirt


Marinated beef rib


Pork belly


Eye fillet steak


Marinated wagyu rib meat


Meat on the grill

It's a veritable meat-fest as we sear, flip and sear again a non-stop carousel of iron. There's always a slow wait at the start as the barbeuce grill gets going but soon there's an overflow of cooked meat that gets tranferred to an overflow plate which never seems to empty.

We find it hard to not overcook the scotch fillet steak in amongst everything else. The marinated beef rib is by far the favourite dish. It's a bit like unwrapping a present when we unwind the long strip of meat from around the bone. Once seared, it's sliced into more manageable piees using the pair of scissors provided, meat that is soft and tender. No wonder this dish is restricted to two orders per person.

I also quite like the pork belly too. It's best left on the grill for as long as possible, until the thick ribbons of fat render to a crisp and the edges caramelise to a tacky sweetness.


Lemon salt with black sesame seeds and dipping sauces

The meats are refreshed and seasoned in our personal compartmentalised platters. There are two types of soy dressing and a square holding a sprinkle of salt and black sesame seeds with a fresh wedge of lemon.


Korean spoon and metal chopsticks

We eat using the traditional Korean metal chopsticks, cool rounded utensils which always strike me as being slippery and almost clinical. They do add a sense of surgical precision when eating, especially with their extremely narrow tapered ends. The floral panel at the top of the chopsticks are a pretty decorative touch.


Green tea

It's a bit of a meat overload for me, although the boys aren't complaining. The panchan offer little in the way of vegetables and although these can be replenished, it's a struggle to attract the attention of waitstaff and times.

Are you and your friends feeling deficient in iron? You know where to meat.




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Kaizen BBQ
Macquarie Centre
Level 4, Store 408 (near the cinemas)
Corner of Herring and Waterloo Roads
North Ryde, Sydney
Tel: +61 (02) 9805 0377

Opening hours
Lunch
Monday to Sunday 11.30am - 3.30pm

Dinner
Monday to Saturday 5.00pm until late
Sunday 5.00pm - 10.00pm

All-you-can-eat BBQ $29.90
Under 11 years $20
Under 5 years - free

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