Melbourne’s award-winning kaiseki restaurant Ishizuka is ending 2020 with a new summer kaiseki menu by Creative Director Masahiko Yomoda, as well as a range of Christmas gift offerings available this festive season.
Additionally, Ishizuka has partnered with wedding planners The Small Things to create beautiful wedding event experiences, taking bookings from now and through 2021.
SUMMER MENU LAUNCH BY CHEF YOMO
Recently appointed Creative Director and Michelin Star chef Masahiko Yomoda has unveiled Ishizuka’s new seasonal kaiseki menu ($235), featuring refreshing ingredients and a spectrum of vibrant hues to reflect the upcoming summer months.
His first menu in the new role after being appointed during lockdown, Chef Yomo combines his Japanese heritage with classic French training (Alain Chapel, Restaurant L’Osier), resulting in nine courses – sakizuke, zensai, sakisui, otsukuri, yakimono, daimono, oshinogi, shokuji and kanmi – celebrating the finest available summer produce.
With beverage pairing by sommeliers Sarah and David Lawler ($120 per person for alcoholic matches, $60 for non-alcoholic), Ishizuka’s new summer offering is an unrivalled Kaiseki menu in Melbourne’s fine dining scene.
CHRISTMAS OFFERINGS
To celebrate the festive season, Ishizuka is offering a variety of edible gift options to be enjoyed this Christmas.
Ishizuka’s organic whole chicken with black truffle ($98) provides a luxurious table centrepiece and main course on Christmas Day. Cooked sous vide with teriyaki sauce, rosemary and garlic, the teriyaki chicken is served alongside roast and confit seasonal vegetables and Ishizuka’s own barbeque sauce.
A traditional Christmas cake with a Japanese influence, the matcha stollen ($55) is made with dried fig, currants, raisin, orange peel, yuzu peel and Japanese whisky. For the indecisive, the dessert pack ($40) includes a variety of Japanese-inspired sweet treats, featuring sake castella, marron pie, and three different types of cookies.
Each offering comes beautifully presented, with the option to add a bunch of fresh flowers onto any order at an additional cost.
ISHIZUKA WEDDINGS WITH THE SMALL THINGS
Ishizuka has partnered with Melbourne’s premium event stylists and luxury wedding planners The Small Things, offering intimate celebrations and micro weddings of up to 40 guests in the subterranean restaurant space.
Designed by esteemed architecture and design practice Russell & George, Ishizuka’s award-winning dining room features exquisite raw concrete columns, a blond-timber dining counter, and velvet seating. The focal point – a floor-to-ceiling white cloth shell resembling a Japanese lantern – provides romantic ambience in the intimate venue.
Wedding photographer Lei Lei Clavey Photography has captured an example of what a celebration at Ishizuka may look like, with blooms by Wild Flos, table hire by Harry the Hirer, napkins by Table Threads, and stationary by Rebel Reflect. The wedding menu can be conceived with the Ishizuka team, with both kaiseki and stand-up canapés and cocktails available for a unique and memorable reception.
Ishizuka
Basement level B01/139 Bourke St, Melbourne VIC 3000
(03) 8594 0895
Website
Main image: Parker Blain