28 Lorne Street,
Auckland Central
Auckland,


(09) 357 0960

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4 out of 5 stars

Japanese eateries in Auckland tend to fall into two camps. At the top-end places like Gion in Parnell and Sake Bar Rikka at Victoria Park offer innovative and often delicately crafted Japanese fare. More everyday are the cheap and cheerful noodle shops that punctuate the inner city and suburbs. And of course sushi at a Westfield shopping centre is now virtually as Kiwi as fish and chips along the waterfront. Between these two extremes sits the immensely popular Men Tatz, and this Thursday lunchtime there’s probably no restaurant that’s as busy in the central city.

At its heart it’s a bustling place serving up robust bowls of ramen (noodles) and don (rice), but the menu stretches further than your standard suburban Japanese place. There’s a surprising range of seafood, including well-priced oysters, scallops and whole grilled fish. A wide range NZ and Japanese beer, sake and Shochu makes it a good place to linger with a few friends. (Consider ordering one of the special two litre flasks of Sapporo or Asahi beer). Wine drinkers may feel hard done by with only three varieties on offer, but at $5 a glass it’s hardly going to break the bank.

The value-for-money equation is obviously important to the core clientele of students from the nearby AUT and university precinct, and a few inner-city desk jockeys who have discovered Men Tatz as their own private escape from meetings and email.

My first preference is to grab a table at the sunny front area adjoining Lorne St, but I’m lead through to join a few other solo diners at the bar. In close proximity to the aromas wafting from the nearby kitchen it’s a good choice.

My entrée of salmon sashimi ($8) definitely lacks the subtle knife skills you’ll see displayed at Auckland’s classier Japanese restaurants, but is still exceedingly fresh and great value. A mix-up in the kitchen sees my Teriyaki Chicken on Rice ($9) initially overlooked, but once it arrives it’s crammed with sweet, plump slices of chicken breast. It’s a minor glitch and considering the rushed-off-their-feet nature of the day, it’s not really a big issue.

Don’t visit Men Tatz expecting a classically subtle Japanese dining experience, but if you’re looking for somewhere reliable to feed your addiction to Japanese food then you should definitely head along every now and Zen.