Kobe Jones - Docklands

After drooling over the Ezard menu, only to be told that it was booked out, I did some quick research to find another restaurant in melbourne that offered a similar style cuisine. Enter stage right, Kobe Jones.

Despite work friends warning me not to have too high expectations for this restaurant, K and I tried to go in with an open mind. 

Walking in, my heart felll. For such a large space, there was only 1 other table seated and for 7pm on a Saturday night, things weren't looking too good. 

After many attempts to call the waiters over, we finally caught the attention of the bar man who came over to take our order. Off to a bad start, we braced ourselves for an ordinary meal. 

We ordered the Perfect for Two menu, the drawcard for what we believed to be something similar to the Ezard set menu.

Number 1 Special

Seafood poke - Anago Scallops - Oyster Shooters - Lollipop Sushi - Dynamite Tuna Handroll

Wagyu Tenderloin Tataki

Prawn and Vegetable Tempura 

Alaskan Crab

Wagya Hot Rock

Ama Ozen - Dessert Sampler

The set menu started off strong with the Number 1 Special. A delicious crab salad wrapped in kingfish and avocado with the most tasty sauce ever! 

However, that's when the rest of the meal turned a little bit of average. The lollipop sushi, whilst creative, was bland and the cucumber overpowered the crab salad, tuna, snapper and salmon. Meanwhile, the mango infused sake was much too strong for my liking and i just couldnt down it with my oyster. 

Things picked up again with the wagyu tataki but the tempura was oily and the alaskan crab impossible to eat. I was surprised that they presented this dish as they did. For all the effort we put into getting the shell off the crab, there was little crab meat inside and when asking if we could get some lemon water to rinse our hands in, we were only met with blank stares and confusion by the wait staff. 

Self cooking always improves the mood of a table, so the hot rock definitely came at the right time and the dessert platter was definitely a hit with K and I, with my personal favourite being the 'Kenpai Trifle' which was fresh strawberries marinated in creme de cassis served with a crunchy sable and marble of vanilla and rasberry sorbet topped with fairy floss! Meanwhile, K loved the 'Anko' - flaming green tea brulee.

Overall, we thought the presentation of dishes was definitely a high point but the actual food didn't always deliver. The service was average with the wait staff inattentive and not trained well to explain the dishes - which considering the cuisine, is really something that is necessary!

Also, of interest to us was the differences in advertised prices for this set menu. At the restaurant, this menu was set at $125 per person, whilst in the latest entertainment book it is advertised at $115 per person. Meanwhile, we noticed that there was a spreets voucher advertising that this menu was actually worth $145! This made us question whether this was a cheap ploy to bring patrons in considering more than half the restaurant was empty on a Saturday night...

Whilst not the worst dining experience, i do not believe it is worth any of the above prices! I can safely say, I will not be coming back in a hurry... if at all.

Lesson learnt - book Ezard weeks in advance!

Final Ratings:
A - 6/10
K - 7/10