Tokki
Shop 1/44A Foveaux St
Surry Hills, Sydney
Thirty years ago, Foveaux street in Sydney’s Surry Hills was the city’s fashion district. Full of dressmaking factories and designer workshops, it was home to some of Australia’s most famous icons such as Skirtmaster and Stuart Membery. Fast forward to today and the Surry Hills denim dominance has shifted to food. Here may we introduce you to Tokki, Foveaux Streets’ newest resident.
Tokki is a fusion Japanese Korean restaurant. Its interior is modern and funky with a nod to tradition. The seating is very innovative with removable dividers creating an instant private space no matter how big or small your party is. There is also seating at the bar where you can enjoy a full dining experience or just have a drink (and they have plenty of those on offer).
The menu is really diverse with a selection of raw dishes, yummy Japanese hot dishes, BAO and Korean favourites such as fried chicken. It’s all designed to share but can equally be enjoyed per person If you wanted to order separately. The drinks menu is also huge, with a list of signature cocktails, classic cocktails, beers, Sake and also Japanese whiskeys. We literally didn’t know what to choose. We started with two cocktails and something from the raw bar.
The Merry Soju was an impressive cocktail served in a martini glass. It boasted a mixture of Soju, yuzu, suze, lavender and St Germaine for a light, refreshing and smooth taste. We also tried the Cactus Jack which was a tequila based drink with Mezcal, lime, pineapple, ginger agave and basil. It had a delicious herbaceous taste and the mezcal and lime gave it a real kick. We don’t normally go for Tequila based drinks but we loved this one.
We enjoyed our lovely cocktails with some Kombu Salmon which had a sweet and refreshing mandarin vinaigrette, and was served with some spicy wakame. This was accompanied with a small plate of assorted pickles which was delicious too. We loved the tart pieces of daikon and spicy jalapenos.
Next we tried the Zucchini Flowers which were a real surprise. The batter was so light and they were served with jalapenos and satay mayo which gave it a spicy twist. We loved it so much, we were scooping up every last bit of the mayo.
We were just as excited about the Wagyu Short Ribs that came out next!. This plate was full of ‘melt in your mouth’ beef pieces which were perfectly cooked and marinated in a wild berry umeshu. This combination was heavenly and really enhanced the richness of the meat flavours.
Of course, we can’t visit a Korean restaurant (even if its fusion Japanese) and not try the fried chicken. Tokki has a few variations of Korean Fried Chicken on offer including Chilli Gochu and Soy Galbi. We chose the traditional and were not disappointed. Firstly by the size of the dish which is huge and secondly by the crispiness of the skin and tenderness of the meat. It really was crunch-delicious!
We also enjoyed the Mushroom Fried Rice which had succulent pieces of enoki mushroom mixed amongst the generous serving of light and traditionally yummy rice.
Count J also snuck in another cocktail, called ‘Kids these days’. It had gin, rosemary and mandarin. It was really refreshing and a lovely finisher to an awesome evening.
Tokki really impressed us with their food, service and relaxed atmosphere. Nothing was a problem for them and everyone was willing to go out of their way for us. Whether it was answering questions about the menu, recommending a dish to order (thanks guys for the wagyu beef recommendation, it was amazing) or helping Count N with his chopstick challenges, the staff were just great. We definitely will be back.
Tokki is open for 12pm till late Monday to Saturday. We highly recommend you check it out.
The Counts visited Tokki as guests. Big thanks to Dave the Venue manager for looking after them so well. Special thanks to Chrissy from Creative Little Soul for arranging this visit.