J's Surf & Turf

Overall 1 - Food 1, Ambience 1, Value 1, Service 1

J's has shut down due to failing a health and safety check.   (Jessica - May, 2011)

Overall 8.5 - Food 8, Ambience 6, Value 10, Service 10

Today was my first visit after hearing so many of my friends' recommendations but my first impression of the shop wasn't great. Yes, I say shop because it really does not look like a resturant. That aside, the food is good and to my surprise, THERE WAS SAKE MOUSSE. Infact, a nice girl gave us two choices of sake mousse, kahlua or midori, and even with an extremely bloated stomach, my family and I can still make room for it. I can agree to Mr Boleh, the sake mousse itself was enough to make my experience memorable.

I definitely recommend and I heard that you can request for green tea ice cream.   (Cynthia - See my reviews (2) - October, 2010)

Overall 8.8 - Food 8, Ambience 7, Value 10, Service 10

Good-Great FOOD, average warm atmosphere, AWESOME SERVICE and DEFINITELY VALUE FOR MONEY.. Considering the 50+ starving customers, and only one small kitchen, which you can all have a look when you next visit their restroom.. it is understandable why most of their dishes have to be prepared before hand. But mark my words.. every time i take my morning strolls, i see Aki-san slicing away salmon by hand as early as 6am..and daily delivery of fresh oysters.. it is no wonder these two dishes are J's identifier.. perhaps choices are limited but considering the amount of food you'll have to go through not for the week but just for ONE day of starving customers trying to get their value for $28.. you cannot expect them to provide us more than those already delicious well-known japanese dishes with such a lack of waitress and chiefs. Though it would be nice to see the sake mousse and green tea ice cream back on the dessert menu.. and to those who remember the good old J's,, the sorbet and honey comb icecream.. i wouldn't mind seeing a few more option in dessert to finish off my night..

I have and will continue to recommend J's to my friends and family members.. definitely a resturant to return..

note: this place isn't for those uptight posh people but for those who respect food, values $$$ and enjoy to be around fantastic people in a warm environment.

Cheers xX   (Cynthia - See my reviews (2) - September, 2010)

Overall 8.3 - Food 10, Ambience 5, Value 10, Service 8

Fantastic food - Arki is a great chef, great value for money.   (Gabrielle from Brighton - August, 2010)

Overall 4.8 - Food 3, Ambience 3, Value 5, Service 8

My 1st visit to this place was 3 yrs ago and their awesome Sake Mousse is on my mind. Back then it was $25/pax and it was really great value for money. The Sake Mousse itself was worth the 25 bucks!

Went there again last weekend and it was a BIG letdown. Overall quality has dropped so much. The sushi looks like they were really made in a hurry. Every piece was of different size and the rice were too hard. Yes, I understand I am just paying $28/pax but this level of quality wouldn't even justify the low price. Anyway, I was hoping the Sake Mousse will cover for the rest.... and guess what.... the waitress didnt even know what Sake Mousse was.. and ice cream or fruits were all I could have. Damn.. never mind so I picked the very ordinary ice cream. Also gone was the special green tea ice cream.

Quality gone down the drain. Altough still cheap but I will never come back again.

Japanese cuisine it ain't. Japanese fast food maybe.   (Mr Boleh - July, 2010)

Overall 3 - Food 1, Ambience 1, Value 7, Service 3

I went to J's Surf and Turf in Brighten once, but decided not to come back again. I think the restaurant just disgrade the essence of Japanese food. Every dish was precooked. After ordered, I believe they just put into microwave to warm up. The place is very lousy, and staffs were busy working like a robert. I found a fur in a dish we ordered and told the staff. He didn't even say sorry just took the dish away.

The price is cheap for all you can eat. But for 56 dollars for two people, I would rather spend it in a quality Japanese restaurant eating some light food but enjoy the atmospere where a Japanese restaurnt usually brought to me.

Very disappointing about that eating experience! Not recommend!   (Jean - July, 2010)

Overall 7.5 - Food 9, Ambience 6, Value 10, Service 5

I have been to this restaurant about 6 or 7 times with different people. Te last one was last Friday 21-05-10 with my workmates. Previously I was really happy with their service, food was always great.

This time disappointed. We took the 6pm booking, we ordered our food, it took a while before they were out. The tempura we ordered rarely came out. I had to ask for it a few times.

Long story short our food was finally coming out when we were pretty much getting booted out for the next booking. While we were being served the ice cream two tempura orders came out and we literally had to swallow them as a whole because we had to finish the desert, pay and leave.

I hope they read this, because for the 6pm booking, you really have to have the food pretty much flying out. You only have 2 hours to eat and talk when half an hour to an hour is waiting for your orders already.

My advice is go to the 8pm slot so youy don't have to be booted out.

Although the food is great, it's just the time it took the food to get to your table was terrible.

But then I am still going back but at the 8pm slot.   (ateneo007 - May, 2010)

Overall 7.5 - Food 8, Ambience 5, Value 9, Service 8

Food was always fresh and tasty, pre-order oyesters if you are big fan. But some food were pre-cooked or half-cooked, so they could serve so quick and asked you to leave on time for next sitting. Tables were right next to each other, space was limited. Service was good and quick. Worthwhile to go even it is not easy to get there.   (cosmopolitan - March, 2010)

Overall 3.3 - Food 2, Ambience 2, Value 1, Service 8

I have been to this restaurant 3 years ago and also had All-you can eat. We really enjoyed it so we went back again.

When we sat down, they immediately served us with oyster as starter and they were fresh. We ordered Sashimi, Inari Sushi, Agadeshi Tofu, Takoyaki, Tempura prawn and Miso soup. All the dishes were served within 10 minutes. Wonder how they can serve the dishes so quick? I saw them took out the sashimi (salmon only) from the fridge. Apparently they have already cut up the fish and put in the fridge so they can serve the customer immediately after they order. The fish texture was not good. Same as the sushi. The sushi was not fresh and the rice was hard. The Takoyaki was overfried. We asked for Sake Mousse and Green Tea ice cream for dessert as they used to have this in their menu. They told us that it was no longer on their menu. They only have Vanilla ice-cream. A Japanese restaurant served Vanilla ice-cream!!

I was very disappointed. I do not recommend this restaurant.   (milk - February, 2010)

Overall 7.8 - Food 7, Ambience 6, Value 10, Service 8

Food:

We pre-ordered oysters so lucky us. The food was pretty good, salmon was nice and fresh, likewise with the oysters. We had 2 rounds of tempura prawns, and they were rather sizeable too. Wasn't too pleased with the agadeshi tofu, they used the firm tofu, instead of the soft silken ones. But the winner of the day was the fried, marinated chicken. Absolutely delicious! Maybe that's why there was only 4 pieces per order.

Ambience:

Getting there was a little confusing. You find yourself driving in a residential area with no signs of restaurants or shopping strip. But won't be long before you spot a massive (and hungry) crowd gathered outside an unassuming establishment. You have found J's. The restaurant is simple and bare, no frills. It looked more like a canteen than a restaurant. But hey, we're here for the food, right?

Value for money:

Absolutely! $28 per person for an all-you-can-eat Jap buffet with raw salmon, prawns, oysters etc... Where else can you find such a deal?(Note: It's cash-only)

Service:

Honestly, I don't know how they cope. There's at least 50 starving customers and from what I can tell, about 4-5 waiting staff. It took them a while to come around to take our orders but once they did, the food just came flying out. The challenge was to finish the food before the next dish came out.   (Trish - See my reviews (2) - November, 2009)

Overall 7.8 - Food 8, Ambience 5, Value 10, Service 8

Great evening for the family or group of friends.

They are very generous with the food and its always fresh and well presented in a 'basic way'..

You often don't recognise any of the waiting staff from your last visit (I think they have an army of young casuals) but the hectic service level is always OK.

Drinks prices are very reasonable so get a taxi or its not far from Brighton Beach Station if you know the way.

Highly recomemnded.- you'll go more than once.

Fordster September 2009   (fordster - September, 2009)

Overall 9.3 - Food 10, Ambience 8, Value 10, Service 9

Excellent, value for money.

Great friendly staff and all the seafood you can eat.

It's the only Restaurant that you can sit down and enjoy all the Japanese dishes without having to worry about money. Highly recommended for anyone who would like to try out Japanese food.   (Dr Le - April, 2009)

Overall 9 - Food 9, Ambience 8, Value 10, Service 9

It is a nice place to have Japanese Buffet. Very worthy for the $28 per   (Victoria - December, 2008)

Overall 8.8 - Food 9, Ambience 8, Value 9, Service 9

It was very good food and friendly staff!   (October, 2008)

Overall 7.3 - Food 5, Ambience 7, Value 8, Service 9

the first sashimi plate was great. but its quality is getting worse as we order more of that. There is no variety of food choices but i can find my favourites there so i am quite satisfied. The staffs are friendly but they seem struggling to cope in peak hours.   (September, 2008)

Overall 6.3 - Food 6, Ambience 5, Value 8, Service 6

$28 for all you can eat, that's very reasonable. but you also eat what you pay for, thus quality of food is just average   (Deb - September, 2008)

Overall 8.8 - Food 10, Ambience 6, Value 10, Service 9

A buffet menu that does not compromise its quality. The food is deliciously fresh, and the beef salad is a personal recommendation! The restaurant furnishings are nothing special, and the tables can seem to be somewhat ordinary and squashed. But you don't come here for that stuff! You come here for the excellent food!! The staff are unbelievably friendly and efficient. Don't forget to book as can get very busy at times.   (Ron - September, 2008)

Overall 8.3 - Food 10, Ambience 7, Value 9, Service 7

The night has gone really well with our choice of anything and everything on the menu for the cost of $28 per adult and kids half price for up to 14yrs which is fantastic and including an ice cream at the end of it all. The tables were a bit squashy, apart from that its just a busy little place crying out for a bit of decor and menu update.   (July, 2008)

Overall 7.5 - Food 8, Ambience 6, Value 8, Service 8

Fairly squashy for movement around the restaurant.

Apart from that, the food was great with a stunning selection of dishes to chose from.

Would definitely see myself coming back and as well as recommending friends to it.   (July, 2008)

Overall 6.8 - Food 6, Ambience 6, Value 6, Service 9

the sushi too cold and the rice no any vergin tast. it may because all sushi already made and put aside (not made at order). the beef salad, same. beef is overcook and too cold, but the sause is good. tempura, the deep fry skill still need to improve as i could tast the oil. the hot dishes overcook. however the service and sashimi are good. waitress always asked did we need to order anything; the sashimi is fresh, but if they can provide more different kinds of sashimi is good, not only 1 or 2 choices.   (bb - June, 2008)

Overall 8.3 - Food 8, Ambience 7, Value 9, Service 9

quite enjoy the whole buffet experience as we got our moneys worth, but as lunch probably wouldn't go but loved the beef & aspargus salad & the sushi was creamy nice! The service that night was good, our food came out quite fast but slow a little as the place became extremely busy... were we suppose to get deserts afterwards?! anyways it was an enjoyable dinner.   (angelbabiie - June, 2008)

Overall 8.5 - Food 9, Ambience 7, Value 9, Service 9

The beef salad is realli awesome!   (May, 2008)

Overall 8 - Food 9, Ambience 7, Value 10, Service 6

food is ok, loves the beef salad.. so damn delish! tempura, sashimi, takoyaki also nice. eggplant was too sweet sumhow. ambience just nice. i think it's great value for money except the waitress, that young lady is always like havin her period. never smile and sumtimes rude!.. on the other hand, that young boy waiter is so nice and very helpful..   (April, 2008)

Overall 8 - Food 7, Ambience 6, Value 9, Service 10

it was good just dont go on a sunday becuase there was nothing left to eat on the menu!   (April, 2008)

Overall 7.8 - Food 9, Ambience 5, Value 9, Service 8

Fantastic food. Will become a regular favourite.   (umaret - April, 2008)

Overall 5 - Food 6, Ambience 3, Value 8, Service 3

The sushi is bad. I don't like the sushi rice, so tasteless and the texture is too soft.. Sashimi is pretty all right, though not the best one. Tempura is really great, I have to say this is the best one in Melbourne. But overall, the food is average. Oh, one more thing, tell your waitress to smile!!!   (March, 2008)

Overall 8.8 - Food 9, Ambience 7, Value 10, Service 9

Great little restaurant! The only downside is the size of the place, but otherwise it is excellent, especially the sashimi platter!   (See my reviews (3) - February, 2008)

Overall 7.8 - Food 9, Ambience 8, Value 8, Service 6

Overall its good, however, perhaps it is much easier if the desert choice is attached with the menu.   (February, 2008)