Eating fast food in a mall is not exactly on my list when I go abroad but Deb assured me Hanaichi was better than your regular fast food fare.
Hanaichi was located at QV Melbourne mall right across the open square. You can see my friends, all in black, below trying to decide what to order.
The menu was simple typical Japanese fare. You can choose from rice or noodle soup.
My friends had either the chicken teriyaki or pork curry rice bowls. I wasn’t able to try it but if their empty paper bowls were an indication I guess it was good.
I was trying to decide beef yakiniku or the curry but I wanted to try something new. Miso is usually served as soup or sometimes as a marinade for cod fish. I’ve never tried it as a sauce on top of fried chicken pieces. To my delight it was absolutely delicious! The taste was salty and had the umami taste that brightened the crisp and tender boneless chicken pieces. The addition of veggies provided a good balanced meal.
Unlike at a Japanese fast food chain in Manila which serves a few slices of beef on a big bowl of rice where the ratio of rice to beef is about 90 to 10, Hanaichi was quite generous with their protein. Half rice and half chicken was just perfect for me.
I can’t eat white rice without sauce. That’s a quirk of mine that all my friends know about. The good thing about this meal was all the sauce that was liberally poured over the rice that’s why I almost finished the rice.
Here’s a few pictures of the interesting restroom of the mall. The push button entry makes sense when you’re carrying a baby or in a wheelchair.
All public facilities should have a bag hook like this.
I really enjoyed my meal at Hanaichi. It was cheap, the portions were generous and most important of all the taste was very good. Indeed it was better than your typical mall fast food.
Hanaichi
SHOP 13-15
QV SQUARE
Corner Swanston and Londsdale street, Melbourne VIC 3000
telephone: 03-9662 9409
website
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