Perth Voice Interactive

TWO weeks out from Christmas, God cranked up the heating with temperatures hitting 39 degrees celsius this week.

The old Voice jalopy was on the verge of a meltdown by the time I found a parking spot on the swanky and very busy Mends Street in South Perth.

Wealthy old men in Gucci loafers were staring and pointing at the steam rising from my car bonnet as I flapped around in my crocs, trying to locate the radiator. 

I was heading to Miso Hangry (terrible pun) in the little shopping centre about halfway down the street.

I hadn’t been in the shopping centre – basically a long tunnel with shops either side – for many years.

It’s been completely revamped and is now a swanky and impressive little mall with a range of quality outlets.

I was impressed by how clean and vibrant it looked with South Perth Cycles particularly well-presented with an immaculate row of gleaming bikes outside.

The sushi joint Miso Hangry is situated towards the far end.

The smallish eatery was modern and clean-cut with some funky Japanese posters on the wall and stylish downlights.

It was nice, if a little on the cookie-cutter side of things.

With plenty of seating and dinky tables, it was busy on a Tuesday lunchtime with a mix of business folk, young couples and retirees.

The menu had a decent range of entrees, donburi, noodles, sushi rolls, salads and platters.

All the classics were covered, plus a few things I hadn’t tried like the Tendon Donburi (Shark Bay tiger prawn and vegetable tempura) and Beef Gyudon Donburi (Japanese style braised beef, onion, onsen egg and seven-spice pepper).

Fresh from the school break-up, I was joined by my young kids – Bamm-Bamm and Pebbles – who love Japanese tucker.

They wolfed down some crunchy chicken and chicken lover sushi rolls (both $11 for four pieces).

The crunchy chicken was particularly interesting as it included some potato salad – a smooth contrast to the crispy chook.

More texture was provided by the fried shallots, and rounding everything off was a drizzle of chilli mayo. The sushi wheels held together nicely and were a good size.

The Chicken Lover had a tasty and vibrant mix of teriyaki chicken, avocado and spring onion.

The surprise twist came courtesy of the tamagoyaki (Japanese rolled omelette) which added a little richness.

I liked Miso Hangry’s sushi – it was somewhere in-between your classic style and the kitchen-sink stuff – and had a nice balance

Despite the heat, my wife “Special K” was tucking into her chicken katsu curry donburi ($20.90).

“It’s got a nice subtle kick,” she said as the sweat trickled down her forehead.

“There’s a light crispy coating on the chicken, and the meat is very tender. I would have liked a bit more potatoes and carrots in the sauce though.”

My Yakiniku Donburi combo ($26.40) was an enjoyable affair. There was a nice heat from the seven-spice pepper and the spring onion refreshed the palate.

The teriyaki beef was tasty, if a little stringy at points, and the meal came with two veggie spring rolls, a little green salad and an enjoyable miso soup.

I had almost given up on the humble spring roll – too often they are just frozen garbage chucked in the deep-fat fryer and come out like tasteless desiccated sticks.

But these cocktail numbers restored my faith – light and fresh with a dainty pastry and tasty filling, they were a welcome surprise.

Miso Hangry is a good sushi joint, if a tad on the pricey side (it is South Perth though) and is a good pitstop if you’re at the zoo with the family over Xmas.

Just watch out for old folk in Gucci loafers…

Miso Hangry
21 Mends St, South Perth
misohangry.com.au