We visited Okami Japanese Restaurant in Silverwater for N’s birthday.

The restaurant offers both all-you-can-eat and a la carte. There are two seatings for the all-you-can-eat, each starting at 5 pm and 8 pm, and lasting for 2 hours.

Salmon and Sashimi Platter (top) and Sushi Nigiri Platter (bottom). N and I were chiefly interested in sushi and sashimi, and while enjoyable, the quality was decidedly average with the rice insufficiently seasoned, with the wasabi to the side rather than between the fish and rice, and the thickness of the salmon being wafer thin. We also weren’t a fan of the California rolls with the canned tuna and surimi, but they were the necessary ‘evil’ to order the platter. As the evening wore on (and perhaps because we were onto our third salmon and sashimi platter), the number of pieces started to shrink.

Seaweed Salad. This was satisfyingly crisp and dotted with sesame seeds, but also the same as the seaweed available in 1 kg bags from Asian groceries.

Seafood Tempura. Each plate featured three prawns and a slice each of pumpkin, sweet potato, carrot and zucchini. The tempura batter was a touch heavy and became soggy very quickly.

Potato Croquette. These were simple, consisting of mashed potato with bits of corn, carrot and pea, and also immensely satisfying with their crisp exterior and soft innards.

Agedashi Tofu. The tofu was firmer and less silky than N expected from this dish, but the flavour was decent.

Yakiniku Beef. D enjoyed the tenderness of the thin slices of beef, which brought back fond memories of a gyudon.

Takoyaki. These were deep-fried rather than freshly prepared. We would’ve enjoyed it with more mayonnaise, bonito and the addition of seaweed flakes.

Chicken Karaage. The cuts of thigh meat were fried a touch too long, with the crust being hard rather than crisp and the innards being a touch overcooked.

Chicken Teriyaki Skewer. The thigh meat here had the same overcooked issue as the karaage and relied exclusively on the salty teriyaki sauce for seasoning. The skewers themselves lack the grilled flavour that usually makes yakitori so moreish.

Seasoned Squid Salad. A mix of vegetables, including bamboo shoots and wood ears, were tossed in a pickled ginger-based sauce. D and I are not fond of ginger, so this was a miss for us, though N did not mind it.

Beef Carpaccio. The combination of the lettuce with the mayonnaise and the seared beef gave an overall flavour of a roast beef salad with far too much mayonnaise to appreciate the beef.

Edamame. Boiled with a pinch of salt, these were enjoyable as expected.

Teriyaki Steak. The pieces of beef were tender but again, were poorly seasoned and a touch too salty.

Ika Spicy Miso Yaki. This squid was oddly soft and tender, with a fishy and offputting seasoning that was an unbalanced mix of spicy, sweet and tangy. We were not fans of this dish and easily found it the worst of the evening.

Homemade Japanese Black Sesame Ice Cream (one scoop per person). This had a bold sesame flavour with the sesame seeds being visible visually and texturally on the palate rather than ground to a fine paste as is usual in gelato stores like Ice Kirin Bar and Rivareno. However, it was enjoyable.

Homemade Japanese Green Tea Ice Cream (one scoop per person). The dairy notes were quite strong with this gelato with the matcha taking a backseat, and so giving an overall flavour profile of a sweetened, weak matcha latte.

Green Tea Taiyaki (one piece per person). By the end of the evening, it became evident that the oil in the deep-fryer was getting old, and this taiyaki is disappointing evidence of it. The pastry soaked up a lot of the flavour of the old oil, which ended up dominating the subtlety of the matcha-flavoured white bean paste inside. While we could see the green paste, we could only taste it when isolated from the pastry.

A rough calculation for the items that we ordered using their takeaway menu and extrapolated to accommodate for items that don’t have direct equivalents, we’re satisfied that, while the food served is decidedly average, Okami Japanese Restaurant offers value for money for their all-you-can-eat experience.

Okami Japanese Restaurant is located at 53 Beaconsfield St, Silverwater NSW 2128.