Review: Sushi Tei, Sydney

Everyone has been amidst exams this past week – except me. What’s the point of being free from the evils of academic life when no one else has the time to hang out with you? After many rejections from studious geeks and nerds, of course including my foodie comrade WX, my pleas were finally answered when a little outing to Sushi Tei was organised by FW.

I’ve always walked past this corner restaurant opposite the Chifley building, but never once set foot inside. Although it was Monday, there were a fair few people already seated when we walked in with no reservation but we still managed to score a table for five. I think post-exams and post-work really helped out appetites because even before the fifth member of our dining crew, SY had arrived we had already ordered several items from the Happy Hour menu and quite a few from standard one too! You’ll have to forgive me for poor quality photos – my hunger got the best of me! Mind you, by the time I took the first couple of shots, FW, EL and FYL had practically demolished the appetiser dishes Chuka Wakame (a type of seaweed, Chinese styled) and Gyoza (panfried dumplings). In dire times of hunger, this restaurant performed beautifully in the 'quick service' category - everything we ordered came swiftly to the table - another reason why my photos could potentially be blurry as I scrambled to take my share of the food!

Chuka Wakame $3.00

Chicken & Pork Gyoza $4.80

Next up, the Beef Tataki (semi-seared beef), Chawanmushi (egg custard) and Ikura-Chawanmushi (egg custard with salmon roe) arrived in quick succession. I'm not a huge fan of chawanmushi but I love ikura by the mouthful but because everyone just wanted to try some, we eat had about a spoon each from the tiny little cup.

Beef Tataki $10.80

Ikura Chawanmushi $8.80

Chawanmushi $4.80

What followed was literally a huge party in our mouths - all at once! From my experience, there are several varieties of Karaage Chicken (friend chicken) in terms of the type of batter used and I'd have to say, this wasn't the best. Everything else was delicious, especially the tempura and our final bill wasn't too expensive either - considering the amount of food we stuffed into ourselves!

Sanshoku Hana Salmon (3 kinds of roe) $5.80

Tempura Moriawase $11.80

Ebi Don $13.80

Soft-shell Crab $11.80

Salmon Skin Spicy Roll $4.80

Karaage Chicken $4.80

Ebi Avocado Ebikko Maki $4.80

Aburi Salmon Roll $14.80

Apologies for the long line of photos there - just the proof of how much we managed to order amongst the five of us. Food always makes me happpppppyyy! :)

Although I can't say that this was the best Japanese food that I've had (and I've had a lot) it is definitely one that falls into my re-visit category and doesn't necessarily bankrupt me. The atmosphere and ambience is great - perfect for a night out with friends just to catch up and enjoy life (even though most are still having exams).


Sushi Tei
Chifley Square Ground Floor
1 Cnr Elibeth St & Hunter St
Sydney NSW 2000
PH: (02) 9232 7288