Having tried many Japanese restaurants in Australia and having lived in Japan for 22 years, we consider Tempura Hajime to be as close as one could get to the true Japanese dining experience in Australia. Upon entering into a cool, rather dark, elegant space, there is no sign of the actual dining area. Then a door is opened and we... More

Delish food cooked to order in fron of you, all tempura but lots of variety and friendly service. totally hidden away and great for a small group or romantic night for two

I'm a Japanese Australian, and I usually avoid the overpriced, faux Japanese restaurants in Melbourne. But this place is a hidden gem. I can honestly say that I have not found anything like it in Tokyo, even after living there for more than 10 years. I've seen it done with sushi, but not with tempura - a tiny bar designed... More

Have been meaning to go here for a few years but never sure how to find it in South Melbourne. It was reputedl "hard to find". Turns out that although by itself in Park St it is a very short walk from the Domain-St.Kilda Rd tram interchange so very easy to get to. And easy to park. This small, it... More

You have not had tempura until you have had tempura at tempura hajime! Beautiful food. Amazing sushi and a great range of excellent wines and sake to match. A hidden gem.

This is such a lovely little restaurant....we've been twice - once with the original chef and again this year with the new chef Shigeo. We tried the combination set menu of sushi/sashimi with the tempura. All was divine, with the standouts being the corn tempura and the mushroom with prawn. It's a lovely place for a special occassion. It's different... More

A memorable experience every time.

Fresh ingredients and very well cooked. New and exciting concept for Melbourne. I loved the zen/minimalistic decore. Unfortunately, the progression of flavours was not well planned (calmari at the end of the course?) The amount of food was too little (they need to add more non-tempura food if need be). I expected more for the price, and for the hype... More

One could say that describing tempura as a 'traditional Japanese dish consisting of deep-fried vegetables and seafood' is much the same as describing sushi as a dish consisting of rice and fish - there is a lot more to it than that. Although people are more open-minded when it comes to food these days, it wasn't so long ago that... More