KU-O Japanese Restaurant in Sunnybank

Located in Market Square, the modest collection of restaurants and stores diagonally across the intersection from Sunnybank Plaza, KU-O is a humble establishment with lots of timber décor that reminded me of places I went to Kyoto (Japan). It had a nice, relaxed atmosphere to it.

We started with some green tea, a token whenever I have Japanese. This was Sencha (煎茶), the most popular tea in Japan and is grown in the full sun (unlike matcha, which is grown in the shade). Tiny porcelain cups and a cute teapot helped set the tone for the meal to follow.

First up was the Salmon Teriyaki Set, a Tasmanian salmon grilled with Teriyaki sauce for $22.90. We were expecting a nice dry salmon, but it was a little on the moist side. Still delicious, though!

This was followed by the Saba Shioyaki Set, the mackerel fillet grilled with sea salt at $21.90. Very tasty with very little bones, and grilled to perfection.

Both bentos 

Both bentos came with an assortment of sides including he ubiquitous presence of rice, edamame, steamed vegetables, salad, pickles, root vegetable soup, and a dish that I think was a cold chicken karaage side. I’m not familiar with the side dishes in Japan, so that’s as best as I can describe them. They reminded me very much of the bento for breakfast we had in the monastery on Mount Koya, and I definitely didn’t know most of what I was eating then, either! But the memory of those Koyasan meals are special to us, and we were reminded of them again when eating at KU-O.

All in all we found the service friendly, the atmosphere cosy, and the food delicious. We arrived for an early dinner at around 6:30pm on a Saturday evening, and shortly after enough people had turned up that some were put on waiting lists, so it seemed to be a popular spot.

We’ve never had much of a problem getting a car park at Market Square, but for the first-time visitor be warned: it does get very busy and can be frustrating trying to find a park. You won’t regret it though, as KU-O isn’t the only treat in store for you at Market Square.

Address: 341 Mains Rd, Sunnybank QLD 4109

Hours:
Sunday 10:30am–10:30pm
Monday 11:30am–10:30pm
Tuesday 11:30am–10:30pm
Wednesday 11:30am–10:30pm
Thursday 11:30am–10:30pm
Friday 11:30am–11:30pm
Saturday 10:30am–11:30pm

Phone: (07) 3172 1319