With a big, bright, red lobster at the entrance, it shouldn't be too hard to work out what makes Unabara Lobster and Oyster Bar one of the standout Japanese seafood joints in Melbourne.
The lobsters at Unabara are all caught fresh daily, and they come in wild and wonderful iterations such as the Tokyo Lobster roll, which features 80 grams of the good stuff: nori, avocado, cucumber and wasabi mayo; the lobster linguine with fresh made pasta and lobster tail tossed in garlic; a thick and creamy lobster bisque with celery, onions, tomatoes and herbs; and the main event — a grilled half Western Australian rock lobster served with beer battered fries and your choice of garlic butter and mornay sauce (a rich bechamel sauce made with heaps of gruyere cheese).
But don't forget the other half of the name. Even though there isn't an oyster to greet you at the entrance, they still take up their fair share of the menu. Try a grilled oyster with cheese; fresh oysters with ponzu, a Japanese style citrus vinaigrette; or the Unabara sashimi special featuring salmon, sweet prawn, scallop, tune and — you guessed it, oysters.
Other options include seafood platters with prawns, sashimi and mussels, deep-fried calamari, fried mushrooms, katsu prawn burgers and New England seafood chowder.
Unabara Lobster & Oyster Bar has seriously good food, caught fresh and prepared to perfection, without all the seriousness that should go with this style of cuisine. It's casual in here, the kind of casual where you can make a mess at the table and not be banned for life. There's a good selection of wine to choose from too, with the staff able to help you if you need. For a unique experience, pair up some Japanese plum wine with your seafood platter.