Hanaichi Sushi Bar + Dining

Maybe one day I’ll try coming here again. Upstairs above the Wintergarden near Strike is a casual Hanaichi sushi bar. I’m a fan of the regular Hanaichi so I was excited to try this one with my sister.
We got off to a bad start. This place was packed at lunch time which is fine but I feel like they should’ve bought a larger shop seeing they probably knew it would be busy. There are no booths here so you have to sit next (close) to other people –which I can handle.
But I had a Boost Juice that I had bought in the MacArthur centre. One of the Hanachi ladies came over to me and told me I couldn’t put it on the table. Now I have been to many restaurants before –expensive, middle-​range and cheap, and I have never been told I can’t bring my drink bottle or juice or drink I purchased somewhere else. It’s not like I brought in food from another shop, came in a started eating it. I just thought it was rude and unnecessary. I mean almost everyone in the sushi bar would have a Boost Juice before. If not they would’ve have seen a Boost Juice store or booth before. I just don’t see the point. It’s not like I’m eating Hungry Jacks at MacDonald’s?
So then she offers to take it and put it in the fridge for me out the back. I appreciate the gesture but I don’t feel comfortable giving my Boost Juice to you. I just want to enjoy my $ 40 to $ 50 meal including drinks I was buying for my sister and myself. I mean talk about pissing people off. I’m not the bashful type but some people might be embarrassed thinking they’ve done something wrong. Next time put a sign on the door.
She asked to put it under the table so I obliged and continued to drink it throughout my meal so I wouldn’t start an argument/​disagreement while I was taking my sister out to lunch.
Besides this occurrence I tried to enjoy my meal but the food was sub-​par. Quick service though. However I would be hesitant to come back because of how busy and packed in you feel compared to other sit side by side restaurants I’ve been to.

My favourite sushi place in the city. Great service, really good quality delicious sushi and it’s quick

ate here but left not 100% happy cause the sushi tasted average. udon tasted bland and they got order wrong but we had to keep it, and it was very expensive. go to sushi edo the next street away, its amazing and all plates are $ 3.50 and the udon is soo bomb.

Sushi trains are a bit hit or miss, in my opinion. The reason being that I really can never be sure how many rotations a plate has done around the block. Granted, I’m sure they have a system of keeping track and would never serve anything they shouldn’t. But still, some sushi is best enjoyed hot (for example anything fried, right?)
When I saw that Hanaichi have table options as well, I was pleased because it meant that I could still order off the sushi menu instead of crossing my fingers on the sushi train. Everything we had was a solid A-​OK (apart from the fried kingfish which was in fact pulled off the train… um not cool).
The real star I think is the combo tempura, and for $ 20 (i think) it’s pretty good value. In addition to the usual veg, you get three pieces of fish, 2 scallops and 2 prawns which is more than I can say for some other tempura mains. Also the hand rolls are amazing. Plus they’re never on rotation, so you know you’re getting a fresh made to order plate!

You can sit down at a table and order different dishes or sit at the sushi conveyer and choose from the little plates while watching the chef prepare the next batch. It was delicious with a big selection and decent prices.

Visited on Sunday for my Partner and I’s anniversary. All up we feel great love for sushi so we try to go to a sushi train or Japanese place whenever possible. Also, we’re all in for good delectable food. My dad introduced me to hanaichi a few years ago at the Hanaichi at Chermside as he also loves Japanese food, and we seem to go there whenever we go there. Hanaichi at wintergarden yesterday did not disappoint, it all was scrumptious and delightful sushi and the duck salad was almost addictive, the dressing was a little too much, but overall besides the sushi train (as it is named) this will stay our other go to.

This sushi here is expensive.
But it is very good; some of the best i’ve had from around the world. They do twists on the sushi dishes that aren’t so common at other japanese restaurants.
If you dont’ mind paying $ 10 per dish, it’s worth trying.

Staff was very friendly. Came here around 5pm on a Tuesday night and it was empty. Place is modern and clean looking; a lot of seating available. The portion sizes are great for the price, especially for the location. A bit of variety as well. Food tasted fresh and overall great value for money. Liked that they allowed split bills and no minimum for eftpos (simply a 30c surcharge of under $ 15). Would come here again :)

We found ourselves staying in the CBD for a few days and on night #1 I had a craving for sushi. It was getting late and I figured most places probably required a reservation for Saturday night dining, so we picked Hanaichi because it was close by and had a casual atmosphere. I wasn’t expecting too much from restaurant in the mall, but boy was I was mistaken.
It was about 8.30pm by the time we got there, so the selection on the conveyor belt was limited, but we sat at the bar and chose from the menu. We ordered gyoza, mini sashimi platter, tako, roasted duck roll, spicy salmon and avocado roll (twice), eel roll, octopus balls and a few more plates. Everything was so fresh and delicious and we were impressed with every dish. I highly recommend trying the takoyaki (octopus balls), they were by far the best I’ve ever had. The sushi chef was very attentive and fast to get our orders out, while the staff were pleasant and efficient. We were seated promptly and didn’t wait long for our drinks or food to come out.
Will definitely be back the next time I find myself shopping in the city!

I don’t know what that is, but the idea of sushi train is really appealing to me!
First of all — I don’t even need to know what kind of sushi or sashimi do I want to eat tonight — I just pick a random plate from the train that I find looking nice and start noming!
I think everybody is now aware what a sushi train is, but in case you’re not: it’s an awesome moving tray where they put freshly made sushi on, on a differently coloured plates (each colour is a different price). And your job there is to pick whatever you feel like and eat it! :)
Hanaichi has also normal kind of tables for people who prefer to have a menu and names ;) or if you come with a bigger group and would still like to have a chat (it’s quite difficult to do so when you sit in line, in front of the train).
I find their sushi tasty and fresh, and they really have quite a big selection to choose from. They have an AMAZING honey prawns. And scallops. And edamame. And all the rolls!
Last time we went there, the staff was a little bit slow (we sat at the table that time) and it took them some time to bring all of our orders, but to be honest, there was 6 of us, we ordered 3 – 4 plates each, and it was noon on a week day.
You should easily get pretty full for about $ 20 – 25. They take cards and cash, so there is no drama if you forgot to bring some bills with you.
As I already mentioned, it gets quite busy around lunch time, so I’d recommend getting there around 11.30 or a bit later when the crowds already leave.
It’s quite dense with people, tables, and the main thing — sushi train! So don’t expect having all the space for yourself. You might be disappointed.
However, the food is good and I definitely recommend the place — especially if you’ve never done the sushi train experience!

I’m not big on my food being conveyed, which I consider to be an abomination. However, I’m a fan of this place. Due to my religious views on food conveyors, I like to get the table service instead of riding the train. The combo-​ish type option I had was really good and more than enough food. The sushi isn’t the best I’ve ever had, but it’s pretty darn good. Obviously, food made to order will be better.

We went there on Monday for the first time since the redevelopment of the Wintergarden and except that the lay out is mirror reversed nothing seems to have changed, excellent fresh food prepared in front of you and put on the train to select as you want or order what ever you want and it is done. It is so more than just a sushi train.
A couple of cold beers to wash it down, excellent.

I have lost count of the amount of times I have dined here. Traditionally my go to lunch place after exams for some plates of well made delicious fresh sushi and a large hot sake. In fact a perfect way to start my few weeks or months of freedom. I will eat maybe 3 or 4 of any of the following plates (it really depends on what is going around on the train at the time and whether I want to order on top of that). My favourites are any of these nigiri sushi: –char grilled eel; salmon belly; seared scallops; seared salmon and scallops. My favourite ship roll is seaweed salad. The soft-​shell crab hand roll is amazing as is the egg hand-​roll which is a delicate thin omelette filled with tempura fried scallops, spring onions, shredded snow peas and mayo — delicious flavour combo and the textures work exceptionally well.
When dining at night on many occasions I have shared the $ 50 ‘catch of the day’ sashimi platters which are always reliably full of a skilfully sliced array of fresh tasting fish such as kingfish, salmon, salmon belly, tuna, sometimes surf clam, green king prawns, salmon roe and if you’re very lucky, some sea urchin (this was only on the $ 80 platter). We usually share the medium platter then only need one or two of the abovementioned plates each and we’re completely full and VERY satisfied.

I love this place.
When you’re looking for some non fast food sushi, this is the place to go in the cbd.
Right from the get go, the host never leaves you hanging by the door. Once you sit down, a waiter immediately asks for your drink order and any special food requests you may have.
The sushi train is fairly extensive with a good selection of raw and cooked choices. My favorite is a partially seared tuna nigri with some sweet ponzu sauce layered over.
The prices are decent and you should be able to get very full for less than 25 bucks. Be sure to ask for fresh ginger and wasabi!

When I was living in San Diego, I ate sushi almost everyday. I have pretty high standards and expectations. It may be biased coming, but I wasn’t impressed on my first introduction to Brisbane’s sushi. Everything is pretty much pre-​made, even if you’re sitting at tables away from the sushi train — they just pluck the items ordered from the train.
Also, the wasabi comes in tiny packages, which I thought was tacky for an dining establishment that seemed a bit ‘upscale’ in term of location and décor.
Between my husband and I, we ordered about 12 plates, red wine for him, a bottle of sake for me – the price is okay, not terribly overpriced but for the quality of the food I would have liked better.
All in all, if you’re okay with the basics (I tend to go for crazy fusion style, which was lacking heee), Hanaichi is good, especially with its location just off the Queens St mall.

My friends and I were out shopping and wanted to take a break for sushi! We went to the sister restaurant, Hanami recently and LOVED it so we thought we’d try the parent company, Hanaichi. I’m going to have to say that Hanami was a much better experience.
We went around 5 so a pretty early dinner but soon after, many other diners joined us. I didn’t think the sushi train looked über enticing so I opted for a bowl of shrimp tempura udon since it was cold out. My bowl of udon soup at home is better. They added a few pieces of split green beans for a nice crunch but the tempera shrimp was OK and the broth was very basic.
My friends enjoyed their sushi but I think that I will head to Hanami when I crave sushi which will very very soon.
Service was nice and they greeted us with the traditional «Irrashaimase» () which I really liked. She refilled our water when it was empty and checked on us. Too bad the food didn’t meet the expectations of the service.
Note– you have to spend at least $ 15 to use EPTOS.

This is a solid value suchi place — I had 3 plates for $ 12, and the quality is pretty ok. For me, the real test is how the sushi tastes without wasabi and soy. Hanaichi is solid on that front, though you will probably want to go ahead and use the soy sauce.
**It’s a bit hidden, on the first floor of the mall near the food court, but has a pretty good, not-​so-​mall-​feeling atmosphere.

Hanaichi is a sushi train, but it’s really in another league of sushi trains. It’s the kind of place you could go on a date or for a nice dinner, as opposed to just grabbing a quick lunch like so many other sushi trains. I think part of the difference is that Hanaichi’s environment is so elegant and modern and fresh. The chairs are on the floor, not big wobbly stools which is a nice change in itself. The train isn’t a twee model steam train (as fun as those are), but a minimalist conveyer belt of fresh, vibrant looking sushi. The staff wait on you hand and foot and there’s an a la carte menu to order from if you wish. You can see the sushi chefs working away behind the counter and their knife skills are mesmerising.
The sushi is really top quality, but the prices are still decent. I like the fact that Hanaichi has taken the humble sushi train model and kicked it up a notch to make it something a little bit classier and special. After you’ve eaten at Hanaichi you really feel like you’ve been out for a meal, not like you’ve just grabbed a takeaway or whatever. They don’t rush you or try to get rid of you if you want to linger over your meal and chat. And as if you needed any more of a reason to linger, they do some refreshing desserts. The green tea ice cream is wonderful after a wasabi-​heavy meal. After a meal at Hanaichi, you’ll feel satisfied, spoiled, and surprised by how little you’ve paid for such a pleasant meal.

Ahhh the Hanaichi. I go back about 10 years with the Hanaichi franchise, my first casual job was in the Indooroopilly Sushi Deli owned by Hanaichi. So when the ever so classy Hanaichi Sushi Bar opened up in the Wintergarden, I had very high hopes.
The owners are very Japanese, very clean, very organised and very into their Japanese Cuisine. It shows. Down to the fine detail of the menu, the drink bar and the fancy set up of the train. The food is fresh, the seafood fresher and the waitresses and waiters are very attentive. The chairs on the sushi bar itself are a little narrow to my liking though, on a busy night, you are quite literally shoulder to shoulder to the person next to you. A bit non-​romantic.
The food, I like the classy little salad rolls they have on the train… they are fresh, sweet and very healthy. The sashimi is carved like it should be. Not too thin, not too thick, but just enough to melt in your mouth. My only complaint is that the chicken karaage has a slight curry hint to it’s marinade. not a big fan of the curry flavoured chicken.
Other than that, you have a pretty positive experience at this place, it’s a great place to bring a date too… they have tables for that, so avoid sitting on the sushi bar side of things if you do.

Hanaichi Sushi Bar is one of the classiest Sushi Trains around. Situated in the Wintergarden complex on the Queen St Mall, you can find Hanaichis by going up the little escalator towards Strike Bowling and Wagamama. There you will enter and wait to be seated by the very friendly staff. This place can get quite busy during peak dining hours but is well worth the wait.
Once seated the very lovely staff will serve you drinks as you watch the exeptional sushi chefs whip up the delights that circle the bar. The prices are all very reasonable with plates starting at $ 3.50. I totally recommend splurging a little and ordering the scampi at $ 7. It comes not only with the delectable scampi sushi but also a bowl of miso soup with the scampi shell floating in it for extra flavour.
I love sushi bars. Just the ability to watch the chefs work and let my mouth water as the different dishes parade themselves infront of me. The problem with Hanaichi’s is that everything looks and tastes so good that I can never decide what to pick. If you are a lover of good sushi go to Hanaichi Sushi Bar. It is definitely a classy and friendly dining experience.