Honestly this is the best sushi joints that I've had the pleasure to eat at in Melbourne. I can see why it's so highly rated and that's why celebrities come out to visit this place. It's a small venue, but the quality of sushi, freshness and fantastic price makes it worth the journey to come out to Purple Peanuts. I for one will most definitely be coming back, again and again. Top marks !!
Honest to god best Japanese food I have ever eaten, definitely coming back!
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I have been visiting Purple Peanuts for the longest time. You could say, I’m one of their loyal customers. For affordable and tasty Japanese food with a slight modern twist, this is the “IT” place to go to. Even my Japanese friends enjoy visiting this café.
🔆LOCATION🔆
Purple Peanuts café is situated on Collins Street, near the corner of Spencer Street across the road from Southern Cross station. The café is nothing spectacular, its very simple set up with a few seats outside and limited seating inside. Customers normally get take-away because during peak lunch period its impossible to get a seat. I normally get here a bit earlier.
🔆SERVICE🔆
Staff here are super efficient, they used to the lunch hour rush. From taking orders, cleaning tables, preparing meals, and delivering to the table. They’re just fast. Normally the queues out the doors are customers waiting for their take-away orders or they’re lining up to put in an order.
🔆MENU/PRICE🔆
The following are most of my favourite things that I like to order when I visit Purple Peanuts:
Prawn Burger, $13.90
(Prawns, tofu & vegie pattie, rocket, cos lettuce, pickled cucumber on Turkish bread)
Chicken Katsu Curry, $14.90
(panko crumbed chicken, Japanese curry, fried veggies, broccolini, coleslaw & rice)
Tsuke Don, $14.50
(premium diced salmon, marinated in house Tsuke sauce, homemade pickles, seaweed salad, yellow daikon salad on vinegar rice)
Akio Salmon Sashimi, $14.90
(premium salmon sashimi slice with Italian style apple/onion & ponzu citrus dressing, wild rocket, homemade pickles on vinaigrette rice)
Kare Gyu, $13.90
(slow cooked thinly sliced beef, curry, red daikon, almond, sansai vegetable pickles, gomashio sesame and rice)
🔆VERDICT🔆
On my most recent trip, I actually got take-away to bring to my friend’s place to eat as she wasn’t feeling very well. I got the Tsuke Don, Chicken Curry and grilled salmon sushi.
I really love the quality of food here and its not the typical food you would get any Japanese restaurant. The quirky modern fusion twist in their menu makes it so nice and interesting.
Joanne | Melbournecitay
+4
purple peanuts is a cheerful little Japanese place that’s ideal for the lunch office crowd. Service is really quick and you are offered a variety of Japanese donburi options - they also provide miso soup for $3 if you buy their recyclable cups! The beef rice my friend had came with quite a bit of pickles and generous beef portions. The radish that accompanied the salad was fresh and delicious! Beef was standard - could do with a bit more sauce to go with the rice! Would def come back to try other options!
Been there a few times but having this grilled chicken curry with soba was my first time. I enjoyed it so much. Will definitely go back again for the soba.
must have the curry with the rice ball as a side !!
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Some 18 months after my last visit I called into Purple for lunch. Good to see this place is still a crowd pleaser and there were plenty of people waiting for their lunch. I ordered the Japanese chicken curry and despite the numbers it was ready quite quickly. I took this back to work and it was delicious. My complaints last time about the rice to topping ratio being out was not an issue today and that curry sauce was really tasty. I didn’t feel the need to drink water all afternoon either so quality all round... they charged nearly $14 for what You can buy for around $12 elsewhere or even cheaper in some occasions but well worth the extra imo.
What did I not like? Credit and debit card surcharge. Come on Purple!!! who carries cash these days.
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Previous Review
3
Called into Purple Peanuts for a late lunch today. I often walk passed and see queues out the door but queues had died down when I arrived after 1pm. It was still busy with a steady flow of hungry people coming and going. Fairly limited tables inside and more outside down the side laneway (so undercover). The menu is written all over the walls on paper behind the counter. They sell grab and go packs of sushi and drink as and pick your own from the counter. As well as some vibrant sushi and some delicious looking salads they also do hot food which was the order of the day. My chicken teriyaki was handed to me very quickly and I took it back to the office. The meal was of better quality than I normally get which was reflected in the price. A slight salad accompanied the rice and chicken in the main. I enjoyed the chicken but felt the rice needed a little more sauce to soak into it. I was left with a large portion of rice that was plain and dry at the end. I was slightly disappointed with the food. The service and surrounds were great but for the sake of a little more sauce this ok dish good have been great.
My experience at Purple Peanuts Japanese cafe was that it was Japanese food made ‘healthier’ and ‘lighter’ on the palette. The Katsu Curry had a strong tomato umami flavour which was a surprise as I had not previously tasted any curry like that before. It had a lot more fruitier tones than most curries I have tried. The tempura udon as well was not your typical udon as the broth was quite citrus-y and light. An interesting variation of Japanese flavours but done very well.
For a quick bite to eat either grab and go takeaway or sit down, this small Japanese cafe is conveniently located opposite southern cross station.
There are a range of hot cooked meals, on a cold Melbourne day I ordered the grilled chicken curry with rice. It was a warming dish, I loved how there was a grilled chicken option as often it’s only katsu (deep fried) curry. It was tasty and a good portion size.
Tried the teriyaki chicken rice which came with carrots and salad on the side. The chicken and the sauce were really tasty but the portion of the chicken was a bit small for our liking. The rice helped to fill us up
I haven’t been to Purple Peanuts in some time so it was great to go back.
The service from the waitress was lovely and she was very friendly.
I ordered a tuna triangle, sorry I don’t know the name but they are full of brown rice and deep fried. What more could I ask for hahaha except some delicious sesame sauce. Thank
They are amazing! So tasty, fresh, crunchy on the outside and soft in the middle. I ordered a brown rice salad too and this was delicious. It was full of cubed carrot. almonds, sultanas, beans and other goodies.
The prices are reasonable and this place is a must visit if your in the city! Yummo.
It's quite a busy little Japanese cafe but me managed to score some seats to dine in. They've also got an extensive takeaway section which I would have to explore on my next visit.
I got their popular Japanese curry chicken, the grilled chicken itself was okay but I would have preferred it in katsu chicken format. By itself it felt a bit bare, even the vegetables outshone the protein with its soft textures and sweetness. The curry itself was smooth and mild, I couldn't help but add shichimi to it to give it more heat.
I also got their matcha shake which was quite sweet from the vanilla bean, crushed Oreo, red bean and whipped cream. Had a decent matcha flavour to it however. I'd personally prefer the flavour profile of a matcha latte however.
It was a quick affair and it's not a place you'd want to hang back, we had a stream of customers line up right next to our table.
Food quality is fantastic. Each dish have sufficient protein. Serving size is perfect. The slow cook pork is really tender, and full of flavors. The soba noodles cooked just to right consistency. Entree is really good, little bit too salty. Matcha latte is very nice, not top sweet. Few small tables inside the little restaurant. Don't believe large group is possible. However, there are plenty of takeaway choices if needed. Very convenient to public transport. Train station just nearby. Car parking are also available nearby.
This is a very popular lunch spot. It’s often hard to get a seat either inside or outside but it’s worth the wait. A really broad menu of different Japanese noodles and curries, it’s great for a warm or cold Japanese classic. If you don’t have the time to wait for a table, they have a fridge full of great takeaway bowls. Ranging from your classic sushi sets to Poke bowls. My favorite dish is the Beef Soba noodles, so yum!
So glad this place is open Saturday and no waiting time! (unlike those famous brunch places haha)
I had the chicken curry soba. Soba is springy but the curry is a little watery/weak for me. Overall a good dish. 👍👍
Also, can I just say that the matcha panna cotta and matcha latte is AMAZING! 😍😍 Not overly sweet and the matcha flavour is at the right amount. Seriously good stuff. Must get them when you visit!
Quite a chic place to dine. The fusion style Buta Kakuni Don is nice, the pork still maintain taste from Japan. If the pork can be braise for longer period and make it softer it would be perfect!
Recommend to come here for meal. They served good vegetarian food too. The tofu burger looks delicious.
(3.75/4, almost a four but not quite there) The don I had which they recommended was not too bad, very large juicy chunks of salmon, however there was too much pickles for my taste. The miso is wonderful, very well balanced. The environment really sucks though, everything is kinda dirty and old, lots of the cutlery and cups dont look to clean. The decorations are terrible, and they dont clean the floor often. Generally its kind of hostile. The staff were alright, but I really do have concerns about sanitation in the kitchen, and because they serve raw food like fish, it really is a must. Not coming back until they do something about the general integrity of this place.
Nice and friendly staff with yummy food.
We tried the chicken curry, matcha shake and the tofu sandwich. They are all taste so Japanese. Not too heavy taste. Really good for breakfast or lunch.
BGM is relax and a bit funky that brings you away from the busy city.
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