PROFILED BY DE GROOTS MEDIAFilling a niche gap in the foodie market, the health-conscious and the curious flock to Wafu Japanese restaurant in Surry Hills – the restaurant Mecca for those with food allergies. The food here is gluten-free, wheat-free, dairy-free, MSG-free and refined sugar-free – all in all, absolutely guilt-free. A professional certificate member of The Coeliac Society, Wafu dishes up authentic Japanese cuisine in a simple setting. Thirty seats sit on a bare concrete floor under massive white lampshades and walls accented with artwork. You’ll find owner and chef Yukako Ichikawa darting around the small dining room, chatting with guests to assess their hunger levels and food allergies. Where possible, Yukako uses only pure and organic ingredients – she even makes all sauces from scratch in-house to avoid any chemicals and preservatives. All vegetables, rice, seasoning, cooking oil, chicken and beef are 100% organic, and many dishes are suitable for vegans.
An entree of seaweed salad or deep-fried eggplant and tofu with sweet miso sauce is a promising start to the meal, as is the delicious, lightly battered and deep-fried tempura, which is endowed with a distinctive taste courtesy of the dish’s organic sesame oil. Mains could include rice-crumbed and deep-fried sweet potato katsu, an array of rolled sushi or the popular bento boxes. Soba noodles comprise 100% buckwheat or try the macrobiotic plate with its three choices of osozai, brown rice and miso soup. As an added bonus to the extensive written menu, the mounted blackboard boasts a range of rotating specials. Palates won’t go thirsty, either; Wafu offers a great range of gluten-free beers and organic wine – or simply bring along your own. Those who thought such a health-focused restaurant would avoid desserts can think again; lusciously light mousse and ice-cream comes in chocolate, green tea or black sesame flavours.
Lauren Barker, October 2008
