OTHER AUSSIE ASIAN OPENINGS RIGHT NOW

CHUUKA, located on Sydney’s funky Jones Bay Wharf, is helmed by award-winning chefs Chase Kojima and Victor Liong (pictured above) who have created a menu blending Chinese flavours with Japanese attention to detail using the best Australian produce. There’s a focus on seafood, with a dedicated raw menu, delicious desserts and an outdoor bar that is going to be the place-to-be come summer. chuuka.com.au LOTUS, the award-wining, much-missed bistro in Sydney’s Potts Point, is making a triumphant return to Challis Avenue as an extended pop-up concept during spring. Chef Dan Hong is returning to the restaurant where he made a name for himself back in 2008 as are some menu cult classics like its cheeseburger and the tuna with sweet wasabi. The return of Lotus is planned as a farewell to the Challis Avenue property, which has been owned by the Hemmes family since 1988, and which was sold recently. merivale.com Mod Japanese eatery BINCHO BOSS, located on Little Bourke Street in Melbourne’s CBD, features authentic izakaya-style dishes, which are all the rage at the moment, many cooked on a traditional earthen konro grill over binchō-tan, white charcoal used in Japanese cooking to produce unique flavours. The menu, by chefs Tomotaka Ishizuka and Keiji Ishida, includes house-made fresh tofu, soy ginger-flavoured chicken karaage with lemon and mayo and Ishizuka’s signature dessert of espresso-flavoured cream caramel with chestnut sauce. binchoboss.com.au