Takara review: A popular city centre restaurant with good vegetarian and vegan options

What’s on offer?

If you ever walked past Takara on Abbey Street, it is likely you saw a queue of people outside. This is a popular restaurant that also does a bustling takeaway trade. Sashimi is available and the sushi comes as nigiri, hosomaki, norimaki and futomaki. Sushi options include salmon, tuna, prawn, octopus, crab and unagi eel, as well as vegetarian options with asparagus, cucumber, avocado, tofu, wakame and roasted pepper. Poke bowls are also available and there is plenty of choice with the ramen – pork, beef, chicken, fish, seafood and vegan. You will also find rice-based dishes, wok-fried noodles and teppanyaki as well as a selection of tapas.

What did we order?

Gyozo from the tapas menu, tuna sashimi, beef teppanyaki and vegan ramen.

How was the service?

Really efficient. We ordered online on the Takara website (Deliveroo is also available) and when we dropped in for collection the order was ready.

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Was the food nice?

The six grilled pork gyoza, with a meaty filling in light wrappers, would appear to be made in-house. They’ve got plenty of flavour and come with a ponzu dipping sauce. The tuna sashimi is fresh and nicely sliced, served with wasabi, ginger, grated carrot and soy sauce. The vegan ramen is a very generous portion. The mushroom-flavoured miso broth comes separately, so that nothing gets too soggy. The ramen bowl is loaded with udon-style noodles, tofu, bamboo shoots, bak choi, bean sprouts, mixed mushrooms and sweetcorn. The beef teppanyaki, which comes with a generous side of miso soup, sits on stir-fried vegetables and is accompanied by a big mound of rice. The beef is cooked right through and the teriyaki sauce is a bit bland.

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What about the packaging?

Apart from the miso and ramen soups, which come in cardboard containers with plastic lids, everything is in single-use plastic. They are notably attractive containers suitable for use at the table. The containers are recyclable but far from ideal from an environmental perspective.

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What did it cost?

It cost €43.40 for dinner for two people – gyozo, €8.50; tuna sashimi, €8; teppanyaki beef steak, €15.45; and vegetarian/vegan ramen, €11.45. Online, a 10 per cent discount for first-time orders is flagged, but I was unable to apply it.

Where does it deliver?

Delivery daily with Deliveroo, 5pm-10pm, 5km delivery radius. Or order on the Takara website giving a collection time.

Would I order it again?

Yes, the food is tasty and there are good vegetarian and vegan options. I would skip the beef teppanyaki next time.