Cuisine Undercover - Kinya Japanese Cuisine - 3 stars

I call them “Docklands Days”. The kind of days when, even in winter, the sun shines so brightly off the water and pristine surfaces of newly completed buildings, it’s like the precinct has been smattered with crystals.

When the wind doesn’t blow (or you find a sheltered place!) – where you can actually sit in the sun and allow its gentle winter warmth to wash over you, without fear of burning.

When the chilled grey and frantic rush of the city seems a million miles away – and you feel “somewhere else”. You could be on holidays, enjoying a crisp Riesling and laughter by the water while good looking joggers trot by – although even they are moving at a more leisurely pace.

You’re not of course – you’re just at Yarra’s Edge on your lunch break but, by god, on a Docklands Day, you are definitely “somewhere else” other than the CBD.

It’s been a while since I ventured to Yarra’s Edge. There’s no denying it’s a bit of a hike but with more than 6000 ANZ employees moving in next door, I expected to find it awash with blue lanyards and sensible suits. But alas (or “hurrah” perhaps, if you’re a local resident) the few eateries it has on its blessed northern facing promenade still appear somewhat undiscovered.

On this particular Docklands Day, we couldn’t go past the large, wooden tables outside Kinya, the Japanese Restaurant which replaced Iku Izakaya almost a year ago.

A friendly welcome saw us happily seated at one of the larger sun-drenched tables, with no hint of grumbling that there were just two of us. A lunch special at less than $20 clearly designed to attract workers with limited time didn’t appear to be working en masse – which is a shame as the one suited couple I saw order the special had it promptly delivered with glistening glasses of Japanese beer, almost tempting me to do the same. But the sun was slowing me down and I was determined to adjust my pace accordingly.

We started with an appetiser of King Crab Gyoza, dusted with caviar and delightfully presented – firm to bite and nice chunks of crab inside, although lacking a bit of “zing”.

These were followed by the Kani Cream Croquettes – their bland interiors of potato and crab rescued by the delightfully crunchy crumbing, which was drizzled with a Japanese mayo and bitey soy.

But then the real stars arrived – a plate of mixed sashimi and sushi, while reasonably pricey at $35, was almost worth the price alone for its presentation. The quality of the fish was spectacular and while the prawn heads and faux flowers (complete with faux rain drops) amidst the generous dollops of wasabi and fresh ginger, could have almost appeared tacky on any other day – but on this Docklands Day, with the sun bouncing off the shiny shells and fake dewy petals, it was just right.

The signature dish of Golden Fish (which I believe was a black cod fillet) basted with a divine miso paste was cooked to perfection and melted in the mouth, with morsels falling easily from the fork with a crisp, blackened skin. The only disappointment was a bizarrely Master Chef-type moment, with the Vanilla Pannacotta arriving appallingly presented. The three small blobs adorning my plate more closely resembled torn mozzarella balls – it almost looked as though they’d scraped someone’s leftovers from the mould and then thrown a strawberry on the side with a smattering of green tea powder to distract me.  It tasted good though.

The locals may not like me giving this away, but I firmly believe those Yarra’s Edge promenades have as much, if not more potential than Victoria Harbour and, as South Wharf takes off, it’s sure to be realised at some point.

And come on ANZ-ers. I know most of you won’t even walk the distance from Southern Cross Station to work and would rather queue for a two-minute tram ride – but take the time to cross the bridge at lunch time and enjoy a bit of what makes Docklands different.