Genzo is a relaxed, contemporary Japanese dining and bar, with a little edge. The busy open kitchen with robata grill looks out onto a 28-seater cocktail and sake bar with temperature-controlled sake room, dining for 90 that spills out to the all-weather outdoor terrace, pops of colour emanating across the ceiling’s LED lighting, and character illustrations by Tokyo artist Masanori Ushiki. Genzo opens on Tuesday 9 July in the Walker Street precinct, North Sydney’s newest food and dining destination.

The Genzo kitchen is led by executive chef Rhys Connell (ex-The Gantry; Sepia) alongside head chef Tuan Colombo (ex- Sokyo; Kyubi, London; Nobu London). Connell’s fascination with Japanese cooking was originally honed working under Martin Benn at Sepia and a recent trip to Japan reignited his creativity with this style.

“I love the complexity and elegance of Japanese flavours and dishes and how incorporating Australian influences can work beautifully,” explains Connell. “The menu is refined but very approachable - apart from a few one-bite snacks, everything is either on sticks or eaten with sticks. It works whether you are at the bar or in it for a full dining experience in the restaurant.”

The menu begins with one-bites like a playful avocado and vegemite on crispy rice cake. Snacks and sashimi hits include yellowfin tuna on a stracciatella and umeboshi (Japanese salt plum) onigiri and the scallop sashimi topped with whipped roe and wasabi. Kushi (skewers) and sutikku (sticks) cooked over the robatayaki are a hero of the menu.

Regularly changing chicken cuts are served different ways and include grilled chicken thigh and Tokyo onion; grilled chicken skin with pink pepper; and grilled tsukune (chicken meatballs) with black truffle, celeriac, and soft yolk. There are two seafood kushikatsu (panko crumbed and fried): octopus with chili and cream cheese and a Japanese curry scampi. Don’t miss out on the grilled Blackmore wagyu karubi glazed with yuzu-koshu wrapped in a Tasmanian wasabi leaf.

Larger dishes include a roasted duck and house-made soba noodle tsukemen, or deconstructed ramen - dip the noodles in the hot broth before slurping. Ramen all’Assassina is an umami-packed combination of spicy assassina sauce and wafu spaghetti. The curried Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki (savoury pancake) layers yakisoba noodles, grilled cabbage, nori, and bonito flakes. Murray cod is coated in kombu butter, wrapped in cabbage leaf, and oven roasted creating a beautifully tender piece of fish.

Dessert is an opportunity for head of pastry Rhiann Mead (also The Charles Brasserie & Bar, Sol, and Soluna) to flex her creativity and precision. Kitto Katto is a must for any chocolate (and Kit Kat) fans. Five layers begin with a choc sponge base, sesame feuilletine crunch, chocolate ganache, sesame praline, and finally topped with a black sesame mousse then frozen and set in tempered dark chocolate. Don’t miss the house made yuzu jam and cream cheesecake or the petit fours, including Mead’s take on the popular Japanese Kohakutou candy - melon flavoured jelly inside a thin and crispy sugar shell.

Tuesdays to Fridays Genzo serves up a neat express lunch for $35 per person that includes your choice of a noodle dish, a kushi-sutikku (skewers-sticks) cooked over the robatayaki, and a Japanese soda. For groups of more than eight people, there is a six-course share-style menu of best hits for $95 per person.

Sake is a significant focus of the drinks menu with an array of styles and textures available thanks to the custom[1]designed and temperature controlled sake room. Precinct sommelier Thomas Craig (ex-Loulou Bistro, Catalina) assembles a sake list than spans entry level through to the more complex and is available by the glass, tokkuri (Japanese carafe), and bottle. Sake is balanced with a 100-strong wine list that traverses Japan, France, Italy and Australia and includes approachable styles through to a strong selection of Burgundy and Champagne.

Cocktails are minimalistic but full of flavour and head of bars Pasquale Scarpiello (ex-Tetsuya’s; Merivale; Kolture Group) makes good use of Japanese ingredients like miso, green team yuzu, umeshu, sesame oil and Japanese plum.

A signature is the Genzo Panchi (punch) which balances vodka, house-made cucumber syrup, vanilla and ginger liqueur, and a touch of sesame oil to lift all the flavours. Iiji Opun (translates to ‘easy open’) is a refreshing and more complex take on a Japanese high ball with cocoa -infused gin, umeshu, peach syrup, fresh yuzu juice, and soda.

Genzo’s aesthetic is a story of stark contrasts: tradition, counter dining, and layering of old and new. Walk through the imposing stone portal and solid timber doorway, passing the temperature-controlled sake and wine room into a hive of activity. The open kitchen is alive with busy chefs and complemented by the sculptural and diffused lighting and pleated detail ceiling design. This is offset by the calming natural stone and timber palette of the dining and bar seating across both indoor and outside on the heated and undercover terrace.

Genzo is joined by Sol bread and wine; artisanal providore, Una; and LA-inspired, relaxed dining, bar and lounge Soluna in North Sydney’s new culinary neighbourhood, Walker Street precinct, opening 9 July.