ZENZEN Gisborne brings the warmth, care, and refined flavor of Japanese dining to 13 Hamilton St in Gisborne, offering a welcoming destination for locals and visitors looking for a memorable meal.
With a strong reputation reflected in its excellent 4.90-star rating from 249 reviews, this restaurant has earned the trust of customers who value quality, consistency, and friendly service.
Whether you are stopping in for lunch, settling in for dinner, or enjoying a quiet solo meal, ZENZEN Gisborne creates an experience that feels both relaxed and thoughtfully prepared.
Designed for comfort and convenience, the restaurant offers dine-in, takeaway, and delivery options, making it easy to enjoy Japanese cuisine in the way that suits your day best.
Guests can look forward to a menu that includes healthy options, vegan choices, quick bites, small plates, and satisfying desserts, along with alcohol, beer, cocktails, and spirits for those who want to pair their meal with a drink.
With seating, table service, a bar on site, and a restroom available, the atmosphere is casual and cozy while still feeling polished and inviting. Dinner reservations are recommended, and the business happily accepts reservations, helping guests plan ahead with confidence.
ZENZEN Gisborne is also committed to accessibility, making it a comfortable choice for a wide range of diners. The restaurant includes a wheelchair-accessible car park, entrance, seating, and toilet, ensuring that more guests can enjoy a smooth and stress-free visit.
Payment is simple and flexible too, with credit cards, debit cards, and NFC mobile payments accepted. Located in the heart of Gisborne, this Japanese restaurant offers more than just a meal—it provides a dependable, welcoming place to gather, unwind, and enjoy fresh flavors with peace of mind.
For bookings or enquiries, call +61 3 4432 5347.
Our Specialties
Every dish tells a story. Explore our carefully curated menu featuring seasonal favorites and signature creations.
Our chef's signature creations featuring locally-sourced ingredients and innovative culinary techniques.
We partner with local farmers and suppliers to bring you the freshest seasonal ingredients every day.
Every plate is prepared with attention to detail, combining traditional recipes with modern presentation.
Our Story
Welcome to a place where great food meets warm hospitality. We believe dining is more than just a meal - it's an experience to be savored and shared.
Our kitchen is dedicated to creating dishes that bring people together, using recipes that honor tradition while embracing innovation.
Photos
A glimpse of our restaurant experience
Food & Drinks
Chicken thigh cooked in teriyaki sauce, choy sum, mayo, shredded nori, sesame, spring onion on rice
Panko crumbed chicken breast, Japanese beef curry, Bulldog sauce, pickle on rice
Grilled Char Siu Pork, ajitama egg, choy sum, wood ear mushroom, sesame bean sprout, spring onion, benishoga, seasoned bamboo shoot, sesame, pork bone broth
Sweet corn, butter, ajitama egg, chou sum, wood ear mushroom, sesame bean sprout, special miso blended shitake and vegetable broth. Can be VEG / VG.
Crispy tofu, yuzukosho oroshi broth, shredded nori and spring onion. 5 pcs. Can be V, VG, GF, DF.
$16.50 Japanese pancake with squid on sticks, okonomi sauce, mayo, bonito flakes (2 skewers) $16.50. DF.
Hear from our valued guests
One of my favourites! Amazing food with the best service in town. Always outstanding.
Food was good esp the beef bao buns and the black sesame ice cream. The apple sake cocktail was amazing. Only criticism is the toilets are freezing!!!
Excellent food, great service and friendly staff. We really enjoyed it!
Amazing first visit high quality food and ingredients large servings we will definitely be back ! Service was amazing John was lovely to deal with 🤗
Had such a great experience at Zen Zen last night. The waitress was very patient and helpful with our orders, and made sure my meals were gluten free and that I knew what I could share with other people in our group that had ordered. The food was also delicious! I can’t wait to go back highly recommend
We really enjoyed our experience at this restaurant recently. Arriving without a booking on a busy Friday night our party of four were shown to a table after a short wait. The atmosphere was great and we felt like we could have been in Tokyo with the decor and somewhat cramped venue. A well stocked little bar is the centre piece of the room where you can relax with a drink while you wait to be seated. The staff were attentive and inviting, we felt welcomed. Drinks (from an extensive selection) arrived in no time and we studied the menu while we chatted. We chose several entree and main dishes to share and again the meal service was prompt with two or more plates arriving concurrently. The food was very fresh and tasty, we all agreed it was a our new go-to for a night out with friends who enjoy this type of cuisine. I had a chat with the proprietor just before we left and I can confidently say ZenZen are very proud, and efficient at what they are providing here in Gisborne.
I have been raving about our dinner at Zen Zen all week, it was one of the best meals we've had in a long time. We ordered a number of small dishes to share and honestly it's almost impossible to rank them but the Wagyu Bao were definitely my #1! We also ordered the edamame, pork gyoza, okonomiyaki, miso soup, Japanese fried chicken, rice and the chocolate wafer sandwich. Everything was absolutely fantastic, could not have asked for better quality food. Only thing to comment on would be for the pork gyoza to be slightly crispier, but it was still delicious. Food did take a while to come out, as they were preparing each dish after we finished the previous one and the place was packed! If you're looking for high quality Japanese food, this is the place to go. I just wish they were open for lunch too so I'd go more often! Service was also great, everyone was really friendly.
Discovered this gem while visiting Mt Macedon & had an incredible night. Lovely food, brilliant drink selection and the best staff, I would highly recommend Zen Zen! Also was very easy to have the food gluten free.
We keep coming back for a reason! The food is always absolutely delicious, full of flavour, and consistently excellent. The service is second to none, friendly, attentive, and always delivered with a smile. The team makes you feel welcome from the moment you walk in, creating a fantastic dining experience every time. Highly recommend!
If only i have more space in my tummy left i would have eaten more from zen zen. We stumbled upon this gisborne find while waiting for the bus home---glad we trusted our gut! We had sashimi & the prawn sushi. Fish used were kingfisher and salmon--really good + really good wasabi and soy sauce too. Rice in the sushi was a bit loose but loved it nonetheless. I love the vibe too--youll feel transported to a tokyo izakaya.
Common questions about ZENZEN Gisborne
ZENZEN Gisborne is located at 13 Hamilton St, Gisborne VIC 3437, Australia, 13 Hamilton St, VIC, Australia.
You can reach ZENZEN Gisborne by calling +61 3 4432 5347.
ZENZEN Gisborne has a rating of 4.9 out of 5 based on 249 customer reviews.
ZENZEN Gisborne features the following accessibility: Wheelchair-accessible car park, Wheelchair-accessible entrance, Wheelchair-accessible seating, Wheelchair-accessible toilet.
ZENZEN Gisborne features the following service options: Takeaway, Dine-in, Delivery.
ZENZEN Gisborne features the following popular for: Lunch, Dinner, Solo dining.
ZENZEN Gisborne features the following offerings: Alcohol, Beer, Cocktails, Healthy options, Quick bite, Small plates, Spirits, Vegan options, Vegetarian options, Wine.
ZENZEN Gisborne features the following dining options: Lunch, Dinner, Dessert, Seating, Table service.
ZENZEN Gisborne features the following amenities: Bar on site, Restroom.
ZENZEN Gisborne features the following atmosphere: Casual, Cozy.
ZENZEN Gisborne features the following crowd: Groups, Tourists.
ZENZEN Gisborne features the following planning: Dinner reservations recommended, Accepts reservations.
ZENZEN Gisborne features the following payments: Credit cards, Debit cards, NFC mobile payments.
ZENZEN Gisborne features the following children: Good for kids, High chairs, Kids' menu.
ZENZEN Gisborne features the following parking: Free parking lot, Free street parking, Plenty of parking.
Business Features
We look forward to welcoming you. Make a reservation or stop by - walk-ins welcome!
Request a table and we'll confirm your booking shortly.
