Bistro Lamp is one of the Gold Coast’s longest-running Japanese restaurants, having first opened in Surfers Paradise back in 1998. Now located in the former FuFu building in Mermaid Beach, the new Bistro Lamp showcases a unique take on Japan’s traditional flavours. The share-style menu kicks off with small plates like handmade prawn gyoza, which arrive swimming in a fiery coconut-chilli sauce, seared scallops arranged atop a turnip puree with a soy-infused butter sauce, and a series of onigiri (rice balls) for a hand-held snack. As for land-based eats, there’s wagyu-beef tataki with a sticky ponzu sauce and yuzu-pepper mayonnaise, and an indulgent free-range pork-belly kakuni braised in mirin, sake and ginger with a karashi mustard mayonnaise. Those hunting for veg-based bites can plunge their chopsticks into the intriguing truffle-infused spaghetti tossed with edamame, mushrooms and a house-made shoyu butter, or smaller share plates like tempura miso eggplant with a black-sesame sauce. Behind the bar, the team is pouring a collection of Japanese sake, beer, shochu and whisky, as well as cocktails and all of the shades of wine.