Boto food review: Cottesloe’s unassuming teppanyaki and wine loft a cut above

There are few places in Perth I fear more for my life than the carpark at the Boatshed Market in Cottesloe.

OK, I’m adding a touch of mayo, but the few times a year I’m brave enough (and have the funds to justify a $20 salad) to pull in, I’m immediately filled with regret.

In this small square metreage of tarmac sit some of the most expensive vehicles in Perth, and yet Porsche and Range Rover drivers navigate it like they’re behind the wheel of a go-kart. It’s frightening stuff, and a reminder to triple-check I’ve paid my car insurance.

So the first win of the rainy night we visit Boto — the teppanyaki and wine loft above Perth’s flashiest supermarket — is that we got in and out without a single prang or near miss.

The second win is the excellent experience that followed.

It’s an unassuming space — rush in for some last-minute items and you might miss the black-on-black mezzanine above with its bar, open kitchen and wine room. We didn’t on the night, but you can grab a bottle and drink it at your table for a corkage fee.

Instead we go straight to the food, starting with the charcoal aburi dry-aged hiramasa kingfish ($29). As with every dish that followed, a hit of smoke took it from good to great. The kingfish was sliced thick enough to hold a proper bite, and grated karasumi (salted, dried mullet roe) gave it a funky, salty kick.

Next off the rank is the chicken skewer ($23 for two) — tender thigh with a slight char, paired with surprisingly delicious charred spring onion.

A neat row of four plump wagyu gyoza ($25) arrives next, with the meatiness cut through by the acidity of the soy and black vinegar dipping sauce.

The timing throughout is spot on with the service attentive without hovering.

A plate of wagyu rib eye ($65), cooked over the hibachi (which this season of MasterChef has me wondering if I need one at home) continues to carry the smoke through. It’s a choose-your-own adventure kind of dish with a circle of kizami wasabi butter, a soy and wine reduction, a pile of salt — or all of the above.

Finally the salad greens ($21) — one of the prettiest salads I’ve seen, no surprise given the freshly spritzed seasonal produce below — had ribbons of carrot, slivers of radish and a variety of scattered greens dressed with passionfruit sumiso dressing.

Boto is a solid spot when you’re in the area, perhaps not destination-worthy, but enjoyable all the same. Just park across the road, unless you fancy a lap of Mario Kart with a Range Rover.

The verdict: 16/20

The excellent food and attentive service justifies the frightening carpark below.

Boto Teppanyaki and Wine Loft

40 Jarrad St, Cottesloe

OPEN Every day, noon-9pm

BOOKINGS Yes

CONTACT boatshedmarket.com.au/pages/boto