This is what we thought of the food at Japanese restaurant Dokidoki at Sheffield's New Era Square

One such eatery at the St Mary’s Gate development is DokiDoki, which opened last Autumn, with ‘strong ambitions to become the number one, flagship Japanese restaurant in Sheffield’.

A dining companion and I went to try the food there on a quiet Thursday night, when we were one of just a few parties dining in.

With umbrellas suspended from the ceiling, minimalist design, elegant wooden fixtures and screens, Dokidoki feels like a stylish and airy environment in which to enjoy a meal.

To start, I ordered the dish of Korokke, which are deep-fried pumpkin croquettes, with a side of katsu sauce. It had an interesting taste to it, and the katsu sauce made for an unique pairing. It also came with a side salad, which was a little warmer than I would have liked.

My dining companion ordered the Grilled Eel Skewers, which were served in a sweet caramel-like sauce. He described them as being ‘a delicious appetiser’.

Unfortunately the meal got off to a bit of a rough start, after my starter was not served for several minutes after my dining companion’s, despite being ready and waiting on the hatch next to the kitchen, and we had to ask for our drinks to be served a couple of times.

Moving on to the mains, I ordered the only vegetarian main option which was the Vegetable Yakisoba, which is described on the menu as being mixed vegetable fried noodles with a Yakisoba sauce.

However, the only vegetable included within the dish was onions, which was quite disappointing. I only got a few tastes of the Yakisoba sauce, which was tasty, here and there during the course of the meal – and the prevailing taste was salt, and too much of it.

The dish really needed more seasoning – the only hint of it appeared to be the sesame seeds it was topped with – a wider range of vegetables and far less salt.

My dining companion opted for the Seafood Ramen, which consisted of two large tempura prawns, their tips dipped in the broth, a delicious runny-yolk salt-egg, a solitary delicate scallop – rather than 'scallops' as the menu suggested, as well as some fantastic-looking, but rather well-cooked octopus, all in a pale, rich broth. Garnished with a little fresh-tasting sweetcorn and sheets of nori, dried seaweed.

The service could have been better. When we asked for the bill at the end of the meal, we explained we wanted to pay by card and our waitress told us you could get a 10 per cent discount for paying by cash. Despite saying we did not have any cash with us and would like to pay by card, the offer of a 10 per cent discount was reiterated again when the card machine was brought over and we had to ask to pay by card for a third time. I found this a little frustrating.

While it is not a dining experience I would recommend, I feel it may have just been a one-off, bad night at Dokidoki. The majority of the reviews from diners on Facebook describe delicious food and great service.

With two starters, two mains and two drinks, the bill came to £39.50, which is pretty good value.