At Ureshii Japanese Restaurant, joy isn’t treated as a garnish - it’s part of the meal. Step through the doors and the first thing you feel is warmth: the hum of conversation, the soft clink of chopsticks, the gentle welcome that makes you relax before you’ve even seen the menu.
‘Ureshii’ means happy and the name doesn’t sit on the sign by accident. It lives in the atmosphere, in the careful plating and most of all in the quiet way this restaurant has chosen to show up for its community.
Owners Suresh and Bristi have built Ureshii with the kind of intention you can sense in small details. There’s a generosity to the place - not loud or performative, but steady. They’ve always been people who give back, long before Ureshii took shape. When they were younger and had little themselves, they still found ways: gifts tucked into Kmart Giving Trees, money sent to families in Nepal impacted by COVID, bicycles donated for underprivileged girls in Chitwan so they could travel to school safely. Those gestures weren’t a strategy; they were a habit of heart.
Now, with Ureshii established and embraced by locals, that instinct has grown into something beautifully tangible. Each Christmas, Ureshii quietly funds its own ‘Ureshii Christmas’ initiative - a simple idea with deep roots: on a day that can feel heavy for those doing it tough, they open their tables to people who might not otherwise get to experience dining out. A family that can’t afford a festive meal can walk in, sit down and feel, for a moment, what Christmas is supposed to feel like. Not just food, but belonging.
It’s a cause backed entirely by the restaurant itself. No corporate sponsor, no distant campaign. Just a small team deciding that happiness is worth sharing. Last year, the impact rippled beyond what any spreadsheet could measure. Families messaged afterward to say their kids tried sushi for the first time. Others shared that it was their first visit to a Japanese restaurant - a ‘first’ they never thought would be possible.
Even the tiny moments carried meaning: people calling ahead to cancel so a walk-in family could have their seat; shy smiles turning into laughter over the last bite. The staff, too, felt the pride of doing something that mattered.
Ureshii’s giving doesn’t end with December. For anniversaries, the team has supported the Community @ Works food pantry in Tuggeranong, donating long-life staples like milk, sugar and flour - the sorts of necessities that can disappear quickly from shelves but make an immediate difference.
This year, Ureshii is also fundraising in-house for Kids in Care in the ACT, inviting diners to contribute if they wish. It’s the first formal fundraising effort and it comes from a tender place: Christmas should be a season where children feel loved, seen and excited for what’s ahead. For kids in foster care or unsafe situations, that can be painfully out of reach. Even a small contribution can mean gifts, necessities and the sense that someone remembered them.
Behind the scenes, Ureshii’s care extends to the planet too: eco-friendly packaging, reduced plastic, recycling cans and bottles for the 10c collection scheme and a kitchen designed to minimise waste by shaping a menu where ingredients are used thoughtfully across dishes. It’s sustainability practised the same way the community work is - quietly, consistently and with real intent.
Ask Bristi what advice she’d give to other businesses wanting to help and she doesn’t dress it up: don’t hold back. Even a small act of kindness can change someone’s day. That’s the pulse of Ureshii.
Come for the sashimi, the crisp tempura, the comforting bowls and careful rolls - but leave knowing you’ve stepped into a place that believes happiness tastes better when it’s shared.
