Episode #219: Minami Restaurant (2nd Visit)

Vancouver (Yaletown), $$$$ (Luxury)
www.minamirestaurant.com

As soon as the restaurant lineup for Dine Out Vancouver was released, I scoured the website to see if there were any new sushi restaurants I could try. Disappointingly, there were none. Since I have a tendency to dislike foods that are not typically consumed using chopsticks, I chose to stick with sushi. Lara was my dining companion that day, and having heard that she had never been to either Miku or Minami, we decided to head over to Minami for dinner (Miku was not participating in Dine Out).

Located on the tiny street of very posh and wallet-unfriendly restaurants in the middle of Yaletown, Minami is one of the five restaurants on the street that serve Japanese fusion (the others being Kibo, Kuma, Sushi Maro, and Bistro Sakana). Even though we went on a Tuesday, the restaurant was predictably busy. Nonetheless, the service remained efficient, and the timing of our food was on point.

Market Beets and Citrus - A-

First on our table was the Market Beets and Citrus, which came with grapefruit, Okanagan goat cheese mousse, wild baby arugula, basil pesto, yuzu marmalade, and soy balsamic reduction. We found the grapefruit soft and delectable, and it went well with the pesto sauce. The beets also had a pleasantly soft chew, with a texture akin to very juicy carrots.

Aburi Hamachi Nigiri - A-

Hamachi Nigiri - A-

Hokkaido Scallop Nigiri with Mentaiko - A+

Minami Roll - A-

Aburi Salmon Oshi Sushi - A

Aburi Ebi Oshi Sushi - A

Next up was a plate featuring some of Minami's signature sushi offerings, with two pieces of Aburi Salmon Oshi Sushi, arguably their most notorious item. Each piece of sushi was garnished with carefully chosen ingredients, and the texture of the sushi rice was essentially perfect. The highlight here was the Hokkaido Scallop Nigiri, where the creaminess and sweetness of the scallop was beyond that of any scallop nigiri I have ever had. The Aburi Salmon Oshi Sushi and Aburi Ebi Oshi Sushi felt slightly drier than usual, but were otherwise carefully prepared.

Coconut Poached Half Lobster Tail - A-

Miso Sakekasu Baked Sablefish - A+

For my entrée, I had the Surf, which came with the Coconut Poached Half Lobster Tail and the Miso Sakekasu Baked Sablefish. The lobster tail came with tender meat and a sweet, buttery sauce that complemented the sweetness of the lobster meat. However, it was quite difficult to get the meat out of the shell. While I luckily managed to slide the meat out of my lobster tail in one piece, Lara had to laboriously scoop the meat out of the shell bit by bit. The Miso Sakekasu Baked Sablefish was executed to near perfection, with crispy skin and a melt-in-your-mouth burst of savoury flavours.

Sesame Soy Glazed Obie Braiser - A-

Lara had the Surf & Turf for her entrée, which came with an Obie Braiser (braised Alberta beef) and the same Coconut Poached Half Lobster Tail above. The wasabi sauce applied on the beef gave it a strong spicy kick. The beef was slightly tougher on the outside, but very soft and succulent on the inside.

Hojicha Mousse - A+

The dessert for the Dine Out dinner menu was the Hojicha Mousse. The mousse was very soft and had a prominent green tea flavour. The garnishes on the side included white chocolate shortbread, ginger crumble, raspberry coulis, two blackberries, two raspberries, two blueberries, and a black stripe of some mysterious sauce that tasted mysteriously bland. The highlight (and what persuaded me to give out an A+) was the half teaspoon of very rich and sweet green tea on top of the mousse that brought life and vigour to this dessert. It's too bad that there wasn't more of it, as I would have loved a thick, sweet and syrupy drink. Okay, on second thought, maybe that might not be such a good idea...

The service was professional throughout our stay, and the food was unsurprisingly well-executed. Despite the slight hiccup on the Aburi Salmon Oshi Sushi, their signature dish, the mastery displayed in some of the other dishes made up for it. The innovation and the excellent attention to detail made this an enjoyable dinner for both of us. 

Episode #96: Sushi Karis

Coquitlam, $$ (Moderately Priced)

www.facebook.com/pages/Sushi-Karis/141682322644942

Sushi Karis has the highest rating on Zomato out of all the sushi restaurants in Coquitlam. By the laws of statistics, this means that the restaurant surely must be good enough to warrant my immediate attention. I also brought my dad along to ensure that I could order a fair number of dishes. However, on my way there, something in the air felt amiss. Before I even got out of the car, a few flies, wasps, and various other flying monstrosities swarmed around me, causing me to continually slap myself like a drunkard. Three ominous flying ants danced erratically on the windshield, while another lurked just outside the passenger door.

I mustered up the courage to step out of the car, and to my horror, there were literally hundreds of flying ants in the air! Like any other smart human being, I ran to the restaurant in an attempt to flee the Revenge of the Queen Ant, and luckily, I managed to escape without having any ants make love to my skin. The restaurant was empty at the time, but the waiter gave us a friendly welcome. While the decor wasn't particularly new, some effort was put into making the place appear clean and pleasant.

In order to try a bit of everything, we ordered the Sashimi Box, which came with 4 pieces of sashimi, tempura, a California Roll, and a small salad.

Tempura - A-

The Tempura in the Sashimi Box came with one prawn, one piece of kabocha (Japanese pumpkin), and two pieces of yam. The prawn was aromatic and rich in flavour, while the kabocha was adequately sweet. The yam was cut to just the right thickness. The batter was quite plentiful, but it was not overly hard. Overall, the tempura was well executed.

Tuna Sashimi - A-

Salmon Sashimi - B+

The Tuna Sashimi was quite soft and did not have a fishy aftertaste. The Salmon Sashimi was also soft and was cut into thick slices. The Tuna Sashimi was fresher than the Salmon Sashimi, which was slightly weak in flavour.

California Roll - B+

The California Roll contained soft imitation crab meat and fresh, sweet avocado. The sushi rice was above average. The roll wasn't particularly spectacular, but there were no major mishaps.

Green Salad - A-

The Green Salad was your typical lunch box green salad with mixed greens. However, I particularly liked the dressing, which had a pleasant sweetness and was not too acidic in flavour.

Takoyaki - A-

Needing some "Japanese Octopus Dumpling Balls," I ordered the Takoyaki, which came 6 balls. They had a nice zing to them, and the octopus in each ball was sufficiently large. The flour filling in each ball was quite soft, and I enjoyed the bonito flakes and seaweed.

Dragon Roll - A-

The Dragon Roll consisted of unagi and avocado on top of a California Roll. They were quite generous with the unagi, and the avocado had the same enjoyable sweetness as the avocado in the California Roll. The imitation crab meat was quite fine in texture.

Chicken Rice Bowl - A

The Chicken Rice Bowl came with many meaty, tender chicken strips whose flavour was accentuated by the light sprinkling of sesame seeds on top. The chicken was not quite as full-flavoured as pan-fried or grilled chicken, but both my dad and I greatly enjoyed the homemade feel of this rice bowl. Furthermore, the quality of the rice was excellent, which made this rice bowl quite memorable to both of us.

Sushi Karis appears to be operated by a Korean family, with the dad as the sushi chef, the mom as the cook, and the son as the waiter. The service was decent, and the prices are very reasonable (close to those of a budget restaurant). The food was carefully prepared and substantially more refined than the food I've had at Coquitlam's budget sushi restaurants (ahem, Sushi Town). Sushi Karis is one of the better sushi restaurants in town and is definitely worth the few extra nickels and dimes! 

Episode #71: Sushi Boss

Coquitlam, $$ (Moderately Priced)

Never would I ever expect a sushi restaurant to pop up in Westwood Plateau anywhere other than in Plateau Village, the main shopping plaza for residents of the plateau. However, the unthinkable happened and sitting in a mini-plaza ("mini" because it consists of only a large house where three small businesses operate) is a sushi restaurant named Sushi Boss. Now, you would normally expect buses that run less frequently to at least be more reliable, but the bus that I was supposed to take never seemed to depart from the station. Not wanting to wait another 20 minutes, I took the next closest bus, which meant that I still had to walk most of the way up the plateau. This was a double bummer because the best way to make your allergies 10 times worse than they already are is to go for a hike in Westwood Plateau.

Sushi Boss is a small Korean-operated Japanese restaurant that serves all the main categories of Japanese food that you would expect at a sushi restaurant. In addition, they also serve organic Arabica coffee, hence the word "Coffee" on their sign in front of the restaurant. The meat used for their Chicken Teriyaki and Galbi (beef short ribs) is sourced locally and is gluten-free, but I figured on a previous visit that despite the health benefits, gluten-free meat tends to be tougher.

Salad - B+

My meal started off with a complimentary salad! There was lots of variety in the salad, and I found a gyoza, a blackberry, edamame, and an apple slice among other things. The vinaigrette used to dress the salad was the standard Japanese vinaigrette dressing, but I felt that the richness of this one was just right. The gyoza was just a tad too crispy and dry for me.

Gomae - A

With fresh spinach and avocado and a well-balanced sesame sauce, this was a refreshing and splendid appetizer. The sesame sauce was accentuated by the sesame seeds sprinkled on top for a richer flavour.

Aburi California Roll - B+

The Aburi California Roll (one of their newest rolls) consisted of seared cheese and mayonnaise on a California Roll. The filling had a decent soft texture, while the top tasted like grilled cheese with its sweetness enhanced by a small amount of teriyaki sauce drizzled on top. For the most part, the flavours worked together, but it could have more of a smoky flavour.

Sockeye Salmon Sashimi - A+

Tuna Sashimi - B+

The Sockeye Salmon Sashimi was surprisingly fresh with a delicious, smooth texture. It also has a nice subtle smoked sockeye salmon taste to it, and it is some of the best sashimi I have ever had in the Lower Mainland. The Tuna Sashimi could be a bit softer and was slightly on the saltier side, but it was still a bit above average. Furthermore, it finally broke my unfortunate consecutive chain of sushi adventures with not-fully-thawed tuna sashimi!

Unagi Teriyaki - A

The unagi in the Unagi Teriyaki was cut in an unorthodox way, but was soft and very smooth. I liked the addition of green onion and sesame seeds. It could have even more of a grilled flavour, but was quite decent overall. Behind the rice sat a few pieces of pickled asparagus, and the taste of those reminded me of dill pickles.

Toro Nigiri - B+

Aburi Tuna Nigiri - A

The Tuna Nigiri was dressed with sesame seeds and had a good texture. However, it would fare better with even more of a creamy flavour. The Aburi Tuna Nigiri was better-executed, and the sweet teriyaki sauce brought out the flavour of the tasty half-seared tuna. 

The service was some of the best in town, and the friendly waitress constantly made sure that my tea was refilled. In fact, my tea was refilled at least five times during my short visit! It was the type of service that I would be willing to reward with a >20% tip. In addition, I enjoyed the Classical piano music in the background, which reminded me of all the Bach, Mozart and Liszt masterpieces that I used to practise daily. Of course, I also enjoyed the food, and every item that I tried was above average. Who knew that some of the best sushi in Coquitlam would be found high up in the middle of Westwood Plateau?

Episode #67: Shinobi

Maple Ridge, $$ (Moderately Priced)
www.shinobisushi.com

For this episode, I decided to go to Maple Ridge, the land of the inexpensive and sometimes decent sushi. The first time I had sushi in Maple Ridge was at Shinobi, and that visit eventually led to many re-visits. With a large selection of items, where they serve everything from kanisake tempura to ahi tuna sashimi to seared rolls, I constantly find new things to try with every visit. They also serve a variety of lunch boxes from 11:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Since I have never had a lunch box from Shinobi before, I fled from my class as soon as it ended and made it to the restaurant with just enough time to place my order at exactly 3:00 p.m. Score!

Miso Soup - B

The lunch boxes come with your typical miso soup. I found this miso soup to be slightly heavy on the salt.

The Teriyaki & Tempura Box came with Appetizer Tempura, Chicken Teriyaki (with rice on the side), Spring Rolls, California Roll (4 pcs.), and Green Salad, all for just $8.95! I apologize for the inconsistency in lighting as I had to use flash for certain dishes and not use it for others.

Appetizer Tempura - A-

The Appetizer Tempura came with 2 prawns, and 1 piece each of yam, sweet potato, and kabocha. The prawns were sufficiently meaty and coated with a nice crispy batter that was not too hard. The vegetable tempura was also executed well, demonstrating good moisture and flavour preservation.

Chicken Teriyaki - B+

The Chicken Teriyaki came with thin pan-fried strips of chicken. The chicken was mostly tender, but I found the crispy skin to be a little thick. 

Spring Rolls - C+

The Spring Rolls were the only real flop of the day, as parts of the pastry were hard to chew. The sweet teriyaki sauce helped to liven up the flavours as there was barely enough filling.

California Roll - B

The California Roll came in the basic version with avocado and crab meat. It tasted pretty average, but there was enough sweetness from the avocado and the crab. The most memorable part of this roll was that while I was eating it, the sign for the Honey Valentine Roll fell down on me. Laughter ensued. However, I didn't need to be reminded that I was dining by myself, so err ... no, thank you.

 Green Salad - B+

The Green Salad came in the form of fresh greens dressed with a mild, tangy Japanese dressing. The dressing was a thin one rather than the typical thicker vinaigrette.

Oxygen Fitness Roll - A

The Oxygen Fitness Roll consisted of seared salmon, green onions, bonito flakes, masago, crab meat, cucumber, avocado, spicy mayonnaise and teriyaki sauce. The salmon had an excellent soft and silky texture while the spicy mayonnaise helped to project the nice smoky flavour of the roll. This has been and remains one of my favourite rolls in the suburbs, and yes, this is the reason why I listed Shinobi under my favourites. I believe this roll is named after the Oxygen Yoga and Fitness center down the block, but I am not 100% sure.

Tuna Sashimi - A

Salmon Sashimi - B+

I was in the mood for more food so I decided to order the Appetizer Sashimi, which came with 3 pieces each of tuna and salmon sashimi. The Tuna Sashimi was very fresh with a decent soft texture and the salmon sashimi had the fresh, creamy flavour that I was looking for.

Overall, it was a satisfying visit as the service was sufficient and there were successful dishes across the various categories of Japanese food that I had. The quality-to-price ratio at Shinobi is significantly better than the average Japanese restaurant in Vancouver. Maple Ridge's southern counterpart, Langley, doesn't seem to fare so well in this respect. I will never forget that time I had sushi in Langley where I genuinely liked the iced water better than the sushi.

Episode #60: Minami Restaurant

Vancouver (Yaletown), $$$$ (Luxury)
www.minamirestaurant.com

After finishing another daunting week of lectures, I was seeking some Aburi awesomeness when I suddenly remembered that Dine Out was still available. It was 2:30 p.m. and the only sushi restaurants I knew that served a Dine Out Lunch Menu were Miku and Minami. Of course, I ended up choosing Minami just so I could write one more episode. Don't worry, I got my priorities straight.

Both Minami and Miku are operated by the Japanese restaurateur Seigo Nakamura and specialize in modern Japanese fusion cuisine. Minami has a more Pacific Western influence than Miku but many of the best-selling items can be found at both restaurants. Minami, located in the heart of Yaletown, does not have the stunning view that Miku has to offer, but the interior atmosphere is cozier and more comfortable in my opinion. Most importantly, I have never had the problem of  Minami running out of mint chocolates at the door.

Miso Soup - A-

My Dine Out Lunch started off with the Miso Soup, which was garnished with seaweed, tofu and enoki mushrooms. The miso paste was leaning towards the stronger side and it tasted quite standard except for the addition of the mushrooms.

Before I could finish the Miso Soup, the Zen box and Specialty Sushi arrived at the same time and were quickly followed by the Ebi Fritter, which I ordered in addition to the Dine Out Lunch Menu. I'm not quite sure why they thought it was a good idea to bring out everything at virtually the same time, but at least I was seated at a table of 4 so I had enough room on the table for everything.

Aburi Bincho - B+

As the Zen box is designed to be eaten from right to left, I started with the Aburi Bincho (seared white tuna), which was accompanied by red seaweed and ponzu-oroshi sauce. It was similar to a tuna tataki and could use a bit more moisture, but the tuna was quite fresh.

Beet Salad - B

The Beet Salad consisted of roasted and pickled beets, maple-apple cider vinaigrette, and baby greens. The vinaigrette had a citrusy flavour and the beets were roasted for the right amount of time, allowing them to retain a mild amount of juiciness and a mild fruity flavour. The vinaigrette could be better integrated with the baby greens.

Tiger Prawn Cake - A-

The Tiger Prawn Cake was accompanied by an Asian slaw and sweet chili aioli. The coleslaw had an appealing mild level of spice, and the Tiger Prawn Cake had a Chinese fried meatball feel to it.

Fraser Valley Pork Cheek - A

The Fraser Valley Pork Cheek was served with roasted heirloom potatoes, maple-miso sauce, and juniper-blueberry compote. The potatoes were soft, but a bit dry by the time I got to them. However, the pork cheek was perfectly braised, and was delightfully juicy and surprisingly soft. It certainly tasted better than it looked. The blueberry compote added a subtle sweetness to the pork cheek that worked excellently.

Hamachi with Citrus Avocado - A-

Albacore with Miso Glaze - A

Minami Roll - A-

Aburi Salmon Oshi - A+

Aburi Ebi Oshi - A

The Specialty Sushi came with two pieces of dressed nigiri sushi, one piece of maki sushi and two pieces of Aburi (seared) oshizushi. The Hamachi with Citrus Avocado was fresh, but the citrus avocado kind of vanished when consumed with the hamachi. On the other hand, the miso glaze accentuated the flavours successfully in the Albacore with Miso Glaze. The Minami Roll consisted of spicy prawn, cucumber, Aburi short rib and wasabi masatake sauce. The short rib was soft and had a nice, smooth texture, while the cucumber took center stage with regard to the interior.

When I wrote Episode 59, I didn't really think Miku's Aburi Salmon Oshi would be topped, but it was. Whereas Miku's Aburi Salmon Oshi was 95% there, Minami's was 100%. It had the perfect smoky flavour and peppery tinge, and was slightly more aromatic than Miku's. Minami completely nailed this one. The Aburi Ebi Oshi was dressed with a creamy, lemony pesto sauce and the sushi rice that accompanied it was very soft.

Ebi Fritter - A-

The Ebi Fritter came with 5 large, meaty prawns covered in a light, crispy batter. The spices and herbs used in the batter gave it an extra dimension of flavour. The prawns needed slightly more moisture and significantly more balsamic reduction. Minami completely blew me away with this dish during my last visit, so I'm not too sure what happened here. It was still an above average dish of battered tiger prawns though.

Passionfruit Sorbet - A-

The dessert for the Dine Out Lunch Menu came in the form of a Passionfruit Sorbet with a lemon cookie and seasonal fruit. I'm glad that they didn't bring this out before I finished all the dishes above. The sorbet had a bright, citrusy flavour with a sweet tang and went well with the fruits. It was a nice, refreshing finish to a decent set lunch.

The service was attentive, friendly and a notch above your typical Japanese restaurant. Like Miku, they took the time to introduce each item to me. However, I felt that some things could be improved as the timing of the dishes was off and they were conducting an interview in the table next to mine. At the very least, I got the chance to savour some very memorable items, such as the 10/10 Aburi Salmon Oshi (which I want to give an A++) and the surprisingly good Fraser Valley Pork Cheek.

The best part of all was that the chocolate container by the door was completely packed with mint chocolates, so I delightfully grabbed one as I left. Score!

Episode #59: Miku Restaurant

Vancouver (Downtown), $$$$ (Luxury)
www.mikurestaurant.com

Every year, the festival I look forward to most is undoubtedly Vancouver's Dine Out Festival. This year, I was "fortunate" enough to hit what you could call the "un-jackpot" by catching a cold right at the start of the festival. After an uneventful week of having to dream about sushi instead of eating it (yikes!), I finally recovered enough to make it to Miku Restaurant. Situated beside Canada Place overlooking Burrard Inlet, Miku has one of the most fantastic views of any restaurant in Vancouver.

Miku is well-known for its innovative modern Japanese dishes, particularly their Aburi sushi. The interior of the restaurant is very large, but despite this, they are virtually always busy and getting a table during peak hours is more often a challenge than not. Well, it always feels nice to know that there are an abundance of wealthy people in town, right? Either way, there were enough servers to handle the situation efficiently and my first dish arrived just as I finished copying the Dine Out dinner menu into my notebook.

The Miku Zen consisted of four small courses (seasonal items), meant to be consumed from right to left. I like how the servers at Miku take the time to introduce each item to you (and not in rapid fire!).

Aburi Maguro Sashimi - A

The Aburi Maguro Sashimi consisted of seared big eye tuna, tuna tartare and wasabi-masatake sauce. The tuna had more flavour to it than any other big eye tuna sashimi I have had, and it was a buttery, savoury flavour like miso. The sashimi has a slight tinge of spiciness from the wasabi.

 Jidori Chicken Nanban - A-

The Jidori Chicken Nanban consisted of fried chicken dressed with sweet and sour soy, house made tartar sauce and basil-citrus slaw. I really enjoyed the dressing, which reminded me of a light pesto sauce. The chicken could be more tender, but the meat inside had sufficient moisture.

 Pan-Seared Alaskan Scallop - A-

The Pan-Seared Alaskan Scallop was accompanied by a yukon potato purée and puttanesca (a tangy Italian dressing typically used with spaghetti). The flavours of the scallop were brought out very well and the scallop itself was quite juicy. However, I felt that the puttanesca was a little too strong to be the optimal pairing for the scallop.

Saikyo Miso Sablefish - A+

The eyecatching, bubbling Saikyo Miso Sablefish was perfectly grilled to a silky, smooth texture and had an irresistible buttery flavour. It was accompanied by yuzu-miso reduction, kale goma-ae and yuzu foam. The yuzu foam has a bright, citrusy flavour that does not overwhelm the sablefish. 

Next to arrive was a plate of six pieces of Miku's Signature Sushi. Interestingly, the Miku Roll failed to make it to this plate of signature sushi.

Coal Harbour Roll - A-

Aburi Salmon Oshi - A+

The Coal Harbour Roll consisted of red tuna, Hokkaido scallops, asparagus, wasabi pickles, hamachi, shiso, moromi-miso and spicy negi-shio sauce. The flavour of the red tuna was the highlight of the roll and the scallops had a noticeably smooth and soft texture. The wasabi pickles and spicy negi-shio sauce provide a little spice to the roll. The Aburi Salmon Oshi is a must-try and I have had it every single time I have visited Miku (I lost track of how many times). The high-quality rice and very soft texture of the oshi sushi sets it apart from any other Aburi Salmon Oshi I have had. The searing of the top layer gives the oshi sushi a mouthwatering smoky flavour.

Aburi Tuna Oshi - A

Aburi Ebi Oshi - A+

Sunrise Roll - A-

The miso glaze that accompanied the Aburi Tuna Oshi did a good job of accentuating the flavour of the tuna. The seared pesto dressing on top of the Aburi Ebi Oshi was a perfect pairing to the delicious, juicy prawn. The Sunrise Roll, which consisted of wasabi marinated tuna, cucumber, red tuna, pickled wasabi, golden tobiko and wasabi aioli, had a mild creamy flavour and the different layers of tuna was a delight.

Manjari Chocolate Orange Cream - A

The finale to the Dine Out dinner menu was the Manjari Chocolate Orange Cream, which consisted of caramel crisp, orange reduction and vanilla ice-cream accompanied by an orange-flavoured chocolate bar. The chocolate bar had a nice crispy layer at the bottom, and I also enjoyed how the ice-cream absorbed some of the flavour from the orange-flavoured crumbs lining the back.

With first-class service and consistently high-quality and inventive dishes, Miku has remained on my list of favourites for a long time. Memorable dishes from previous visits not included in the Dine Out Dinner Menu include the Miku Roll (an Aburi style roll) and the Ebi Fritter, the best battered prawn I have had to date. The most unfortunate part of my visit was that by the time I headed to the exit, the mint chocolates sitting in the bowl on the hostess' booth were all gone! Next time, I'll know better and snatch one of those before I head over to my table.