Episode #239: Sushi Bar 5517

Sechelt, $$$ (Higher Priced)

It turns out that going to Sunshine Coast is not a sure-fire way to evade Metro Vancouver's heat waves. After a short uphill hike from the coast to Sunnycrest Mall, I felt like a penguin dying of dehydration in a hot desert. Maybe I'm just not as fit as I should be. Either way, I ended up engaging in the one sport you can keep doing without getting hot—swimming—in order to burn off some of the calories from lunch.

Located in the core of Sechelt, Sushi Bar 5517 is a Korean-operated sushi restaurant peculiarly named after its street number. Whereas Sushi Bar Nagomi has an attractive interior, Sushi Bar 5517 has an attractive exterior and looks like it would fit perfectly in a ski resort. The menu is a modern one with creative appetizers and an abundance of special rolls that have spicy mayonnaise in them.

Tuna Goma-ae - A

Having had an excellent tuna poke dish at Sushi Bar Nagomi, I decided to order something similar at Sushi Bar 5517—the Tuna Goma-ae. The fact that sake was listed as one of the ingredients made it all the more attractive to me. Although the sake was only very faintly noticeable, this goma-ae did not disappoint. The tuna was very fresh, and the soy sauce dressing had a slight but appealing tanginess.

Toro Nigiri - B+

Unagi Nigiri - B+

Amaebi Nigiri - B+

The rice in the nigiri was packed a little too tightly, but overall, the nigiri was still decent. The toro was moderately soft and had a nice creamy flavour. The unagi (eel) was soft and smoky and came in a generous cut. The Amaebi Nigiri (spot prawn) was a little weak in flavour due to an overage of rice, but the prawn had an enjoyable light chew.

Lollipop Scallop - B

One appetizer that looked particularly interesting on the menu was the Lollipop Scallop, which consisted of deep-fried scallop wrapped in zucchini and eggplant with spicy mayonnaise. The very juicy vegetables were the best part of this dish. However, the dish needed a bit more teriyaki sauce, and the scallops were overdone. If they replaced the scallop with more zucchini, this might have been an excellent Lollipop Zucchini dish.

Tornado Roll - A-

The Tornado Roll came with 2 tempura prawns, avocado, cucumber, tuna, salmon, sweet spicy mayonnaise, and BBQ sauce. This was a small but neatly constructed roll. Excellent soft tuna and pleasantly sweet sockeye salmon complemented the crispy tempura prawns inside. The sauces were a bit on the sweeter side, but the conservative drizzle of spicy mayonnaise did not overwhelm any of the flavours.

Overall, the food was enjoyable, and the prices were reasonable given the food quality and the location of the restaurant. However, the service was rather poor. My tea was not refilled at any point during my visit, and when I got up to pay the bill and leave, the waitress just looked at me without saying anything. I felt unwanted and unwelcome at the restaurant. It is too bad that the service ruined what would otherwise have been a solid experience at Sushi Bar 5517.

Episode #234: Hon Sushi

Burnaby South, $$ (Moderately Priced)
www.honsushibc.com

For the longest time, I did not have any data on my phone. While this meant rejuvenating, undisturbed naps on the bus and $15/month phone bills, there were also some drawbacks. I sometimes had to rely on the power of luck and random guessing to locate things, and meeting up with friends I had forgotten to get the numbers of sometimes turned into a nightmare. However, what really brought things to light was this one time I went to a restaurant with no Wi-Fi to enjoy some XLBs with my family when all of a sudden, I opened Snapchat to see an hourglass next to a three-digit streak. My world was about to fall apart.

I immediately dropped the XLB I was holding, ran out to the street, and then stood outside each restaurant to see if it had free Wi-Fi I could borrow for just one minute. Pedestrians were watching me with concerned looks on their faces. Fortunately, I managed to save said streak, and after a few awkward moments with my parents, I finished my dinner in peace. To prevent this from ever happening again, I went to Metrotown, got a data plan, and proceeded to nearby Hon Sushi to celebrate my victory against the no-data life.

Hon Sushi is a large Korean-Japanese fusion restaurant located on Kingsway near Old Orchard Shopping Centre. The dining room was not the only thing that was large. The menu was so big that it took me a good 10 minutes just to read through it. There were 3 pages of Korean dishes, and they even served the large Korean hot plates with toppings along the circumference of the plate (the kind found at Ta Bom).

Takoyaki - A

My lunch started off with a very delicious serving of Takoyaki (octopus balls). The balls were not very large, but they were soft and pillowy with an excellent crispy exterior. Inside each ball was a flavourful piece of octopus with just the right amount of chew. On top were well-balanced drizzles of sweet takoyaki sauce and mayonnaise.

Chopped Scallop Nigiri - B+

Unagi Nigiri - B+

Tuna Nigiri - B

Salmon Nigiri - B+

The rice in the Chopped Scallop Nigiri was a bit too tightly packed and under-flavoured (as with the rest of the nigiri), but the sweet scallop on top tasted fresh. The unagi had a smoky flavour and was amply dressed, while the tuna exhibited a decent soft texture. The salmon was pleasantly buttery and fresh.

Aburi Tuna Nigiri - B-

Aburi Salmon Nigiri - B+

The Aburi Tuna Nigiri lacked flavour and was a little over-seared. The rice here needed more flavour as well. However, the Aburi Salmon Nigiri had a delicious, smoky flavour, and the juiciness of the salmon was preserved through the searing.

Angel Roll - C

Hoping to end my meal with a heavenly roll, I chose the Angel Roll, which came with tempura prawn, imitation crab, scallop, cucumber, avocado, and cheese. The concept was promising, but the execution was flawed. The scallops were over-seared (and thus hard), while the crab meat ended up being mushy. The mushy crab meat was paired with mushy rice. The cheese was not melted into the roll properly, and the scallops kept falling off the roll. It was as if an angel constructed the roll after consuming 24 shots of vodka. The only thing this roll had going for it was the prawn tempura... after being pulled apart from the roll.

Service was not a problem during my visit, but the sushi rice clearly needed improvement. The one item that I had without any sushi rice (the Takoyaki) was very well executed. I did not try any of the Korean menu items, but perhaps (and hopefully) they are a little more angelic than the Japanese dishes.

Episode #220: Torafuku

Vancouver (Northeast), $$$ (Higher Priced)
www.torafuku.ca

For a long time, I've known about Torafuku, the Asian fusion restaurant known for its quirkily named menu items. There's the Eat Yo Veggies, the Get in My Belly, the Magic Mushrooms, the Finding Dory, the Poke Her, and many more. Dine Out Vancouver presented a great opportunity for me to finally try Torafuku, but there was one caveat: the dishes had to be shared between two people. Since my only free day was Chinese New Year's Eve, finding someone to go with me proved almost impossible. I thought about calling in to ask what would happen if I have no friends, but fortunately, at the last moment, Lara came to the rescue.

The restaurant was packed when we arrived, with the reverberant walls and windows, things got quite loud inside. Since there isn't really a designated waiting area, everyone waiting for a seat just crowded around the door. Luckily, we had a reservation, so it wasn't long before we got a table.

Garlic Butter Popcorn - A-

While waiting for our orders to arrive, we received a generous, complimentary offering of Garlic Butter Popcorn. The garlic butter gave the popcorn a unique flavour, which both of us enjoyed.

Kickass Rice 3.0 - B+

Kicking off our entrées was the Kickass Rice 3.0, a roll with torched pork belly, furikake, cucumber, avocado, red shiso, miso mayonnaise, and Torafuku spicy sauce. I got a kick out of the fatty, tender pork, and the sauces provided a moderately spicy kick. However, the toppings, when combined, created a pizza-like flavour that obscured the pork. The kickass factor was just moderate with this one.

Calamari 2.0 - A-

The Calamari 2.0 consisted of crispy squid, brussel sprouts, local mushrooms, compressed apples, nero aioli, and angry tiger sauce (whatever that meant). It was spicy, and I liked how the batter on the squid was not hard. However, Lara found it a little oily, and I found the squid slightly weak in flavour. The juicy mushrooms that accompanied the calamari were truly kickass though.

(FOB) Fresh Off the Boat - A-

To celebrate our inner FOB, we chose the Fresh Off the Boat, a laksa with crab, scallops, prawns, clams, salmon, market veggies, and flaky puff pastry. Despite the name, the seafood tasted very Western to me with all the black pepper and spices on top. However, the laksa was creamy and hearty, and the scallops were very soft and juicy. The pastry tasted a lot like a cracker and could've been a little softer.

Magic Stick - A

The Magic Stick, our first dessert, featured strong, sweet chocolate ganache with a crispy layer feuilletine at the bottom. The texture was the true highlight here. On the side were a mix of berries and some condensed milk ice cream.

Milk and Cookie - A-

Our other dessert, the Milk and Cookie, was a vanilla panna cotta accompanied by a stick of black sesame shortbread. The shortbread was pleasantly sweet, while the panna cotta tasted fruity due to the addition of raspberry jam on top.

We found the service on point, and overall, the food was creative in a successful way. The prices are a little steep given the portion sizes and the location of the restaurant, but people come here for the innovation, or in my case, for the amusingly named dishes.

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 #212: Kibo Restaurant and Lounge

Vancouver (Yaletown), $$$$ (Luxury)
www.facebook.com/kibo.yaletown

Groupons are wonderful things, but unfortunately, they also have expiry dates. A while back, I managed to snag a Groupon for Kibo Restaurant and Lounge during one of Groupon's extra 20% off sales. While $26 for a dinner for two in the heart of Yaletown's wallet-destroying restaurant district sounds too good to be true, it was why I made every effort I could to get Tamsen to join me after our escape games to take advantage of this fabulous deal. It turns out that escape rooms get quite busy during winter break, and we couldn't make it to Kibo until 8:15 p.m. By then, Yaletown was dead quiet, and the only signs of life were the faint roaring sounds and lit skies coming from the Contact Winter Music Festival.

Kibo Restaurant and Lounge is an upscale izakaya with many fusion dishes and an extensive array of cocktails. Tamsen suggested that I try one of their saketinis, but since I wanted to get home alive, I politely declined. There are some traditional Japanese items on the menu too, and these tend to be on the higher end in terms of price, much in line with other Yaletown restaurants.

Miso Soup - B+

We were started with two bowls of Miso Soup garnished with green onion, tofu, and wakame. They used darker miso paste here for a richer flavour, though it was a bit high in the salt content.

Salmon Tartare - A

The most innovative dish of the night was the Salmon Tartare, an amalgamation of salmon, onion, cilantro, avocado, and oba tempura. The tempura oba leaf was very well executed with just the right amount of crispiness. The savoury marinated salmon was also an excellent contrast to the tart zing from the minuscule pieces of cilantro. The well-integrated contrasting flavours and textures made this dish my favourite of the dinner.

Japanese Short Ribs - A-

The marinated BBQ short ribs were tender and had a delicious, smoky flavour. There were five pieces in total, and the marinade was neither too salty nor too sweet.

Chicken Karaage - A-

The Chicken Karaage was served piping hot and was juicy and tender. There was a good mix of spices on the batter, and I enjoyed this karaage almost as much as the one from Mogu Japanese Street Eats.

Aburi Block Sushi - B+

The Aburi Block Sushi came with thin slices of salmon, boatloads of spicy mayonnaise, and jalapeño pepper on top. Although the spicy mayo gave the sushi a creamier texture, it was too much for Tamsen and got him desperately asking for water. It also made it hard to taste the salmon underneath. However, the rice was well-prepared and packed correctly.

Tarako Udon - A-

Our final dish, the Tarako Udon, consisted of pan-fried udon noodles with bacon, scallop, prawns, and cod roe. The udon noodles had a nice rebound, and the seafood-flavoured sauce went well with the toppings. I suppose this was supposed to be our filler, but it was only enough to make one of us full.

The service was friendly, and the food did not disappoint. By the time we were finishing up, we were the only diners left in the restaurant. However, Kibo isn't always so empty. On another occasion, I went back with a group of 10 for some drinks on a Friday evening, and they were so crowded that there was no way they could accommodate us even if we all split up.

Episode #185: Suika

Vancouver (Northwest), $$$ (Higher Priced)
www.suika-snackbar.com

With finals season looming by and a tsunami of business reports about to come in for me to mark, I did my best to enjoy the calm before the storm by spending the afternoon at UBC and the evening at Suika with my friends Patrick and Sean. As expected, UBC did not fail to provide me with interestingly odd sights, which inspired me to make this interestingly odd video about them. After filming the video, it was time to head over to Suika, but me being me, I somehow ended up wandering into a construction site rather than the bus station. So close, yet so far...

Thankfully, we didn't lose our table even though none of us managed to arrive on time for our reservation. Suika is one of the most popular izakaya-style restaurants in Vancouver and is part of a group of restaurants that encompasses Kingyo, Suika, Rajio, and the newly opened Raisu. "Suika" is the Japanese word for watermelon, and there is an adorable watermelon ceiling lamp just above the main entrance. Inside, the atmosphere was exuberant, with the servers yelling the names of the dishes to the kitchen staff (a common practice in izakayas) and the full house of diners busily chatting away as they waited for their food. As a bonus, I even got a nice dose of the heebie jeebies from one of my biggest fears: the screaming baby of doom.

A genius at the restaurant came up with the divine phrase, "No sushi no life." I can't agree more! Since all of us wanted to have a life, we ordered both types of sushi they had.

Aburi Shime-Saba Sushi - A-

The Aburi Shime-Saba Sushi consisted of seared, cured mackerel and mustard soy dressing on pressed sushi. The saba was very soft and juicy. The soy dressing provided the saba with a rich flavour, and as Sean remarked, the sprinkles of green onion helped to balance out the characteristically fishy flavour of the saba.

Aburi Toro Avocado Battera - B

Next, the Aburi Toro Avocado Battera exhibited a good rice structure (not too firm) and came with some soft toro. However, the toro was not exactly melty, and the avocado was, strangely enough, quite hard and chewy (it wasn't ripe enough). I asked Patrick to see what he thought of the two types of Aburi sushi. Not only did he tell me that both tasted exactly the same to him, but he also thought that they tasted like the rich flavour of Rice Krispies popping into his mouth. Uhh... clearly, we were off to a great start...

Deluxe Suika Box

In order to have something nice to put on my Instagram feed, I ordered the Deluxe Suika Box, which came with 9 mini portions of various appetizers.

Nan-Kotsu Nang Bang - B-

Lotus Root Kinpira - B-

Eggplant with Soy Bean Broth - A-

In the top row, the Nan-Kotsu Nang Bang came with deep-fried chicken cartilage marinated in a Japanese sweet and sour broth. The broth had a lemony flavour and was a bit overwhelming, but to use the wording on the menu, the dish was also "such a refreshing!" The Lotus Root Kinpira was seasoned for an extra dimension of flavour, but could potentially fare better if presented with some broth, as some of the pieces ended up on the drier side. The Eggplant with Soy Bean Broth was well-executed, with cool, refreshing eggplant and a well-balanced broth.

Wow! Such a refreshing!!

Cold Tofu with Chili Oil - B-

Cucumber and Tako in Kimchi - A-

Negitoro Tartare - A-

The Cold Tofu with Chili Oil came with tofu that I found to be neither flavourful nor smooth. The chili oil that accompanied it had a decent spicy flavour, but this was not really absorbed by the tofu. Next, the Cucumber and Tako in Kimchi was a hit as the tako (octopus) had an appealing chew and the spiciness of the kimchi was just right. The flavours worked together nicely in harmony. In the Negitoro Tartare, the very soft toro was evenly infused with a slight chili flavour for an extra kick.

Salad with Saba - B

Cracker with Shrimp Cream Cheese - B

Tuna Tataki with Yuzu Jelly - A-

In the Salad with Saba, not much was done to balance the fishiness of the saba, as opposed to the Aburi Shime-Saba Sushi above. The Cracker with Shrimp Cream Cheese had a nice buttery flavour to it. Finally, the Tuna Tataki with Yuzu Jelly was another favourite of mine among the items in this box. The citrusy flavour of the yuzu jelly blended nicely with the soft, lightly seared tuna.

Chicken Karaage - B

Moving on from the Deluxe Suika Box, the Chicken Karaage came with tender chicken and a crispy outer layer. The chicken exhibited a nice spicy zing in the background, but it could have been meatier and juicier. All three of us thought that this dish tasted "okay." 

Beef Short Rib - A

Vancity Noms suggested this dish to me a while back, and I must say, this dish was "da bomb"! Featuring fried and tossed beef short rib with sweet balsamic and blanched spinach, this was a feast for both the eyes and the mouth. I loved the slight crispiness and subtle smoky flavour on the outside layer (which came from frying the short rib). Inside, the meat was very soft and almost melty. The rich flavour of the sweet balsamic was absorbed perfectly by the beef and releases a heavenly sweet and savoury explosion upon entering your mouth! The Beef Short Rib looks quite small in the photo above (and in many other food bloggers' photos as well), but in reality, I ended up having to share it with both of my grateful companions due to its size. This is definitely a must-try dish at Suika, but you might want to make it a sharable unless you are Vancity Noms... or Follow Me Foodie.

Our server was very friendly and patient. He offered to repeat the names of the items in the Deluxe Suika Box multiple times for me just to make sure I had them down correctly in my notes, even though the restaurant was packed. While there were many average dishes, we were also served a handful of excellent dishes dispersed throughout the meal. The prices are not too far above average, and I was satisfied with the quality-to-price ratio. If you decide to visit Suika, be sure to make a reservation!

Episode #179: Tatsu Japanese Bistro

Vancouver (Northeast), $$$ (Higher Priced)

After a gruelling midterm in which my pen disintegrated all over my desk, it was time to rectify the situation with some nice Japanese fusion sushi. Remembering a positive previous visit, I decided to go to Tatsu Japanese Bistro once more to experience some of their mouthwatering baked mozzarella dishes. Even though it was raining at the time, I walked all the way to the restaurant from Commercial-Broadway Station to lift my mind from the exam. A little rain doesn't stop me when there's sushi ahead.

Tatsu Japanese Bistro features a modern, trendy atmosphere with a bit of an artsy touch to it. They put effort into making everything look nice; the menus, the walls, and the food are all appealingly designed. The restaurant is Korean-operated and serves a lot of fusion dishes, but that being said, if you are looking for Aburi Salmon Oshi, it is nowhere to be found. I died a little at this realization. However, while flipping through the menu, I saw a whole assortment of enticing photographs of food that reminded me of all the good things this restaurant had to offer.

Tai Sashimi - B+

Sockeye Salmon Sashimi - A-

Tuna Sashimi - B+

Things started out nicely with the beautifully plated Appetizer Sashimi. The Tai Sashimi was soft and smooth, and the ikura added a bit of a fruity flavour to the tai. Next, the Sockeye Salmon Sashimi was fresh with a sufficiently sweet flavour. The Tuna Sashimi had the slightest hint of fishiness in one of the pieces, but apart from that, it had a delightful melty texture and was neatly cut. 

Eggplant Seafood Yaki - A+

The Eggplant Seafood Yaki, consisting of deep-fried eggplant, torched assorted BBQ seafood, and mozzarella, was one of the most epic appetizers I have come across in a long time. I could feel my soul being enlightened. The abundance of baked, juicy salmon and the plump salad shrimp created a very heartwarming effect. The eggplant was sweet and juicy, and the seared mozzarella cheese provided this dish with an irresistible Aburi-like flavour. Despite the multitude of ingredients, I did not find the seafood yaki heavy. This is one of those things that remind me that money is worth saving and life is worth living.

The final part of my lunch was the Tatsu Omakase Sushi, which typically comes with the Crunch Roll. However, the waitress was kind enough to let me substitute the Sunset Roll at no extra charge. For omakase sushi, I would have liked to see something other than the most mundane types of nigiri, but at least I was getting about $37 worth of sushi for only $26.95. I even got a fried amaebi head!

Sockeye Salmon Nigiri - B

Tuna Nigiri - B+

Hamachi Nigiri - A-

The Sockeye Salmon Nigiri was just as fresh as the Sockeye Salmon Sashimi above, and the Tuna Nigiri was soft and melty. The Hamachi Nigiri (yellowtail) was especially appetizing and came with fatty, juicy, and fresh hamachi. Unfortunately, I wasn't a fan of the sushi rice because it was packed too tightly in most of the pieces and interfered with my enjoyment of the softer textures of the fish. (Yes, sushi rice in nigiri is not meant to be tightly packed so that you can easily grip it with your chopsticks. In fact, nigiri is not even supposed to be eaten with chopsticks, but we all do it because everyone else does it.)

Ebi Nigiri - B-

Toro Nigiri - B+

Tai Nigiri - B

Amaebi Nigiri - B

Next up, the Ebi Nigiri (shrimp) came with way too much wasabi, which I'm pretty sure made me lose a few of my nose cells. The ebi was also on the dry side. The Toro Nigiri (tuna belly), however, came with a very good piece of fresh, melty toro. The Tai Nigiri (red snapper) was sweet and soft, while I found the Amaebi Nigiri (sweet shrimp) a touch too sticky and gluey. 

Hokkigai Nigiri - C+

Unagi Nigiri - B+

Tamago Nigiri - B

The Hokkigai Nigiri also contained way too much wasabi and was overly chewy. It sure sucked to be my nose. The Unagi Nigiri was soft and melty and dressed with rich unagi sauce. Finally, the Tamago Nigiri was sweet and fluffy, though it would fare better with a slightly more grilled flavour.

Sunset Roll - A

After munching on the fried amaebi head, I had the Sunset Roll, which consisted of a California roll topped with torched mozzarella, assorted chopped BBQ seafood, and three seemingly misplaced blueberries. It was colourful and elegantly presented with a good interplay of flavours. Flavour-wise, it shared many similarities with the Eggplant Seafood Yaki, but it was nonetheless another highlight of the meal. 

The service was friendly and attentive and remained so even at times the restaurant became busy. I must say, this was one colossal lunch, and there were times I had to take a break, go on Instagram, and look at pictures of food to make me a little more hungry again. Although nigiri isn't one of Tatsu's strengths, things like the Eggplant Seafood Yaki and the Sunset Roll tempt me to return and try more of their creative offerings.