Episode #172: Aki Japanese Restaurant

Vancouver (West End), $$$$ (Luxury), $$ (Moderately Priced) with the lunch combos
www.akirestaurant.ca

I often like to actively participate in my classes because it helps me remember the information and keeps me from getting distracted. However, participation does not come easily if you had completed the pre-requisites for a course two years ago and have my memory. Combined with the fact that the lecture was held in the morning, my attempts to participate turned into awkward staring sessions with the prof and an abundance of laughter from my classmates. Well, at least I was entertaining. I contemplated ways to increase my memory and IQ, and of course, the solution was staring at me in the eye: a delicious round of sushi.

After the lecture, I did my usual and sleep-travelled to Aki Japanese Restaurant, a well-known authentic Japanese restaurant situated right next to Coal Harbour. Aki's current location has a trendy upscale interior, and it was filled with the scent of lemon meringue pie when I walked in (I'm not sure why). The menu focused on traditional Japanese dishes, and the lunch combos were noticeably cheaper than the standard items. In order to get the weirdest look possible from the waitresses, I decided to order two lunch combos.

Miso Soup - A-

Each of my combos came with a Miso Soup, and fortunately, both were well-prepared. The Miso Soup came with seaweed, green onion, and tofu. It was served at just the right temperature and had a well-balanced flavour.

Next to arrive was the Sushi Combo.

Tuna Sashimi - A-

Salmon Sashimi - A

The sashimi was cut into tiny pieces that were each barely the size of a Pink Pearl eraser. However, both of types of sashimi were very fresh. The salmon had a pleasant buttery flavour, while the tuna had a delectable smooth texture.

California Roll - B+

Salmon Roll - B

Cucumber Roll - B

Tuna Roll - B+

Next up was the standard maki sushi, a place where miracles rarely occur. The California Roll had a good balance of flavours but was slightly dry. The hosomaki rolls on the right were standard fare too. I enjoyed the rich flavour of the seaweed and the decent projection of flavour from the inner ingredients, but there were also issues such as a small bland clump of rice that I found in the Salmon Roll.

Ebi Nigiri - B+

Tuna Nigiri - A-

Tai Nigiri - A-

Salmon Nigiri - B+

With the nigiri, the sushi rice was a touch dry for my liking, but the toppings exhibited ample freshness. The Ebi Nigiri was sweet and had a nice crunch to it. The Tuna Nigiri featured soft, melty tuna, and the Tai Nigiri was also delightfully soft. 

Perhaps Aki's most famous dish is its black cod, so I felt compelled to order the Black Cod Lunch Set. At this point, I received strange looks from not only the servers, but from the diners beside me as well. With my notebook out and everything, I took up the entire dining space next to me (I was sitting at the sushi bar). Go me...

Ebi Sunomono - B+

The Ebi Sunomono was especially sweet and came with soft baby shrimp. The sunomono was on the milder side, and it was very light on the vinegar. The "soup" was quite drinkable. I would prefer a little more punch from the vinegar. 

Marinated Black Cod - A-

The Marinated Black Cod was a hit and a featured a delicious grilled flavour. You can take a large chunk and have the juiciness of the cod melt in your mouth. It wasn't the best black cod I've had though, and it would benefit from a slightly stronger miso flavour. 

Overall, the service was very friendly and professional. This is my second visit to Aki (the first was before I started this blog), and this visit confirmed my initial impression that Aki was consistent but did not provide any surprisingly outstanding dishes. What was surprising though was the fact that I had consumed both combos and taken all my notes and photos in the span of just 25 minutes. That is faster than the time it takes me to figure out how to operate the washing machine. I believe I have finally eaten enough sushi to activate my super saiyan food blogging abilities.

Episode #171: Kyuzo Japanese Restaurant

Vancouver (Southwest), $$$$ (Luxury)
www.facebook.com/kyuzovancouver

Ever since I started going to university and receiving my U-Passes, I've been exploring Vancouver bit by bit along with my sushi adventures. It's been almost five years since then, and I've gone from not being able to find downtown on a map of Vancouver to knowing what every major street in Vancouver looks like. Lately, I started running out of places to visit, so I decided to spend an afternoon at Langara College because I pretty much have no life. Everyone there was having a blast. The students outside were having an epic sword tournament, and the students inside were making artistic masterpieces or going on YouTube. On the other hand, while trying to find the new on-campus sushi place, I got lost in what looked like a huge paint factory...

After finding my way out of Langara, I walked over to Kyuzo Japanese Restaurant, a new, upscale, Chinese-operated Japanese restaurant. The walk there was longer than I had anticipated, so I entered the restaurant totally exhausted and a little sweaty, which totally made for a brilliant first impression. Another thing that I did not anticipate was the high prices and the high number of fusion items that piqued my interest, so I ended up following my heart's desires, which resulted in a rather nasty bill. That being said, the dining space was elegant and the service was professional.

If you order any skewers, you will be presented with the black cup above to hold your empty/finished skewers. Do not pour your tea into this cup like I did! When the waitress saw what I was doing, she frantically rushed over to stop me. Oops... This was mostly my fault for not paying attention to my surroundings.

Salmon Nigiri - B+

Tuna Toro Nigiri - A-

First up was the nigiri, which was not mindblowing but reasonably prepared. The salmon came with a thick, neat cut and a nice buttery flavour, but it was slightly dry. The toro also came in a generous cut and was soft, though not exactly melty. The sushi rice was decent. 

Ebi Mayo - C+

Next, the Ebi Mayo came with spicy mayonnaise and tough, overdone shrimp. There was very little crispiness, but I felt like I was eating the shrimps with the shells left on. The flavours worked, but the textures did not. Now, let's take a look at the salad to the right. Why is there a big, honking piece of random broccoli in there?? Did they run out of green salad? I think they took the term "liberty" a little too far.

Foie Gras Nigiri - A+

Whatever happened with the previous dish, they made up for it with this $6 piece of Foie Gras Nigiri. The foie gras was very juicy with lightly crispy edges and was dressed with a light coating of truffle oil. This was not just delectable, but it also worked as a mood booster and an embarrassment forgetter for me.

Salmon Oshi - A-

The Salmon Oshi was a decent attempt at mimicking Miku's famous Salmon Oshi Sushi. This won't be mistaken for Miku's version, but the creamy sauce on top was savoury, and the jalapeño provided just the right amount of spiciness. They also added salmon inside for enhanced flavour, though the rice around it was a little too tightly packed.

Gyutan Kushiyaki - A-

The Gyutan Kushiyaki (grilled beef tongue skewers) came with a good amount of seasoning and a nice helping of black pepper. There was sufficient moisture in the beef tongue, but it was slightly tougher than Zakkushi's version. 

Parmesan Beef Roll - B+

The Parmesan Beef Roll came with prawn tempura, beef carpaccio, truffle oil, and parmesan cheese. The tender, thin slices of beef on top were very savoury when combined with the truffle oil and cheese, and as a whole, the roll felt a little too heavy. Inside the roll, the sweet, creamy avocado worked well with the meaty prawn.

The service was above average and more professional than the service I have received at any other Chinese-operated restaurant. If you enjoy fusion Japanese food, an upscale vibe, and high prices, then this may be a good place for you to visit. This ranks among my most expensive sushi adventures, at a total of $68 including tips. That's $68 I could have used to buy other fancy sushi and nigiri...

Episode #170: Village Sushi Bar

Richmond (Steveston), $ (Budget)

I am one of those people who like to eat a lot, not exercise, and stay slim. Being a person who gets sick quite often, I would accomplish this by going on an extreme diet during my sick days. Usually, I get sick for around 20 days every flu season, and my brilliant strategy would work like a charm. However, this flu season, I was sick for only two days, so I was packing on extra kilograms faster than the pregnant fish in Insaniquarium. I first thought of burning off some calories by walking the entire perimeter of Stanley Park, but having not exercised in months, who was I kidding? I opted for the much shorter Steveston boardwalk instead. Of course, I had to have some sushi first, because what is the point of exercising if there is no sushi involved?

Near the east end of the boardwalk is Village Sushi Bar, a small, quaint, authentic Japanese restaurant. It has some of the highest ratings of any sushi restaurant in Richmond, which provided me with another reason to give it a try. The restaurant has a pleasant smell as you walk in, and the waitress was very welcoming. The menu is limited to the more basic items, and I don't recall seeing any item above $10. My savings account let out a huge sigh of relief.

Tuna Tataki Salad - A-

The Tuna Tataki Salad came with three pieces of lightly seared fresh tuna. I would have liked a little more of a smoky flavour with the tuna, but the garlic chips and pine nuts in the salad did accentuate the flavours of the salad. Furthermore, the dressing was sufficient and spread evenly, creating a refreshing, well-rounded salad. 

Next came all of my sushi on a large plate. I think I ordered more than half of all the different kinds of nigiri they had. 

Dragon Roll - C+

Normally, I get Dragon Rolls for something between $10 and $15, so when I saw this Dragon Roll for just $5, how could I resist? Unfortunately, the lower prices came with lower quality. My soul died a little at the tightly packed and inadequately seasoned sushi rice. The roll was also rice-heavy, so the flavour of the unagi got lost in the mix. On the plus side, the tempura prawn inside was well-prepared and had a nice snap. 

Toro Nigiri - B

Tuna Nigiri - B

Salmon Nigiri - B+

Shimesaba Nigiri - B-

Hotate Nigiri - B+

Chopped Scallop Nigiri - B

Inari Nigiri - B

With the nigiri, the fish was very fresh and delicious in general. The hotate (scallop), salmon, and tuna all had delectable, soft textures, and the toro was quite juicy. My least favourite was the Saba Nigiri, which was a little too salty. Unfortunately, the sushi rice was packed much too tightly and interfered with my enjoyment of the softer textures of the fish. If it weren't for this, I would have given out a lot of A's here.

Besides the sushi rice, I enjoyed virtually every aspect of my visit, from the friendly service to the fresh ingredients. Perhaps they just had an unfortunate rice cooker malfunction during my visit. After finishing my meal, I went to the boardwalk, walked to Steveston, and then got a Frappucino from Starbucks. I'm really hoping that a short walk burns more calories than a Frappucino has...