Just round the corner along 4th Avenue, there was an empty store which was leased during the time I was living in the area. Months of renovations went by and soon, posters appeared on the windows stating that a new sushi restaurant was opening.
Finally, around May, Irori Sushi opened its doors. It was glamourously decorated with modern, dark-coloured furniture, a floor-to-ceiling bamboo display and beautifully crafted light fixtures.
There were not many customers as it was still early. We were ushered to a table by the window. This is the leather-covered menu.
When I opened it, I was quite taken aback by the prices. Definitely not what I would expect in a small sushi restaurant in this neighbourhood. I was not pleased and want to leave right away, but J.S. convinced me to stay and try something. We settled on a sushi combo with California roll and assorted nigiri to share.
The miso soup that came with it was too regular, I even suspected they used a microwave to reheat it, since I heard some microwave noises.
When asked what we would like to drink, I asked for water and J.S. asked for tea. This is what we got each. Great service indeed (no sarcasm here!).
Here's our full table before our food even got here. She even got us plates for sharing the combo. I'm quite amused.
The food took longer to get here than I expected, and when it came, I was appalled.
This was it! Four pieces of nigiri and eight pieces of California roll. I had expected portion sizes to be bigger but I guess this place is not where one should expect quantity. Quantity aside, we ventured to taste how much quality there was.
The nigiri were not impressive; the tuna was tasteless and the salmon was nothing like what I usually have. I've had rich, creamy fatty salmon that melts in my mouth; this salmon appeared to be smoked but had neither flavour nor texture. However, the shrimp was juicy.
The California rolls were not much better, the imitation crab meat was salty and the seaweed was tough. I could not wait to get out of here.
This terrible combo cost us $8.95 plus taxes and tips!
With our bellies half full, we set off next door to Ikebana Sushi for more sushi!
We got the Special Combo A to share and we got the nice waitress. She served us hot tea and the food came in a long while (because many people were getting takeout).
Look at this! Six pieces of fresh tuna roll, eight pieces of California roll and eight pieces of yam tempura roll! I'm quite sure this is enough food to feed a small army.
One thing I like about Ikebana's sushi is that they are very generous with the fillings. The filling takes up 3/4 of the sushi and rice makes up the other 1/4.
The tuna was definitely a lot fresher and didn't disintegrate once it entered my mouth. The yam tempura was fresh from the fryer and still slightly warm, which was an interesting mix of hot and cold flavours.
There is also a generous portion of pickled ginger and wasabi if you are a fan of them! Last time, I got this combo and had half of it to go. They even gave me a small container of the ginger and wasabi to go! That's excellent service, but it really depends on the waitress on shift that day.
To top all of this off, guess how much was this platter of sushi? $5.95 + taxes. If you get it to go, you won't even have to pay tips! That's slightly over $6 for a takeout that can easily feed me for two meals!
If you are ever in the Kitsilano area, try these two sushi restaurants for yourself!
Irori Sushi is located at 3692 W 4th Ave., Vancouver, B.C.
Ikebana Sushi is located at 2090 Alma St. Vancouver, B.C.
♥ Nikki
No comments:
Post a Comment