Izakaya Archives - Foodology

In Hot Pot

Mr. Black Restaurant 黑桑: Meal Sets, Hot Pots, and Drinks in Richmond

July 24, 2018

Mr Black is a newer restaurant located in Aberdeen Centre Mall serving up Japanese and Taiwanese inspired tapas and meal sets. Mr Black is a little hard to find but it’s right above H Mart on the 2nd floor of the mall. They occupy the previous space of Guu Richmond.

We were invited to give a few of their dishes a try.

Interior

The interior is mostly black and concrete, so it has an industrial look to it. There is enough seating for small to large groups. If you want to see where all the action is at, the bar seats look directly into the open kitchen.

Strawberry Sparkling Water

This is made with sparkling water and real strawberry puree. You can even see the seeds and pieces of strawberry flesh on the bottom of the cup. Very refreshing for the summer.

Calpis

Their version of Calpis isn’t as sweet as the ones you find in stores. Pretty good.

Fried Diced Blackened Wagyu Beef

What is unique about Mr Black is that some menu items are black to play off the name of the restaurant. This wagyu beef is coated in their secret coating and what makes it so black is charcoal. It is served with shredded cabbage. This dish reminded me of lumps of coal but a delicious kind. It is topped off with come chili peppers to balance out the taste.

Fried Chicken

This fried chicken was really good! The chicken is moist on the inside and the skin and batter were so flavourful. Highly recommended.

Salmon and Mentaiko Korokke

These balls are a pretty good size. It has a potato and salmon mixture surrounding the mentaiko inside. When we were eating it, the salmon felt a bit lost as well as the mentaiko. We did like it overall with the wasabi mayo. The exterior was crisp and the middle was predominantly tasting of fluffy potatoes.

Hokkaido Milk Chicken Hot Pot

This was one of my favourite dishes, it has chicken, imitation crab, mushrooms, tofu, egg, and cabbage in the milky broth. It was very comforting an comes with a bowl of rice and slice of grapefruit. Highly recommended.

Halibut

The deep fried halibut is covered in a bread crumb crust and served with shredded cabbage, soup, rice and salad. A pretty well rounded meal.

Cheesy Mapo Curry Pork

This new items is one of their specials. It has rice, mapo curry sauce, deep fried pork cutlet filled with cheese in the centre and also some picked veggies. The dish also comes with soup and pieces of grapefruit.

As they cut up the pork katsu ahead of time, the cheese already oozes out, so there really isn’t that much inside as you can see.

Wagyu Beef

You get about 100g of wagyu beef that has been deep fried but still pink in the centre. There is also a hot black stone that you can continue grilling your wagyu beef. It is served with rice, soup and salad.

This dish was ok but I didn’t feel like the quality of the wagyu could really shine through.

Earl Grey Creme Brulee

This creme brulee is hiding under all this fruit. Great to showcase what fruits are in season. I really enjoyed it and it had a good amount of earl grey flavour.

Fried Banana

There were 4 pieces of fried banana with chocolate inside too. It was really crisp on the outside like a crisp wonton wrapper. It is also paired with a bunch of seasonal fruit too.

Duo Layer Mousse of Coconut and Soy Milk

This is served up in a skinny bottle and when you look inside, you can see the two different layers of coconut and soy milk mousse. The flavours were good and went well together, but the container was hard to eat from.

Final Thoughts

Overall, some dishes were hits and some misses. The ones I really enjoyed was the Hokkaido Milk Chicken Hot Pot, Fried Chicken, and Halibut. Those a good items to have for either lunch or dinner.

Address:
2790-4151 Hazelbridge Way
Richmond, BC

Website:
https://www.mrblackrestaurant.com/

In Izakaya

Izakaya Gon’s on Denman Street

June 27, 2018

Izakaya Gon’s is a new Japanese restaurant that opened up in the West End of Downtown Vancouver. I was quite curious to see how this would compare to the other options in the area. I came after work with my friend to see they stack up. On the menu, you will find traditional izakaya dishes.

Interior

There are a lot of seats inside and it wasn’t too busy as they recently opened. It can fit small to large parties. They also take reservations too.

Iced Green Tea

We both got iced green tea to go with our meals for an extra $2.50. It was unsweetened, but was refreshing to go with the items we ordered.

Fried Squid Legs Kara-age

It is beautifully battered and crisp. It is served with a lemon wedge and a sprig of dill. This was my favourite dish of the evening.

Aburi Unagi Oshi Sushi

This comes in 5 pieces of pressed unagi on rice with eel sauce. This was executed poorly as it was pretty expensive for what you get. The rice was very warm and didn’t have time to cool down before turning it into this sushi.

Tempura Curry Udon

This huge bowl of udon has prawn and veggies assorted tempura, udon noodles and their curry broth. We shared this big bowl and was tasty, but we did notice is was quite oily and rich.

Gon’s Special Matcha Green Tea Tiramisu

There are layers of cream, matcha and sponge cake. It is served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, berries, and whipped cream. The dessert looks beautiful but the taste fell short as it was rather bitter.

Match Green Tea Cake Roll

We did not like this dish at all. The matcha green tea cake roll was dry and dense.

Final Thoughts

The food here was mostly miss with the only dish that we would get again would be the Fried Squid Legs Kara-age, which isn’t saying much. I really wanted to like this place, but a lot of their dishes need more refinement. The desserts also need more thought too as it felt like they cut corners.

Address:
854 Denman St, Vancouver, BC

Website:
https://izakaya-gons.com/denman/

In Downtown

Black Rice Izakaya: Winter Menu

December 29, 2017

Black Rice Izakaya in Vancouver is always trying to have seasonal items on the menu to keep items fresh and also cater to the tastebuds for the winter months. They have released 6 new dishes for the cold winter season.

Interior

There is a lot of space for groups of 2s and 4s, if you have a larger group, best to get a reservation so you don’t have to wait during peak hours.

Hamaguri Dobin Mushi

This has Hamaguri, water, salt, pepper string and yuzu peel. It is a very comforting broth that is peppery and ends with the citrus yuzu peel.

Goma Tuna

You have chunks of the tuna marinated in delicious sauce. Then a crisp rice cake on top. There is also a cucumber cup filled with uni. I liked this dish as it has nice clean flavours.

Kichi Scallop Motoyaki

In the shell is kimchi, chopped bell pepper, butter and cheese. A rich dish due to the butter and cheese, but cooked kimchi is very comforting in the winter months.

Neapolitan Spaghetti

There is soba noodle, tomato sauce, ketchup, bacon, sausage, onion and egg. I found it a touch too sweet, but some people at the table really enjoyed it.

Kimchi Nabe

A hot warming hot pot that is kept warm by the fame under it. It’s not too spicy at all. I find that some kimchi is better is soups where its flavours can really shine through.

Terikayi Wagyu Steak

This sizzling plate has Teriyaki glazed US wagyu beef from Snake River Farms, Monterey Jack and mozzarella cheese with mashed potatoes. It’s cooked till a medium rare for the quality of meat to shine through.

Sake Drinks

Of course it’s not winter without some delicious sake cocktails to go with the meal. With the winter, there is lots to celebrate around the table during the holidays. They have a lot of options on their beverage menu.

Beer

If you’re like me, I enjoy beer more than sake for the crisp bubbly taste. There is Sapporo and Asahi on top, but I usually gravitate towards Sapporo.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the new items are good additiona to the menu to give customer more options during the winter. I didn’t love all the dishes as I prefer more of a clean taste to my food, but I did like the Hamaguri Dobin Mushi and Goma Tuna.

We Rate Black Rice Izakaya:

Address:
782 Cambie St, Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.blackrice.ca/

In Four Beakers

Rajio Japanese Public House: Osaka-Style Japanese Izakaya in Vancouver

September 10, 2017

It’s been 3 years since my last visit to Rajio Japanese Public House and I remember a lot of great nights here but I’m glad I’ve come back for more of their Osaka-style dishes.

Interior

The interior is fun and gives you a mix of traditional and modern feels. The space isn’t very large, but there are a decent number of tables.

Rajio’s Famous Fruit Punch

Their cute punch is served in a fresh watermelon or pineapple. Great for the Summer or what you need a smile on your face.

You cab have it with alcohol or without to customize your experience.

Beer

My favourite beverage to pair with Japanese food is beer as it helps cut the grease off some fried items. Plus, I love how light and refreshing it is.

Craft Ginger Ale

They have their original ginger ale recipe with freshly grated ginger, lime, lemon, and sweet brown sugar. It’s definitely different than the ginger ale at the stores since it has an extra kick of ginger balanced by the brown sugar.

Super Rib Steak

This $38 hug 2lb beef rib steak comes with sharp wasabi and a garlic soy sauce. I’ve always ordered their huge steaks before and they are a joy to eat. It is best to be shared among the table. Super tender and medium rare.

Modern Yaki

This is a featured dish, so it’s not on their permanent menu. It is a combination of Osaka Okonomiyaki and Yakisoba. I liked the concept, but the execution wasn’t ideal. As the dish cooled off, the okonomiyaki portion of it peeled off from the yakisoba hiding underneath. It was also quite rich and heavy compared to some other items that we had.

“Uni Bonara” Sea Urchin Carbonara

This was delicious item with the creamy udon paired with the fresh uni and the ikura. I enjoyed it and it was a good twist on an udon dish.

Y Mommy’s Assorted Oden

I love oden as it’s a warm bowl of comfort. There were so many items in this bowl with a bit of karashi, which is a spicy mustard. Put a little bit in as it really transforms the broth. Add more if you love the stingy wasabi-like feeling.

Chef’s Choice Sashimi

You can choose between 7 or 9 different types of sashimi chosen by the chef. It changes seasonally, but you can always ask ahead what you’ll get.

Hot Stone Crab Bibimbap

In the hot stone bibimbap bowl, there is snowcrab, crab miso, ikura, julienned omelet, shiso and scallions with a drizzle of their original sauce and a bit of ginger.

Kushikatsu

These skewers are Rajio’s signature skewers from Osaka. We got an assorted set with a mix of veggies and meat. One of my favourites are the shiitake mushroom, lotus root and eggplant.

Aburi Shime-Saba Sushi

There is delicious cured mackerel with Hokkaido kelp and vinegar is lightly seared and drizzled with a sesame mustard soy. Delicious and I love the taste of mackerel.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the atmosphere at Rajio is lively and fun. The food at Rajio is solid except for a few small misses in certain dishes.

We Rate Rajio:

Address:
3763 W. 10th Ave.
Vancouver, BC

Facebook:
http://www.rajiopublichouse.com/

In Izakaya

Kibo Restaurant and Lounge: Drink in Yaletown

November 20, 2016

It’s been a while since my last visit to Kibo. They are a modern Japanese restaurant which is popular among larger groups celebrating birthdays or other milestones.

We came here to grab a few bites and get some drinks in the evening.

Drinks

A pitcher of Sapporo comes with frosted and chilled mugs. Sapporo is my preferred beer to go with Japanese food as it balances the flavours very well.

Sake is my friends drink of choice. Cold sake comes in a cute little dispenser.

Kibo Ball has Whiskey, Melon liquer, and Peach Schnapps. An easy drink shooter and they have a good deal for 5 for $20.

Aburi Block Sushi has pressed rice, salmon and their chef’s signature sauce. A very saucy item, but of course it’s not as good as Miku’s version.

Ika sugatayaki is a grilled and marinated whole squid. Served with a lemon and a mayo sauce. THis was pretty good and an easy item to share.

Assorted Tempura is decent here too. A few pieces of yams and prawns with a dipping sauce.

Short Ribs are marinated and grilled. Tender and not chewy at all.

Overall, the food is decent, but a lot of people come here for drinks and a few bites in the evening.

We Rate Kibo:

Address:
1261 Hamilton Street, Vancouver

Website:
https://www.facebook.com/kibo.yaletown/

In Gastown

Kozakura: Japanese Cuisine in Gastown

September 24, 2016

Kozakura is a new Japanese Izakaya located near Gastown. They specialize in Kappo-style Japanese food and the menu is seasonal, fresh and local.

Foodgressing, Food Wench, Maggi, Nosh & Nibble, Picky Diner and I came here for dinner as we were so curious about what they served.

Interior

The interior is pretty small and narrow. Best to make reservations to make sure you have a seat. The restaurant is also dim and has a cozy atmosphere. We came here early in the evening, so it wasn’t very busy. They seat about 25 people in total.

Drinks

Sapporo was my drink of choice at Japanese restaurants. Gotta have Japanese beer to go with Japanese food. It’s a light and fruity beer that pairs well with the flavours.

A few of the others ordered Sake and it comes in such a cute rounded bottom decanter. They have a wide selection of sake, which goes well with the dishes they create.

Food

Osentamago Ohitashi has a poached onsen egg, snap peas, and dashi soy. Definitely not a dish to share. The flavours are very delicate and the egg is just so delicious.

Aigamo Sumiso has sweet soy cooked duck breast, sumiso, and flowering chives. It comes with 4 pieces to an order. The duck was tender and went well with the sauce.

Honjitsu no Osashimi is their daily selection of sashimi. Since we were in a group of six, we payed a bit more to make sure there were 6 pieces each so everyone could get a bit. They used some good cuts of sashimi.

Tako no Yawarakani has sous vide octopus, smoked ponzu, and mizuna. The octopus was tender but still had a bite to it.

Sake Kasu Salmon was moist and flaky inside. You can definitely tell they spent their time marinating the salmon.

Madai Sakamushi has steamed seabream with seared skin, bok choy, and a thick soy dashi. Better presentation compared with the other dishes. Light and delicate taste.

Sanshou Steak is made with ribeye, sanshou peppercorns, and shungiku. The peppercorns were an interesting touch and is tongue numbing. I like the way the cooked it so it is at a medium rare.

Sunomono was served with crab, mozuku, sliced cucumber, and tosazu vinegar. It was pretty good, served cold, and had a clean taste.

Yuzu Miso Buta Niku is sous vide pork loin, yuzu miso paste, and a apricot glaze. That paste was so spicy, but I loved how it cleared your sinuses.

Anago Dashi Chazuke has slow cooked eel, steamed rice, dashi, and mitsuba. Of all the dishes, this was more filling than the others. I could of definitely had the whole thing to myself.

Overall, the food tasted good and has a good clean feeling at the end of the meal. For a large group to come here, it was hard to figure out the best way to order, so we got 2 of every dish on the menu. It seemed like it would be enough but the size of the dishes were pretty small. There is also auto gratuity of 18% when dining with 6 or more people.

We finished our meal and decided to go to another place to fill up a little bit more.

We Rate Kozakura:

Address:
280 Carrall Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.kozakuragastown.ca/

In Izakaya

Kuma Izakaya: Drinks and Asian Fusion in Yaletown

August 15, 2016

Kuma Izakaya is located in Yaletown close to the Skytrain. They serve up Japanese and Korean dishes with a hint of French influence. At first it can seem confusing how all 3 types of cuisines would come together.

We were invited to try out their signature dishes and learn more about the restaurant and their chef/owner – Hyun Woo Kim.

Chef Kim has worked at various restaurants around the world like The French Laundry in Napa Valley, the prestigious 3 Michelin star restaurant. You can see this influence penetrate the menu with French, Japanese and Korean.

The interior is pretty nice and cozy with a dark feel. They also have a patio so you can eat outside during the nice Summers. I can see this place bring very popular during that late evenings as they have a good range of Korean liquors.

Drinks

They have soju imported from South Korea, which is awesome since it’s hard to find the flavoured soju bottles.

Their flavours include:

Original
Citron
Apple
Peach
Grapefruit

My friends and I love finding restaurants in downtown with flavoured soju, its pretty hard to find because it gets sold out quite easily. I know I’ll definitely be back for these flavoured sojus.

They also have peach makgeolli, which is a flavoured rice wine. Also really good. It makes it super easy to drink.

Food

Kuma Salad with Tomatoes was piled up high and presented nicely. A good use of different textures in this salad.

Kuma Signature Salad has fresh greens topped with sliced avocado, sliced tomato, pickles, house-made ricotta cheese, and crispy yam. It is drizzled with balsamic and house dressing.

Mango Ebimayo comes with 5 pieces of the deep-fried prawns with mango sauce. The mango added a bit of sweetness to it. You should eat it right away as it loses its crunch quite quickly due to the sauce.

Crispy Chicken has crispy deep-fried boneless chicken with pan-fried veggies and a Korean-style sauce. A good dish for sharing among friends. With all the sauce in this dish, the skin wasn’t as crisp when it arrived on the table.

Osso Buco uses premium AAA beef ribs simmered in house made soy sauce. It is also served with rice.

They also have it as in a spicy version. The beef was super flavourful and tender.

Kuma Chirashi Tartare has balsamic spicy aburi tuna, assorted sashimi served on sushi rice, avocado dressing and garnished with tenkatsu and yam flakes. Taking the first few bites, I didn’t wow me like how Miku’s chirashi tart. The heaviness from the spicy tuna sauce over powered the rest of the layers underneath.

Assorted sashimi was served in an ice cold bowl. Chef Kim chose an assortment from like ika, tuna, hamachi, and sockeye salmon. Very cool presentation and the sashimi tasted great.

Kuma Seafood Champon has noodles in hearty tomato seafood soup. Simmered with assorted pan-fried vegetables, chilli oils, and chilli powder. A good amount of seafood inside and the broth was very good and flavourful. Not too spicy. It’s a pretty big portion, so it can be sharable.

Assorted Aburi Nigiri has Hamachi and Amaebi. The assortment was all presented on one plate.

The aburi amaebi is seared with some sauce on the top. A good sear

The deep fried shrimp heads were ok

The aburi hamachi was pretty good, but could have used a but more char to it.

Overall, a very diverse menu, but still their aburi doesn’t hit the mark as Miku does. Kuma does make it their own style and doesn’t compare. The dishes I thought were pretty outstanding are the dishes with more of a Korean flavour profile like the Kuma Seafood Champon and the Osso Buco.

We Rate Kuma Izakaya:

Address:
233 Hamilton Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.izakayakuma.com/

In Downtown

Black Rice Izakaya: Japanese Restaurant near BC Place

July 20, 2015

Every Friday, my friends and I love to spend time eating and drinking at Japanese Izakayas to unwind after a week of work. Since we’ve managed to hit most Izakayas in Downtown, I had to do some reasearch to see if any new ones have popped up.

Black Rice Izakaya opened a few months ago near BC Place and I had to take my friends here. I made reservations ahead of time since we had a large group. As a designer, I had to giggle a little that they were using papyrus font for their logo.

The space is set up slightly odd with a ramp that goes through the restaurant. We found this place was quite packed after work but it was also the One Direction concert during the day I went. The crowd died down around 8pm.

They also have a bar area near the front.

The first items we had to order was beer and sake. Friday night traditions.

The sake cups were housed in this rectangular box. It was pretty cute.

Spicy Salmon Aburo Hako ($11.95) looks a bit familiar doesn’t it? It’s has asparagus, spicy tuna, sockeye, spicy mayo, jalapeño and then it’s torched.

After eating this, we realized this isn’t an authentic Japanese Izakaya, it was Korean run, so we can see the Korean influence in this roll. It was the type of spice they used in it. Also, most of the servers we heard speaking Korean.

Tuna Tataki Salad with Avocado ($7.99) has some nice big pieces of tuna and chunks of avocado. The dressing was light and quite enjoyable.

Aburi Saba Hako ($14.25) has a thick piece of saba, yamagobo, shiroita-kombu and then it’s torches. Very good!

Yaki Udon ($9.95) was delicious. Nice flavours and textures.

Ika Ebi Hako ($10.95) bas chopped tiger prawn and squid, then tamagobo, cheddar, mozzarella, and parmesan cheese. It is then oven baked.

Ebi Mayo ($9.25) came with 5 pieces, but the mayo part was a bit lacking on this dish.

Smoked Salmon and Avocado Maki Roll ($3.50) was very simple but pretty good. Everyone loves avocado.

Galbi Kushi yaki ($3.60 each) is grilled BBQ prime rib. It was a bit tough and not tender at all.

Black Rice Roll ($8.99) has pacific black cod, avocado, cream cheese, and wrapped in black rice. We found that the cream cheese did overpower most of the ingredients in the role, we could hardly taste or notice the cod.

Chicken Karage Nanban ($7.95) was crispy and well cooked. It also comes with this delicious sweet sauce.

Negi Salmon Maki ($3) was a nice twist on the negi toro since we never see negi salmon on a menu or perhaps I’ve been blind. We all really enjoyed it.

Sockeye Salmon Nigiri (2 pieces – $4.40) we got 3 orders of this as there was 6 of us at the table. Delicious and fresh.

Volcano Dynamite Roll ($8.95) has crab meat, prawn tempura, cucumber, avocado, topped with spicy tuna and rolled up in brown rice. It was a pretty massive roll. I didn’t really particularly like it.

Unagi Nigiri (2 pieces – $4.70) comes with 2 pieces per order. It was good.

Overall, Black Rice Izakaya is good but I felt the service to be lacking as it took them forever to seat us, give us water and take our order. An item that we ordered didn’t show up and we didn’t figure this out until after we paid the bill. When we asked, they had no idea what happened to it, so they refunded us the missing item in cash.

They also ran out of serving plates and forks when we were here. We brought a cake and so did some other group that was dining there too, so perhaps that’s what happened.

We Rate Black Rice Izakaya:

Address:
782 Cambie Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.blackrice.ca/

In Izakaya

VanVan Izakaya: Japanese Sakaba on Robson Street

May 27, 2015

VanVan Izakaya is a relatively new restaurant on Robson Street. You won’t be able to find any sushi here except for the lunch hour. You will still find sashimi on the dinner menu. They call themselves a Sakaba, which translated to ‘Bar’ in Japanese. A few of us were invited by ChineseBites to try out their menu, so we did what any foodies would do…try to eat a majority of the items on the menu. We clearly had to eat through the pain.

The seating is what you would expect from an izakaya – wooden rustic furniture and funky walls.

You can even take some chalk and start drawing over the walls. Most of everything on the wall doesn’t make sense as people have written over other people’s drawings.

The dinner menu is a decent size and you can find the usual items on there. It’s a good selection. Their menu is also quite constant, so it won’t change too much.

Ebi Mayo ($7.80) is battered tiger prawns with chili mayo and balsamic vinegar. It was pretty average and the spinach leaves didn’t add much to the dish. Perhaps green onions would be a tad better.

Beef Tataki ($8.50) has thin slices of raw beef, garlic chips, radish, green onions, onions and ponzu sauce. You grab a little bit of everything and dunk it into the ponzu sauce.

I didn’t really like the way the beef was sliced. It was very thin, so you could hardly taste the beef. Plus the slices were a bit smaller.

Chicken VanVan ($7.80) is fried with a sweet and sour sauce. Then it is topped with tartar sauce. We thought it was ok, but it was a bit weird with the tartar sauce.

Curry Poutine ($8.80) has a bed of crispy fries, curry sauce and cheese. A great choice! The fries are very crispy and goes so well with beer.

Nasu Dengaku ($6.80) is a baked eggplant with 2 sauces – miso and tomato sauce + cheese. The miso glaze was a tad sweet for our liking. Surprisingly both of the sauces worked with the eggplant.

Yabaflower ($6.50) is deep-fried cauliflower and it’s served with tartar sauce, matcha salt and a lemon. It was delicious! You can’t go wrong with any deep-fried.

P-Toro ($8.80) is pork cheek served on a hot skilled. It has lots of green onion and a lemon wedge. I love pork cheek! Very flavourful.

Albacore Tuna Sashimi ($7.80)
Scallop Sashimi ($6.80)
Atlantic Salmon Sashimi ($7.80)

These were good, but we did find a little bit of debris on them, especially the scallops. Nat bit down on something crunchy that she couldn’t figure out. what it was. Perhaps shell or sand?

We ordered another plate of Atlantic Salmon Sashimi. We really do love our sashimi.

Spicy Pork Intestines ($7.80) comes in a sizzling hot bowl filled with cabbage and pork intestines. I ordered this just to scare FoodQueen, but in the end, no one really had a liking towards the dish. It had a particular chemical taste to them that really turned me off. If they were deep-fried or had some other textures, I think that would have added to the dish.

Ika Naruyaki ($7.80) is a whole grilled squid served with teriyaki sauce and mayo. Another great item on the menu. I loved it. I couldn’t stop eating.

Salmon Yukke ($7.80) is chopped salmon with garlic sauce and cucumbers. It is also served with dried seaweed. You scoop some onto the seaweed and enjoy.

Russian Roulette Takoyaki ($5.80) comes with 5 pieces, but one of them is super spicy and filled with wasabi. We went one by one and the victim was Angela. She knew right away because it has a pretty pungent smell. It’s a very fun dish for a group of friends. Plus, if you’re lucky to avoid the wasabi takoyaki, the normal takoyaki tastes pretty good.

Gyu Tongue ($9.80) has many thin slices of beef tongue that is BBQ’d and served with a Japanese leek mixture on top. The mixture is a bit salty, but it goes well with the tongue.

Matcha Tonyu Pudding ($4.80) was so good! If you want something unique, get this! It’s like a custard/soup. I wanted to eat the whole thing.

Matcha Ice Cream ($4) is topped with matcha powder, whipped cream and red bean. Very good and flavourful ice cream.

Black Sesame Ice Cream ($4) is paired with whipped cream and red bean. The sesame is very fragrant and tastes great.

Overall, VanVan Izakaya is a great atmosphere if you like Japanese bars. It’s lively, staff are attentive, and good atmosphere. Some of the food is a miss, but a majority of them are delicious.

Foodology Disclaimer: I was invited by ChineseBites to try VanVan Izakaya’s dishes with a few other bloggers. The service is not representative of their usual service since they knew we were coming.

We Rate VanVan:

Address:
1333 Robson St
Vancouver BC

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/robson.sakaba.vanvan

In Izakaya

Manzo: Japanese Izakaya in Richmond

November 24, 2014

Manzo Japanese Restaurant is located on Alexandra Road in Richmond. We came here for some more drinks and smaller dishes to pick at, so an Izakaya was the perfect idea. They have been around for over a decade and they also have another restaurant on Capstain Way.

It is dim inside and has a lot of cool items on all the walls like lanterns, pictures and signs. Service was ok, but they couldn’t answer a few questions about the alcohol on the menu as they didn’t know the size of a small or large sake.

750ml Bottle of Gekkeikan was about $29. Price was a bit high since you know you can buy this for really cheap at the alcohol store. Of course the prices would be much higher in a restaurant. The bottle lasted us a while, so it wasn’t too bad.

Edamame ($2.50) was on special.

Mentaiko Agedashi Tofu was a delicious item! The salty topping with the mentiko mixture was salty, but it blended nicely with the agedashi tofu, which was bit more bland.

Kawahagi is a file fish. It is thin an crispy kinda like dried cuttlefish found in grocery stores.

Deep Fried Baby Octopus was delicious. Anything deep-fried is an addiction.

Grilled Beef Tongue Skewers were really yummy. Perfectly cooked, tender and had great flavour.

Some items are quite pricey like sashimi. Their Izakaya items are ok, but there’s nothing very special about what they offer.

We Rate Manzo:

Address:
8391 Alexandra Rd
Richmond, BC

In Gastown

Shirakawa Gastown: Daily Happy Hour

November 16, 2014

What more do I love on a Friday than happy hour at a Japanese Restaurant? Spending time with friends on Friday eating happy hour!

They are located in Gastown right in Gaolers Mews. Shirakawa is focused on serving the highest quality proteins and organic produce without sacrificing traditional Japanese culinary methods. They specializes in Japanese kappo, sushi, teppan grilled high-end Kuroge Wagyu Beef from Japan.

Happy hour is everyday from 5:30pm till 6:30pm with select dishes being only $5 each with draft beer being $3.50.

They have a large dining area, which is great for large groups. Since this place is fairly new, it’s not too busy.

They select a few items on their regular menu for their happy hour menu with a cheaper price of $5! Also draft beers are only $3.50.

Pint of Asahi Extra Dry is on tap. Perfect to start off the weekend! Such a good price too!

Coffee Umeshu is coffee infused plum wine. I thought this was a strange combination, but it was pretty good. CoffeeLover naturally gravitated towards this drink because he loves coffee and wine.

Kakuni is slow cooked pork belly, teppan finished with a sweet soy reduction and spicy mustard. You may not want to share this because it’s so good! So addictive! The fat just melts in your mouth.

Buta Katsu has panko-breaded pork cutlet, harvarti cheese and black miso.

Spicy Tofu has deep fried tofu, seasonal vegetable garnish, with a spicy dashi broth. It wasn’t very spicy at all. I think it had about 8 pieces of tofu. Good size for sharing.

Teba ($8) is fried ginger soy marinated chicken wings. It was crispy on the outside and the meat was tender and flavourful. It reminded me of my childhood since my mom loves marinating wings in soy sauce and ginger.

Overall, we each ordered a drink and about 2 dishes each and it came out to be around $15 each person. Pretty good prices! I’ll definitely be back as I still have yet to try their signature dishes.

We Rate Shirakawa Gastown:

Address:
115 – 12 Water St
Vancouver, BC

Website: http://shirakawagastown.com/

In Downtown

VanVan: New Japanese Izakaya on Robson Street

October 16, 2014

VanVan opened in the Summer of 2014 and a lot of people have been attracted by their $9.50 pitchers that they were offering, but sadly it has now ended, so a pitcher will cost $12.95. They are a Japanese Izakaya, so they an assortment of food to go with drinks.

There isn’t too much seating and they encourage people to make reservations because it always seems like they have large groups for the weekends. We tried coming here a few weeks ago and they told us there was no more space for a table of 3.

They also have chalkboard walls around most of the interior. You’ll find cute drawings and a lot of other stuff written on there.

Pitcher of Sapporo ($12.95) is how KoreanGirl and I kicked off the evening. They surprisingly made a great pour to the top of the pitcher. Very minimal head. It made us sad that there was no more cheap beer anymore. Perhaps it was because of the government.

Either way, we enjoyed the beer over girl talk and food.

Ebi Mayo ($7.80) is battered prawns with a thousand island mayo sauce. It came with 5 pieces and was crunchy on the outside and soft and steamy on the inside. I wasn’t a fan of the thousand island mayo sauce, but it would be nice to have something more spicy.

Nasu Dengaku ($6.80) is deep-fried eggplant with miso sauce and the other one has a tomato cheese sauce. I love eggplant, so I naturally gravitated to order this dish. It came out piping hot and slathered with yummy sauces. I really enjoyed the one with miso sauce.

Ichigo Daifuku ($4) is strawberry and red bean wrapped in mochi. It had a lot of red bean inside. It would be better if it was filled with ice cream instead.

Overall, the food was quite average for an izakaya. The atmosphere is great, but food still needs an improvement. Since they are still quite new, I am sure they will improve over time.

We Rate VanVan:

Address:
1333 Robson St
Vancouver BC

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/robson.sakaba.vanvan

In Four Beakers

Minami: Taste of Yaletown

October 11, 2014

Taste of Yaletown is back for its 10th year full of bites, treats, sips and sights of Yaletown. Every year, Taste of Yaletown brings together the talents of chefs with culinary treasures in the best dining district in Vancouver.

From October 16th-30th, Yaletown kitchens will offer featured menus, special tastings and innovative pairings to tempt the most adventurous foodie. With a fresh approach to fixed price menus of $25, $35 and $45 restaurants will offer combinations of food and drink or even special in-house events.

Minami is participating again this year with 3 different menu options. I was invited for a sneak peak of their dinner menu and I was excited because they are one of my favourite restaurants in Vancouver.

[tabs tab1=”DINNER MENU $45″ tab2=”VEGETARIAN DINNER MENU $35″ tab3=”ZEN LUNCH $25″]
[tab id=1]

Optional sake pairing 15

FIRST – SUSHI
Sake pairing: Dassai 39

wild boar bacon salmon oshi bite, sunset roll, maguro and kani maki, tai and hotate temari

SECOND – MINAMI ZEN
Sake pairing: Yu Junmai

Stone fruit salad
endive, goat feta, dried olives, maple sherry thyme vinaigrette, fig balsamic reduction
Jidori chicken and foie gras gyoza
truffle dashi consommé
Saikyo miso baked sablefish
coconut creamed kale, wasabi shoga relish, yuzu miso sauce
Braised fraser valley pork cheek
roasted kabocha-onion puree, apple red cabbage kraut, sweet & sour soy ginger glaze

DESSERT
Sake pairing: Hakkaisan Sparkling Nigori

Matcha tiramisu
matcha-genmai ladyfingers, azuki paste, matcha-white chocolate ganache, sesame crumble

[/tab]
[tab id=2]

Optional sake pairing 15

FIRST – FALL GARDEN PLATE
Sake pairing: Dassai 39

fresh market vegetables, soy paper roll, moromi miso sauce, sesame pesto, olive tapenade

SECOND – MINAMI ZEN
Sake pairing: Yu Junmai

Stone fruit
endive, goat feta, dried olives, maple, sherry thyme vinaigrette, fig balsamic reduction
Kaiso salad
baby frisee, umami soy vinaigrette, lotus root chip
Crispy tempeh
spiced tomato chutney, sautéed kale
Shiitake mizuna ricotta ravioli
truffled saikyo miso sauce, organic maple ginger granola

DESSERT
Sake pairing: Hakkaisan Sparkling Nigori

Matcha tiramisu
matcha-genmai ladyfingers, azuki paste, matcha-white chocolate ganache, sesame crumble

[/tab]
[tab id=3]

FIRST – ABURI SUSHI
Sake pairing: Dassai 39

salmon oshi, ebi oshi, sunset roll, nigiri

SECOND – MINAMI ZEN
Sake pairing: Yu Junmai

Aburi bincho
wasabi masatake sauce
Miso marinated tofu salad
baby greens, avocado, crispy tempeh, pickled daikon & carrot, umami soy vinaigrette
Saikyo miso baked sablefish
coconut creamed kale, wasabi shoga relish, yuzu-miso sauce
Braised fraser valley pork cheek
apple red cabbage kraut, roasted kabocha onion puree, sweet & sour ginger soy glaze

DESSERT
Sake pairing: Hakkaisan Sparkling Nigori

Spiced pumpkin brownie ice cream
cinnamon-nutmeg spice blend, walnut brownie pieces

[/tab]

[/tabs]

The sushi assortment has 5 pieces of tai temari, hotate temari, sunset roll, wild boar bacon salmon oshi bite, and maguro + Kani Maki. You really need to savour these 5 pieces of sushi because they taste amazing. Every single bite is a work of art.

Tai Temari was beautiful like a little sushi ball.

Hotate Temari is scallop cut in half and draped over sushi rice.

Sunset Roll has spicy tuna, cucumber, smoked salmon, and tobiko.

Wild Boar Bacon Salmon Oshi Bite and Maguro + Kani Maki were my 2 favourite rolls because of that amazing Miku sauce. That sauce makes your mouth water.

Next is the second course consisting of Braised Fraser Valley Pork Cheek, Saikyo Miso Baked Sablefish, Jidori Chicken and Fois Gras Gyoza, and their Stone Fruit Salad.

Braised Fraser Valley Pork Cheek has a roasted kabocha-onion puree, apple red cabbage kraut, with a sweet and sour soy ginger glaze. The cheek was tender and full of flavour.

Saikyo miso baked sablefish also has a coconut creamed kale, wasabi shoga relish, and yuzu miso sauce. The skin was crisp and the delicate flavours of the sablefish went well with the sauce.

Jidori Chicken and Foie Gras Gyoza also comes with a truffle dashi consommé. The gyoza was good!

Stone Fruit Salad has endive, goat feta, dried olives, maple sherry thyme vinaigrette, and fig balsamic reduction. The fruit was really fresh and everything blended nicely together. It’s good to have one of the item a salad to break up the taste of meat.

Last but not least is their Matcha tiramisu for dessert. It has matcha-genmai ladyfingers, azuki paste, matcha-white chocolate ganache, with a sesame crumble. Oh man, this was good. No more need for regular Tiramisu because this is amazing.

Overall, it’s always a good time at Minami. The $45 dinner menu is reasonable and you get a taste of everything Minami has to offer. If you aren’t keen to spending that much, the $25 lunch is a good option too.

We Rate Minami:

Address:
1118 Mainland St
Vancouver BC

Website:
http://minamirestaurant.com/

In Izakaya

Rajio: Turn On The Rajio Dining Package

September 24, 2014

Rajio is located near UBC and are owned by the same people who have brought us Suika Izakaya and Kingyo Izakaya. Rajio is Japanese for Radio, so you will notice their logo is a radio at the front of the restaurant.

The team at Vaneats.ca are currently offering up a $20 ‘Turn on the Rajio‘ dining package, which includes 4 items:

Kushikatsu – 4 bite size skeweres
Banga Cauda – fresh veggies and dip
Sashimi Salad
Heavenly Ebi Ramen

I came here on a weekday with 3 of my good friend to enjoy some yummy Japanese food. We used the package, as well as ordering a few items off them menu.

The interior is quite nice and really connects you back to Japan.

Complimentary cabbage with a light acidic dressing. Yummy!

Bagna Cauda has fresh veggies with a dipping sauce made from garlic, anchovy, olive oil and sweet Japanese white miso. This was a really strange dish to see at a restaurant especially if it’s served in a pyrex cup. Funny to see all the vegetables, but it actually pairs well with the sauce. The sauce blew us away.

VANEATS Sashimi Salad has their Chef’s omakase sashimi with crisp romaine lettuce tossed in kalamata olive soya dressing topped with tobiko. Very good sashimi salad.

Kushikatsu is what Rajio is known for! It has the Chef’s recommendation of 4 deep fried, panko breaded, bite sized skewers with their dipping sauce. Just make sure you only take on dip. I was scared to use the sauce because what if someone double dipped by accident.

Heavenly Ebi Ramen is a new item and has tender ramen in deep-golden shrimp broth, embellished with slices of cha-shu pork and shrimp infused garlic oil. Its a bit disappoint to see there isn’t any who ebi shrimp in the dish. It tasted ok but I felt like it was still lacking something.

Overall, the Vaneats Turn on the Rajio package is a good start to dive into their menu, but you will need to order a few more dishes to round out the whole experience.

Let keep exploring some dishes outside of the dining package.

Smashing Hit Punch ($13) looks pretty awesome. It is punch with watermelon, orange, grapefruit, vodka, rum, white wine and all served in a watermelon. It’s a small watermelon and not those regular large ones. It looked really cool, but M thought the beverage could have been colder to enhance the flavours.

Chicken Knees is actually chicken cartilage with some meat. Some people may think this dish is weird, but it’s just like chicken karaage but with the added cartilage.

Tontoro Yaki is their grilled pork jowl with shredded onions and yuzu kosho – a citrus dressing.

The KFC ($7.80) has boneless chicken karaage coated with their secret spices.

We also ordered more Kushikatsu.

Chicken Kushikatsu, mochi Kushikatsu, and bacon wrapped tomato Kushikatsu.

Sausage Kushikatsu and Camembert Cheese

Tako Wasabi ($3.80) has raw chopped octopus with pickles marinated in a wasabi sauce. You take the mixture and scoop them onto the seaweed and eat it together. I like this dish because you get the nice kick of wasabi.

Overall, my friends and I had a great time! We casually chatted over beer and food. The ambiance was great because they actually played some good music. Discovered a few songs that I wanted to put on a few on my playlists.

We Rate Rajio:

Address:
3763 W. 10th Ave.
Vancouver, BC

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/RajioJapanesePublicHouse

In Downtown

Guu Garden: Frozen Beer in Vancouver

August 27, 2014

Kanpai! Vancouverites are celebrating the Summer by cooling off with FROZEN BEER. Earlier in July, Guu Garden and Guu Richmond are the only 2 locations in Vancouver that serve Kirin Ichiban Frozen beer. Perfect for summer especially at Guu Garden’s roof top patio.

The foam is frozen at -5ºC which creates a unique texture and keeps beer cold for 30 minutes. Imagine a slushie that tastes like beer foam. It comes in mini size and pint size. As this was our first experience, we went with the mini size as it would be a safe choice just in case we didn’t like it.

The mini frozen beer was quite expensive and we would rather just get their Mega Sapporo for $9, which contains a litre of beer. It’s almost the same price as the frozen beer and you get a lot more beer.

Of course, you can’t just have beer at Guu, you gotta have some yummy fried food to accompany the meal.

Ebi Mayo (Large $16) are prawn tempura with a chili mayo sauce. If you have a big group of about 4 or 5, it’s best to order the large so there is enough to go around. It’s one of the popular dishes and you can’t go wrong.

Chicken Karaage (Large $12) is one of my favourite dishes. It’s deep fried to perfection and comes with a side of garlic mayo.

Green Bean Fries (Small $5) has the green bean tempura with a side of Japanese mayo. This is surprisingly really good!

Cheese Oden cames with a few pieces of deep fried cheese. This item was also surprisingly good. The stinginess of the cheese and the light and yummy broth worked well together.

Salmon Oshi Sushi ($9.80) is shaped into a block and has a cajun seared sockeye salmon sushi with sliced onion and ponzu on top.

When you compare this to Miku, this just falls flat.

Gyu Tongue Chazuke ($6.80) has beef tongue steak on rice topped with green onion, fried seaweed and wasabi. There is then kanto-dashi broth poured on top.

The tongue wasn’t very good and tasted bland and flavourless. I think if they grilled the tongue and anded some salt and pepper, it would taste a lot better.

Miso Calamari (Small $6) has their deep fried ume marinated squid with a black haccho miso sauce. It tasted ok, but it was pretty average calamari.

Unagi Nuku-Sushi ($7.80) is served in a bamboo steamer. It has sushi rice, bbq eel, sliced omelet and topped with dried seaweed and a side of sansho pepper. Cute presentation but it all tasted quite bland.

Tuna Tataki ($7.80) has the lightly seared sashimi with sliced garlic, scallions, garlic chips and yuzu ponzu sauce. Always a favourite amongst customers here.

Cauliflower Karaage (Small $6) has konbu marinated cauliflower with a side of Japanese Mayo. It tasted ok, but it still can’t compare to Nuba’s amazing cauliflower.

Overall, Guu Garden’s menu has changed over the years, but there are still staple items on the menu that are good – Tuna Tataki, green bean fries, oden, chicken karaage, ebi mayo and of course the beer.

We Rate Guu Garden:

Address:
M101-888 Nelson Street
Vancouver, BC

Website:
www.guu-izakaya.com

In Downtown

Miku: Great Place to Take Tourists in Vancouver

August 11, 2014

Behind these beautiful doors are the famous aburi sushi dishes from Miku. Aburi Sushi was inspired by the innovative idea of sear-flaming sushi, which they are best known for. You can’t come here without having a taste of their Aburi Sushi. They also have a sister restaurant called Minami and Gyoza Bar (opening soon).

Miku is a spot where I want to take new people to Vancouver if I want to impress them. It is a bit pricey and will probably hurt your wallet, but it’s a place you need to experience once in your life. M’s relatives were in town, so I had to give them a taste of their delicious Salmon Oishi Sushi that everyone crazy over.

The interior is beautiful and you can get a good view of the Waterfront area if you are sitting near the window.

Nutrigreens Farm Tofu Salad ($10) is a vegetarian dish that has nutrigreen farm organic baby greens, crumbled miso tofu, pickled daikon and carrot, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, crispy wonton and a umami soy vinaigrette. It was really good! Highly recommended!

Aburi Tuna ($16) has the lightly flame seared albacore tuna with masatake sauce. The tuna is very fresh and flavourful.

Aburi Chirashi Tart ($21) comes with miso soup and is part of their lunch special. The tart has layers of spicy tuna, avocado, aburi salmon, prawn, scallop, flying fish roe, ikura and miku sauce. It’s a pretty good lunch item if it’s for 1 person.

Since there was 6 of us for lunch, we all shared a bit of everything.

Garden Roll ($13) has asparagus, avocado, shiso leaf, ginger, wasabi miso sauce wrapped in a pickled watermelon radish and yellow pepper.

Crunchy Surf and Turf Roll ($15) comes with 8 pieces and it has wasabi marinated jumbo prawns, cucumber, lettuce, wrapped in aburi short rib, jalapeño garlic ponzu and topped with aonori tempura bits.

Salmon Oshi Sushi ($16) has pressed BC wild sockeye salmon, jalapeno, miku sauce and then it is flame-seared with its signature sauce.

Saba Oishi Sushi ($16) has pressed house-cured mackerel and miso sauce. Then it is also flame-seared.

Overall, some items can be a hit or miss, but if you order the Aburi items, it will sure be a hit with your friends that are new in town. Nothing really beats the freshness of the seafood on the West Coast!

We Rate Miku:

Address:
70-200 Granville Street
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.mikurestaurant.com/

In Four Beakers

Minami: Minami Zen Lunch Set

June 30, 2014

Mags and I wandered to Yaletown to get a sandwich, but ended up going to Minami, which was the best idea ever. We just needed a taste of their delicious Salmon Oshi Sushi. If you’ve had it before, you know its pretty damn delicious. It’s always one of my favourite dishes in town.

Minami is the sister restaurant of Miku, which made famous the Aburi style or flame searing technique to Vancouver’s thriving sushi scene. I always find they use quality ingredients and have Ocean Wise seafood options.

Mags and I both had the Minami Zen ($28) which includes:

miso soup
Aburi Tuna
Tofu Salad
Chicken Nanban
Beef Tenderloin Skewer
5 pieces of Signature Aburi sushi

It’s a perfect set to really try a bit of everything off the menu. The price is reasonable and you get the most value out of it.

The first 4 items are served in a traditional Japanese hinoki box.

Aburi Tuna is lightly seared with a wasabi masatake sauce on top. It is also garnished with radishes and seaweed. There are 3 pieces of tuna and it tastes really good.

Tofu Salad is topped off with wonton crisps and a umami soy vinaigrette. It was light and refreshing and the wonton crisps really give it a nice texture.

Chicken Nanban has a sweet and sour soy sauce with an asian slaw. It was ok, but the chicken inside was quite bland and missing some flavour.

Beef Tenderloin Skewer has a sweet soy glaze and has tsukemono, which are pickled vegetables. The skewer was quite large, but it was hard to chew some parts.

Miso soup came in a large bowl and it has tofu, enoki mushrooms and seaweed. Yummy.

The 5 pieces of signature aburi sushi did include the widely popular Salmon Oshi Sushi.

Salmon Oshi Sushi is pressed BC wild salmon, jalapeno, and the secret miku sauce. The BEST!

I don’t know what this one was but I think it was Toro. It was melt in your mouth delicious! None of the aburi items disappointed. Mmmm Mmmmm Mmmmmmm!

Overall, the lunch was more than I would normally have spent, but it was so delicious. It’s always nice to have a treat at the end of the week especially when it’s pay day.

We Rate Minami:

Address:
1118 Mainland St
Vancouver BC

Website:
http://minamirestaurant.com/

In Commercial Drive / Grandview

Kishimoto: I Got Cravings

May 11, 2014

Right after work, M and I were deciding if we wanted to go home to cook dinner or just to go out for dinner. After pondering in the car for a while, I thought about Kishimoto and we ditched our cooking plans to chow down at Kishimoto. Seriously, it’s a good place, but the wait is nuts. It was a little before 6pm and there was already a line forming.

All the tables were full.

Luckly, the bar was open, so we sat there without hesitation. Plus, I really like looking at the chefs doing their thing. I was amazed because the staff didn’t say much but they had a very good rhythm of execution.

Salmon Oshisushi ($11.75) has a salmon creamy sauce with freshly cracked black pepper, then seared with a torch and an added jalapeño on top. This is one of their signature items. A lot of people compare it to Miku, but it’s still good here too.

The time around there is more scorched top and it tasted heavenly. The charcoal makes a huge difference.

Tuna and Salmon ($10.25) comes with 3 pieces of salmon and 3 pieces of tuna. Good quality of sashimi! Plus a nice presentation.

Chicken Karaage ($6.75) is very good. Nice crispy skin with a slightly sweet sauce. The sweet sauce is what makes it different that the usual chicken karaage.

Toro Nigiri just melts in your mouth because it’s so fatty. So good! Don’t put it all in your mouth at once, eat it in 2 or 3 bites to really enjoy it.

Unagi Nigiri was good and full of flavour.

Tamago Nigiri was good as well.

Overall, we had a great dinner. It is always a bit pricier than most places, but the quality is there. The downside is the wait. Some people waited 45 minutes for a table.

We Rate Kishimoto Japanese Kitchen:
Address:
2054 Commercial Drive
Vancouver, BC
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/pages/Kishimoto…