It might be old hearing people from the West Coast complain about Japanese food being bad over here, but it is an undeniable truth. Sushi is Really Really bad here.
Expensive too.
The cheapest California roll I've encountered in Ottawa is $6.95, while in Vancouver, I can easily find one for $3.50. Not to mention the ones in Vancouver are 10 times better and infinitely more authentic. (If you can use authentic on California rolls that is.) Even the ones sold in food courts are better than any I've had here.
But what are we to do? It is an addiction, I admit. It's hard to deny the inner urge to get sushi every once in a while (and by once in awhile I meant once a week).
I was once told that Alcoholics Anonymous defined insanity as "repeating the same action over and over again, hoping to achieve different results."
So I guess we're insane, because week after week, we would go to the same sushi lunch spots in downtown, spend $15 on a box set, and hope that this time the fish won't be stale, the rice won't be hard, and the sushi won't taste like it's been sitting in the fridge overnight.
It's a lot to ask, I know.
That is basically what happened at lunch yesterday, and I was so unsatisfied with the sushi I had that I went to MCDs right after and got myself a filet O'fish. (It's been 4 months since my last trip back to Vancouver, and even my stomach is calling for the ocean.)
But since filet o'fish isn't quite 'fish' fish, I was still left with a craving for sushi, which is why we made our way down to Tokyo sushi for dinner tonight.
Tokyo Sushi
Ambiance: It's in a small house, operated by a Korean family (I assumed they are a family). Not much room inside and the tables are really close together, but it's not big of a deal. Orders might be slow when its busy.
Menu: A decent amount of rolls, with vegan options. There are limited hot food though.
Price: $15-$25
Rating on Urbanspoon: 86%
What we ordered:
Chloe: Volcano roll with spicy tuna, Dragon roll
Crystal: The Volcano roll looked pretty good, and the tuna was quite good too. The sauce was just a little too spicy for me. The eel on the Dragon roll was not too good looking though. It didn't look too well cooked.
Crystal: Rainbow roll, Salmon Terri roll
The rainbow roll is basically a California roll with different slices of sashimi on top. The California roll was, of course, not prepared in the authentic way. It doesn't taste bad, I am just very particular about my sushi. The sashimi were fresh, and that is basically all I ask for in Ottawa.
The Salmon Terri roll was pretty good too. It is basically cooked salmon flakes with terriyaki sauce and tempura crumbs. (What is it with tempura crumbs in the East? I've never seen it used as an ingredient in sushi in the West.) They also used actual terriyaki sauce too! Not some weird dark brown soy-based sauce they use in some unnamed food court terriyaki place!
Verdict:
80%
It is a little pricey for me still, but compared to other Japanese places in Ottawa, it is rather reasonable. The sashimis are thinly sliced, which is not what I'm used to, but it is comparably fresh.
We both left satisfied, and would definitely return.
