Jay71

Thought I'd archive Mia Stainsby's top sushi restaurant list here for future reference.

Only been to about a third of the places on the list. In some ways it's kind of a weird list. A lot of the place we found good but didn't blow us away and a mixed bag in terms of what we considered value for price. Find Sushi Garden a bit of an oddball on the list.


WESTSIDE
Ajisai
$$
2081 West 42nd Ave.
604-266-1428

Dan Sushi
$$
2511 West Broadway
604-677-6930
www.danrestaurant.com

Octopus’ Garden
$$/$$$
1995 Cornwall Ave.
604-734-8971
www.octopusgarden.ca

Shiro
$$
3096
Cambie St.
604-874-0027

Suika
$$
1626
West Broadway
604-730-1678

Tojo’s
$$$
1133 West Broadway
604-872-8050
www.tojos.com

Zest
$$
2775 West 16th Ave.
604-731-9378
www.zestjapanese.com

EASTSIDE
Kishimoto
$/$$
2054 Commercial Dr.
604-255-5550
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kishim...30336020316937

Sushi Kimura
$$
3883 Rupert St.
604-569-2198
www.sushikimura.com

Toshi Sushi
$$
181 East 16th Ave.
604-874-5173

DOWNTOWN/ GASTOWN/ YALETOWN
Bistro Sakana
$$
1123 Mainland St.
604-633-1280
www.bistrosakana.com

Blue Water Cafe
$$
1095 Hamilton St.
604 688 8078
www.bluewatercafe.net

Irashai Japanese Restaurant
$$
1368 West Pender St.
604-688-8697

Ki
$$/$$$
310-1121 Alberni St.
604-609-0600
www.kijapanese.com

Kingyo
$$
871 Denman St.
604-608-1677

Miko
$$
1335 Robson St.
604-681-0339

Miku
$$
1055 West Hastings St.
604.568.3900
www.mikurestaurant.com

Sea Monstr Sushi
$$
5 Powell St.
604-681-2144
www.seamonstrsushi.com

Shuraku
$$
833 Granville St.
604-687-6622
www.shuraku.net

SUBURBS
Tokachi
$$
10767 King George Hwy., Surrey
604-951-3800,
www.tokachi.ca

Sushi Garden
$/$$
4635 Kingsway, Burnaby
604-436-0104

Tsukiji
$$ 4751 Garden City Rd., Richmond,
604-276-2628
www.tsukijijapaneserestaurant.com

Hamaei
$$
2601 Westview Dr. North Vancouver,
604-987-0080
www.hamaei.ca

Takumi Sushi
$$
5775 Marine Dr. West Vancouver,
604- 921- 9701
www.takumisushi.com

Zen Japanese Restaurant
$$ 2232 Marine Dr. West Vancouver,
604-925-0661
www.zensushi.ca

Sen Sushi
$$ 40382 Tantalus Way Squamish,
604-898-8235
www.sushisensquamish.com

Sushi Village
$$
#11-4340 Sundial Cres. Whistler,
604-932-3330
www.sushivillage.com

LuvAirFrance

Wow, that is ONE TON of sushi there. Guess when you live near fresh fish, you get fish restaurants.

aster

Actually one of the most-recommended sushi places by locals is Kadoya on Davie Street.

You won't find them in "tourist guides," but when you ask people from around the area they are full of praise for this sushi joint. Been there twice myself and loved it.

Santander

I know lots of SFU students and alum who swear by Sushi Garden!

luxury

Interesting list!!

I wasn't terribly impressed by Suika. Kimura and Hamaei are very good. I also like Shuraku which serve very good sushi and Hoshi Sushi at Sandbar as well. Hoshi Sushi at Sandbar is probably my vote for best in Vancouver....

Taiwaned

We go to Tokachi when we want authentic sushi at a price that is not expensive.

We love the food but HATE the location. It's behind the Shell station on King George Hwy, right beside hooker and drug alley in Whalley. A few years ago, we had a guy peeing on the side of the wall, a hooker soliciting people in the parking lot and a fight happening on the corner. It has cleaned up a bit but still has that Whalley feel.

Taiwaned

Tojo's on West Broadway.

We try to go at least once every year especially on special occasions.

It is higher priced, a few anniversaries ago we had the omakase, it was fantastic. Chef came and asked a few questions about what kind of things we like and then adjusted the menu for us.

They do food pairings as well.

The new location near the Chinese consulate on West Broadway is much more trendy than the old location beside the casino.

Jay71

The reason I think Sushi Garden is a bit of an oddball is that I find their sushi not as well constructed due to the volume they put out. They're great from a value perspective though.

The other oddball I forgot to mention was Kingyo which is more of an izakaya joint than sushi joint.

Santander

I can definitely agree with that. Sushi Garden's a great place for sushi which won't hurt your wallet but it's not a true "top sushi restaurant in Vancouver".

Taiwaned

+ 1

Used to go to Sushi Garden fairly regularly when we lived in Burnaby however you cannot compare Sushi Garden to Tojo's. One sells reasonably priced, fill your stomach sushi and the other sells you art on a plate at an expensive price sushi.

The Sushi Garden spicy roll is so spicy that it would knock your socks off. The owner is a Korean lady who underestimates her Korean hot sauce power. Great to clean your sinuses.

Kind of strange to see it on the same list.

aster

Is that a worse area than "zombieville," located between Gastown and Chinatown? Man that place was freaky...

Any places downtown worth recommending alongside Kadoya?

Taiwaned

LOL - I used to live 5 minutes from that area in East Van.

No, Whalley is not as bad as the downtown east side and they have really made an effort to clean it up. Still not the nicest part of town.

aster

It was only my second trip to Vancouver ever, the first one being in 1999 as I was studying at WSU at the time. Back then I remember staying at the Sheraton but this time around chose the Century Plaza Hotel and was really happy with the choice.

Stayed much longer this time as well, and was surprised how you don't get the feeling of being in the downtown section of a big city whilst there, as it doesn't get crowded. Where do the young people ("of drinking age" of course) hang out btw? UBC campus area, other places away from downtown?

As for sushi, do most places there serve up such huge portions of sashimi? I was really surprised how big the pieces were, in most countries they would dice that piece up and sell it as 5 pcs.

gglave

Well, if you were here in the Winter season not many people congregate outside in the cold and rain. There was lots of outdoor activity during the Olympics, but the weather was pleasant.

Most of the bars are along the "Granville Entertainment District."

Finally, keep in mind Vancouver does have a (well-deserved) rep as a "no fun city" - So there isn't a "party vibe" in this town the way there is elsewhere.