best omakase in Vancouver
 

Hey could use some suggestions for best omakase japanese dinner in vancouver.
I've only had it at Octopus garden and found it to be only okay (had the $100 menu).

has anyone tried the Omakase menu at Miku/Minami (apparently now only offered at Minami) or Tojo?

Everywhere I read, people say Tojo is not worth it.

I'm looking to spend $150pp before drinks if that makes a diff.

i don't know if this is the best, but i have been to the one at sushi kimura. its on rupert st between 22nd and 23rd ave.

it was my first omakase experience and it was quite refreshing and something very unique. but do be warned, you need to have an open mind and an open appetite. we had this dish and the chef wouldn't tell us what it was. after we all ate it, he told us it was fish semen. and it was actually good lol. we only budget around $80/person. so not sure what you will get with $150. and its always dependent of what they have that day.

The last time I was at Miku, if I remember correctly, it was $100 pp.

I didn't try it, but I ate at Miku and Minami quite a few times, and they were always consistently very good.

The service, if you care, is top notch as well.

This is also always consistent regardless of which server you get.

When did you go? I heard the original chef left awhile back.

Original chef left a long time ago and the menu has changed since then. Haven't had omakase since he left.

We frequent Tojos and the service is top notch. Price wise is :heckno: so if youre on a budget, id pass.

Our family is quite close with him so we get him to do "Iron Chef" challenges for us all the time.

Um.. Interesting, well at $150pp do you think we will be able to get a good taste of what tojo offers? Or would I have to up my budget?

I suggest you go on a quiet night and sit at the bar. Otherwise he would be too busy to be creative. Most of the stuff will be made by Masa, Hiro or Akira anyways.

First timers usually get his "standard" omakase dishes. You have the option to keep going once your standard dishes are done and you can request something more specific. (At an added cost of course)

As for a budget, you'd probably enjoy it better if you don't care about the cost. I would add another 1-200 to get full and cover alcohol.

My dad always requests some weird things when we go but Tojo's always happy to oblige. (As long as you're willing to pay. Haha)

my buddy did 16 people omakase with 200 bucks a head and the meals were epic at tojos.

They offer 3 standard omakases btw:

$80 - Five Courses
$120 - Six Courses and up
$225 - Wagyu Dinner (Featuring Japanese marbled beef)

But of course you can custom them as you go.

this was a while back. i would say at least 2 or 3 years back if my memory serves me right.

the next one that me and my wife want to try is the one at sushi k at poco.

Other members had also recommended Sushi By Yuji for Omakase.

Went to Sushi Hachi in Richmond for Omakase recently and with drink its was about 100$/ person with tip. It was delicious and was very full afterwards.

Not that many tables and open for limited hours so good for a party of 6 or under, and best to make a reservation well ahead of time.

ended up going to Octopus Garden, got an amazing dinner and sat at the bar which was a much better experience than last time where I sat at a table. had Wagyu beef, spot prawn shooter, bluefin tuna, foie gras nigiri and much more.
I guess I will try Tojo's on an another occasion

Miku with top notch service? I guess they finally went to server school or fired everyone. The reason ive banned myself from ever going to Miku again is because of their service.

Re: Omakase @ Sushi By Yuji

I find that his omakase here is humble (nothing wrong with that.) For people who are looking to have their minds blown and attended to every moment, this may not be the best place, especially if you want Wagyu beef or something exotic. On the flip side, I'm sure if you called in advance to let him know of a budget and what you're after, I think it can be done.

^ yea, the omakase is on a different level than the ones being mentioned here which range from like $75+

for those with a smaller budget, you can do $25 at Sushi By Yugi, which was very good.

another place is Sushi Bar Maumi which also has one for $25.

$25 usually gets you around 10-12 pcs and i generally feel pretty full after.

Omakase Meal at Octopus Garden
 

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps237aece6.jpg

Started out with Sada san's signature Uni Shooter

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps4f3a0571.jpg

Then followed by another Shooter, this time Spot Prawn Shooter, different texture from the uni shooter, the prawn was very fresh and delicious

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps838dcb50.jpg

Then we were served 3 started dishes from the kitchen followed by a sashimi platter from chef sada (note the portion shown here is for 1 person)
We had flounder fish, butter fish (omg so good), uni, o-toro (with gold leaf on it and lightly torched), Saba and Hamachi, all the fish was super fresh.
the appies from the kitchen was Gomae, a buckwheat sushi (very tasty), and a tomato salad with tempura mozzarella.

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps04006311.jpg

worth noting that this restaurant uses fresh real wasabi

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps5c1441b1.jpg

we were then served a crab pudding, crab meat, egg and mixed with the natural "guts" of the crab, very tasty

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps73b567f8.jpg

this is grilled blue fin tuna, and blue fin tuna cheeks, the cheeks was very good while I found the rest of the meat to be a tad dry.

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps20d3d57b.jpg

Japanese Wagyu beef, now I know it is likely Australian Wagyu, but sada san insist that these are imported from Japan, now sure how that is possible.

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...psb651d9ba.jpg
o-toro nigiri, omg best single piece of sushi i've ever had, fish melts in your mouth, soy sauce was brushed onto the fish, wish I could have had more of this sushi

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps7137fb02.jpg

Foie Gras Nigiri, very rich and tasty, but I've had better Foie Gras at Le Crocodile, but as a nigiri it was very interesting

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...psefe07152.jpg

this is Sada San's signature nigiri, he makes one of the best tamago in Vancouver, it is very sweet and to me, would've been the perfect dessert.

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps16f1d5e5.jpg

the meal was had with beer imported from Okinawa, as recommended by Sada San

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...psae9aa52b.jpg

Dessert was made by his award winning pastry chef, the churros was my favorite, followed by the green tea cake, but overall everything was very good.
portion shown is for 2

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps1dd3c16b.jpg

almost didn't have room to eat this, but another signature piece from Octopus Garden

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...psa63df32e.jpg

last but not least, the chef behind this wonderful meal, Sada San

overall the meal was well worth it, and still looking forward to trying out Tojo's another time.

^ how much?

$450ish with a 25% tip for two.

That looks more like a Japanese fusion omakase.

some elements yes, like the foie gras, but the the tuna nigiri, tamago and sashimi are all very traditional japanese.
as for the cooked shooters, they are a nice creative spin

i think omakase has lost its meaning in vancouver. its more of a cash grab than anything nowadays for people who don't know what they want. in saying so, if i had to choose, octopus garden definitely looks like the best option for it.

Omakase at Kusakabe
 

Recently, I went on a foodie journey to San Francisco, and had the fortune of dining at few well known Michelin star restaurants, including The French Laundry.

One of the restaurants that I've tried was Kusakabe, a newly promoted 1 Michelin star Japanese Sushi restaurant.

I found this restaurant to be excellent and overall the food was better than any sushi restaurant in Vancouver.

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps0pcws5gv.jpg

This is the menu, so right away, this is not a "true" omakase as it does contain a menu, but from my understanding, outside of the few staples many of the fishes, and nigiris changes daily based on whats fresh.

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps4fu8kirw.jpg

This is the sushi prelude, the highlight here is the Zuke (left), Soy Sauce Cured medium fatty blue fin tuna.

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...pskbjxc0gq.jpg

Next up, the sashimi, the Hotate (scallop) was the sweetest scallop I have ever tasted

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...psqskxpuz0.jpg

An Umami soup is served next, consisting of an Agedashi Tai, this soup was delicious, and a great "break" from the sushi and Sashimi

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...psyup7oba1.jpg

Next up is a dish called Hassun, which consisted of an oyster with french caviar, and 4 small dishes....honestly nothing really stood out on this one, I do remember the meat ball on the far right was very good, but again nothing too amazing. The oyster and caviar combo does not even come close to Thomas Keller's Oyster and Pearl dish from the night before.

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...pssc42kmgz.jpg

The next dish is a hot dish, this dish had a lot of elements to it, including foie gras, anago etc. Mixed review across the table, but I really liked it, it was hard to distinguish each individual ingredient, but the overall flavors worked well together, packed with flavor. Savory, with a hint of sweetness from the Anago, and the richness from the foie gras.

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...pshf0yn3kb.jpg

Next up is a few more nigiri, I actually don't remember which 3 was served, but I do remember the quality and freshness was all very good and the rice was delicious.

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps2agvkuz4.jpg

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps86h191q8.jpg

For the Sushi Finale, we had a choice of the Blue Fin Tuna, or the Wagyu, I personally picked the tuna which was absolutely amazing.

Now at the end of the Omakase, we are given the option to order from the a la carte menu (this option is not available until you have finished the omakase)

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps8nbr1dxx.jpg

A La Carte menu

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...pssgvw6x8d.jpg

This is the 4 pieces that I initially ordered, the most memorable was the Kaisun Uni (far right)...it was the sweetest and freshest uni that I have ever tasted....flown in from Hokkaido Japan.

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...psp31dz2vh.jpg

Now I really wanted to try their version of the tamago, unfortunately it was very bad, they do a lobster infused omelette... it was dry and not sweet...Sada-san's at Octopus Garden is a million times better

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...pslhxfkifk.jpg

Ended up ordering the Kaisun Uni again, it was that good (even better than the blue fin tuna nigiri)

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...psv98urbzh.jpg

Dessert menu

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps7sh8qzpk.jpg

Ordered the yuzu sorbet, very refreshing, great way to end the meal

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...ps18freasd.jpg

The Michelin Star Plaque


The Omakase portion of the meal was only $95 USD, I ended up spending $300 USD w/ the nigiri including tax tips and 2 bottles of Sake

The value is great for a michelin starred restaurant, and the quality and freshness is better than any Vancouver sushi restaurants. (comparing to the likes of octopus garden, ajisai, raw bar at bluewater, raw bar at pacrim lobby lounge, tojo, miku etc)

I have a japan trip coming up and I am desperately trying to get a reservation at either Sushi Saito or Yoshitake (both 3 michelin star sushi restaurants), so I will report back if I can get into either one of them.

http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...psxbbcqpox.jpg

This is the 4 piece nigiri that one of my friends ordered
http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u...psbnkjxjg3.jpg

Later that night, I actually went to another sushi bar near my hotel to try their blue fin tuna sashimi....it was good, but doesn't stack up to Kusakabe

Bump.

Has anyone tried the wagyu omakase at Tojo's? I couldn't find anything on google