There are two categories of restaurants that seem to dominate Asian cuisines in Vancouver - Asian fusion and sushi joints. It is challenging to create a fusion dish that is conceptually inventive and presentable, whilst satiating your taste buds. For some reason, Asian spices and cooking technique (mostly pan fried, grilled and steamed) does not always pair seamlessly with Western ingredients, or vice verse. Of several Asian fusion places have I experimented, including Wild Garlic Bistro , Red Door Pan Asian Grill, Wild Rice and Bao Bei Chinese Brasserie, none of them has engraved a fantastic note in my gustatory or olfactory memories. Those Asian fusion restaurants are majorly turfed in posh neighborhoods like Yaletown, or hip area such as Gastown and Chinatown, not lacking hipsters/pseudo-foodies throwing in their money for the sake of their own image and self-ego. I have heard good reviews on EN Japanese Restaurant, innovative Japanese dining with French and continental influences, which is on my list of restaurants to try out next. But I will not be surprised that dishes there are beautifully presented with pretentious portions, and jaw-dropping price tags, just like any other fusion bistros.
Sushi joints, on the other hand, are far more accessible and vary in all kinds of aspects. First, they are so abundant that you can find them in any sort of neighborhoods, humble or high-end. However, the quality does not always match up or down with models of the cars parked by the street. Second, the price range can be as low as $2 for a box of California roll for take-out, or as steep as $15 for one piece of King crab nigiri. Seafood is the essential material used in sushi making, therefore, the freshness and the quality of seafood weighs in tremendously to a sushi restaurant reputation. Tsunami Sushi on Robson street in central shopping district in Downtown Vancouver possesses the only floating sushi bar that I've known of in Greater Vancouver. It is reasonably priced, and dishes are fresh tasting and continuously made and presented in front of you. What attracts me the dearest about floating sushi bar is the mystery and excitement of anticipating what would be brought to the floating strip next, and that customers are in utter control of their own eating pace.
Omakase, loosely translated as "Entrust" or "Trust the chef" in Japanese, is a concept Japanese dining experience where the chef customizes an entire menu based on your personal preferences, presenting a minimum of 8 courses (the min. number of plates varies in different restaurants) from light appetizers to hot main dishes and wrapped up with dessert, no difference than Western dining in this sense. However, all the dishes are created uniquely, using seasonal highest quality seafood and other ingredients, a truly spiritual and lavish treatment to your taste buds. Tojo's , voted as the top sushi restaurant in Vancouver by New York Times, is the place to go for Omakase. I have been to Tojo's three times over the past two years, and tried Omakase twice in different seasons. It is about the only Japanese bistro that I've been to that serves up to its elite reputation, if not more, and the only place that when I put down my one hundred dollar bill on the check, I feel money is well spent.
During my 2nd visit to Tojo's, I was privileged to meet Chef Tojo. He is a lovely old man. Tojo works behind the bar, gives directions to his fellow chefs. He is very strict on if a particular dish of sushi needs soy sauce. Before a plate of sushi handed to us, Tojo would kindly inform us, "please use soy sauce" or "no soy sauce." Once a regular customer sitting next to me in the sushi bar was about to dunk a piece of sushi into soy sauce, I noticed a cloud across over Chef Tojo's face, then I heard a firm voice saying, "I said NO soy sauce." Unlike a typical movie sequence, the first original movie usually being the best of the entire sequence, my third time visit was an absolute charm and would be my best dining experience at Tojo's in terms of the variety of seafood, the creativity of the courses and the exquisite taste of each dish.
1. Tuna tataki topped with grated ginger, sprinkled finely chopped green onion and loosely scattered purple sprouts.
2. Morel mushroom wrap of chopped scallop and fish paste, pan fried with dry seaweed coat; nested on a bed of buttered spinach, topped by bonito (dried fish flakes). The photo does not justify the quality, and it did not look like the most appetizing dish, but it turned out to be the most surprising and mouth-watering dish of the whole meal.
3. Octopus salad - elegantly sliced octopus, garnished with canola petals and thinly picked kelp, rested on a mat of fresh Japanese seaweed. Special house sauce drizzled atop. Chef Tojo's creations are artistic and playful, always alternating a cold and hot dish to tease our palate.
4. Smoked sable fish rolled in playfully sliced pine mushroom, asparagus, daikon root and fresh mango pieces. It is a quite substantial dish, and the smoke sable fish is about the best smoke fish I have ever tasted.
5. Spot Prawns were just in season. Hand peeled and presented before us.
6. Geoduck and cucumber mixed with spicy mayo. Geoduck has this crunchy texture perfectly paired with cucumber, of which the combination generates a creamy yet refreshing flavour. Seaweed wrap was thin, soft and crispy, free us from struggling of biting the seaweed sheet off.
7. Salmon sushi roll - simple and rich.
8. Toro Nigiri. I am a tuna girl, salmon is good but tuna and toro simply blows me away.
9. 2010 sushi roll - salmon, deep sea tuna, scallop and tamago hugging a thin layer of rice. prawn tempura stuffing. The plate was garnished by blueberry sauce, written Tojo's 2010. Chef Tojo's signature dish of 2010, purposely designed for the Vancouver winter Olympics 2010.
10. Cucumber roll - artfully prepared cucumber skin wrapping of avocado, prawn tempura, yam tempura and asparagus. Each bite renders a wonderful sensation on the teeth and the mouth chamber - cold, crunchy skin and warm, crispy, surrender by the nice creamy touch from avecado. Truly one of my favourite Tojo's creation of sushi rolls.
11. Alaska king crab nigiri
12. Uni (sea urchin) nigiri - this is a test of your open-mindedness in seafood category. If you overcome that ocean hint, sea urchin can taste quite nicely. Creamy, naturally salty and pungent. If you a stinky cheese lover, you might have the potential to a sea urchin adventure. My first encounter of sea urchin was during my 2nd visit to Tojo's, sea urchin was mingled with an assortment of sable fish, scallop and other ingridents in a nice and thick stew, it did not taste as distinguishable as it would when it comes in alone with just a tad of rice underneath. It is definitely a challenge of my palate in a wonderful way. After my two encounters with sea urchin, I felt like my appreciation for sea food has reached another level and my taste horizon has broadened.
13. Spanish mackerel nigiri
14. We finally called it a day after 13 brilliant creations by Tojo's. Our dessert comes in two cute glass cups - Left is black sesame pudding topped with two blueberries and a sliver of strawberry. Right cup contains ginger sorbet resting on a cocktail of grapefruit, strawberry and pineapple bits, a thin slice of sesame cracker graciously landed in sorbet.
The entire meal was a dreamy journey full of surprises and hidden gems. Each visit at Tojo's is very much like rebirth - there is always something new, something different and unusual, and something fun. Everything is made to perfection, so I feel perfectly pampered and satisfied. You go there, sit down and get ready to be impressed. It's not only about food, it is also about observing and learning how to eat Japanese food properly. For instance, I often see people soak a piece of nigiri in soy sauce until the rice dripping with sauce. Here is one thing that I learned at Tojo's - Less is more. Soy sauce is supposed to enhance the flavor of sushi, but it is not a must for each every dish. Many sushi rolls should be eaten sans soy sauce. Even when using it, it should be used in a minimized amount. I have also noticed that all the sushi are made with less rice than normal. I am used to seeing a big chunk of loosely packed sushi rice topped with a sliver of fish in bad sushi restaurants. This is nothing more than a poor taste. Another lesson from Tojo's is that rice is the secondary character in sushi world, it is important as bad rice can ruin the whole thing, but the essence of a sushi is what is inside or outside of rice. All the sushi tastes heavenly even just a simple salmon roll, partially because of the high quality fish they use, also it's the small amount of rice that is just enough to mellow out the seafood flavor and not too abundant to steal the thunder of the main role. Professionalism is revealed in details. Before the meal starts, customers are asked if they have any food allergies. You can also take this opportunity to let the chef know what you would like to try and what you prefer not having. The chef normally notes down your preferences and allergies onto a piece of sheet, so when he creates food for you, he'd remember.
The entire meal was a dreamy journey full of surprises and hidden gems. Each visit at Tojo's is very much like rebirth - there is always something new, something different and unusual, and something fun. Everything is made to perfection, so I feel perfectly pampered and satisfied. You go there, sit down and get ready to be impressed. It's not only about food, it is also about observing and learning how to eat Japanese food properly. For instance, I often see people soak a piece of nigiri in soy sauce until the rice dripping with sauce. Here is one thing that I learned at Tojo's - Less is more. Soy sauce is supposed to enhance the flavor of sushi, but it is not a must for each every dish. Many sushi rolls should be eaten sans soy sauce. Even when using it, it should be used in a minimized amount. I have also noticed that all the sushi are made with less rice than normal. I am used to seeing a big chunk of loosely packed sushi rice topped with a sliver of fish in bad sushi restaurants. This is nothing more than a poor taste. Another lesson from Tojo's is that rice is the secondary character in sushi world, it is important as bad rice can ruin the whole thing, but the essence of a sushi is what is inside or outside of rice. All the sushi tastes heavenly even just a simple salmon roll, partially because of the high quality fish they use, also it's the small amount of rice that is just enough to mellow out the seafood flavor and not too abundant to steal the thunder of the main role. Professionalism is revealed in details. Before the meal starts, customers are asked if they have any food allergies. You can also take this opportunity to let the chef know what you would like to try and what you prefer not having. The chef normally notes down your preferences and allergies onto a piece of sheet, so when he creates food for you, he'd remember.
At Omakase, your wallet and appetite is the limit. Food will be brought to you continuously unless you say stop. After 8 dishes or so, chef would kindly ask if you want to stop or continue. I strongly recommend people who claim to be a seafood lover, go to Tojo's, at least once in your life. Just go sit at the sushi bar, shout, "bring it on!" and embark on your magical seafood journey.
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