Shima-Ya
5589 Victoria Drive
Vancouver, BC
Suburbs… While a lot of us (myself included) live in the suburbs, when it comes to dining out, we miss a lot of places just because they are out of the way. In the case of Vancouver, most popular restaurants are in Downtown/West End, Kitsilano, Kerrisdale and Commercial Drive (all these in Vancouver), No 3 Road and Garden City (in Richmond). Once you are out of these areas, well, there might be a good place here and there, it is a matter of finding them out. And, the way I found Shima-Ya…
Here is what happened: Due to crazy traffic, I took a detour through this area (which, otherwise, I would see not much reason why I would drive by). I knew there was a London Drugs there and decided to stop to purchase something there. The only parking was in the main street (the parkade was full) and, yup, I noticed this Japanese restaurant.
Now, there are other “Japanese” restaurants in the area but there was something that I can’t explain that caught my attention… Anyway, I made the note I should come back, which I did after the crazy snowfall we had in the last couple of weeks.
It was a bit odd after I arrived. Two tables were occupied plus a couple at the bar. However, although the chef noticed I was standing at the entrance, there was no indication if I should seat myself or what to do. However, after almost I minute, he gestured me to take a seat wherever I wished. At that point, the waitress caught up and gave me the menu.
As for the menu… How can I put it… Aside from some appetizers (like edamame, gomaae and sunomono), rice (including onigiri!) and soups (including miso and nabe), this is a straight sushi place. No fried items (i.e., no tempura) or teriyaki (though they have unagi). Some noticeable items not found in other sushi spots include battera sushi, that is, boxed sushi (which is slightly different from the better know nigiri sushi).
I wanted to start with gomaae, boiled spinach with sesame sauce; however, alas, they ran out of it (!). Instead, I went for an item that caught my attention: wakame-su ($2.80), seaweed and cucumber in a vinaigrette. It was a bit too acidic for my “usual” liking but it was good. I worked quite well to have my appetite started.
For “main”, I went for their “Deluxe Assorted Sushi” – 9 kinds of nigiri and a tuna roll ($17.50). Before I continue with the description of the meal, let’s take a look at the dish from another angle:
Some pieces were quite good, others so-so. Good were the good old, melt in your mouth toro (tuna belly, in this case not ?toro or ch?-toro, though), mebachi (red tuna), hokki-gai (surf clam), madai (snapper) and kanpachi (amberjack? Not sure about this one). Tako (octopus), sake (salmon) and ebi (shrimp) were so-so. The tuna roll was a bit, well, average. The one I was a bit disappointed (though no the itamae‘s – sushi chef – fault) was the ikura (salmon roe), as it was a bit too salty. One thing I should mention was the amount of wasabi. I did not add any myself and there was absolutely no need for it: you could taste it on every piece (and probably a bit too much)!
One thing that might distract people is the rice. As you know, sushi refers to the rice, not the topping (which does not always have to be fish, for example, tamago sushi, which is made with eggs). In a way, each itamae will prepare it differently, as in different amount of water and/or rice vinegar. As a result, the rice’s texture might be different from restaurant to restaurant. In this case, the rice was loose and slightly sticky, to the point, in one piece, it almost fell apart. Now, it is possible he could have packed the rice a bit more; however, I have the odd feeling he did not do it that way as he might have thought I would eat it with my fingers, rather than the chopsticks.
Overall, despite the pieces were hit-or-miss, I must admit I really liked it! Sure, service was a bit lacking but, other than that, the meal was great.
After the meal, I briefly talked to the waitress and I had the odd feeling she was the itamae‘s wife. Also, I found out the itamae used to work at Chiyoda for over 10 years and at Yoshi for another year before opening this place. So, to those who care about this!
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Looks promising, the image of the nigiri is how I like it.
Hey shokutsu,
Yes, when I received my meal, among my first thoughts were “finally, a place where the emphasis is NOT size”!
I know shima-san (sushi chef) well. He used to be a sushi chef at “Chiyoda”(it was located on Albarni st. but closed down a few years ago)long time. I used to go there a lot only to eat Shima-san’s sushi! I’m glad he opened up his own place. I went Shima-ya when he just opened. His sushi is great and very clean. I live in Maple Ridge now,so it is kind of far to get his place, but definitely I should go there sometime soon!
{ 1 trackback }