Shiro

Shiro Japanese Restaurant
3096 Cambie Street
Vancouver, BC

It is said that when something bad happens, something good will. During the Olympics weeks, one afternoon, I decided to visit one of the houses/pavilions located outside of the major areas (Downtown Vancouver, Yaletown, Richmond O Zone, et al). That one place ended up being the Ukrainian House located near Cambie Street, not far from Vancouver City Hall. However, by some really odd twist of destiny, the one day I went was the one day they were closed. ARGGGGG!!! OK, I did check their site but, for some reason, it appeared as open that night but, the day after, I checked again and this time, it was listed as closed. >_<

Regardless, after this epic fail, I was walking back to the Skytrain station to go home when I saw Shiro. Based on the feedback of Sherman, I knew this was a place I should visit. And this night might be as good as any other night…

When I walked in, it was partially empty, but then again, it was barely 6:00 p.m., just startign their dinner hours. That night, they were a bit enthusiastic about the games and, when they were not taking orders, they were paying attentiont to a TV they had in the corner. Well, as long as they are not careless and cut their hand while preparing sushi, I don’t mind!

But, of course, I had to pay attention as to what I was doing myself. Specifically, check the menu to order my dinner. And, as I have done in the past, rather than going for rolls, I went for sushi. And, once again, rather than choosing the individual pieces myself, I went for an order where they would do the selection. In this case, their special assorted – 8 pieces of sushi and 6 pieces of California Roll.

I know… That stereotypical roll, the bane for me in terms of rolls. However, there was a reason I decided to stick with that roll and the reason is the picture above. Or rather, what you do NOT see in this picture. When I saw the crab meat, I had the hunch they did not use krab. As a result, I took that leap of faith and went for that set. Below are the pictures of what was served…

Starting with a side of tempura. For some reason, I thought they were a little bit more battered than what I was expected but, despite that, it was still good. The vegetables were soft and the batter didn’t really get into the way.

Going back to the California roll part, here is an oddity: when I made the order, they asked if I wanted it with mayo. I don’t think I really listened to that part and somehow said yes. As a result, it had some sweetness in it. Oh, did I mention they have a women preparing the rolls? Now, some of you might say you have seen that in counters of places were they are mass produced. While that is true, seeing a female itamae is a bit of an oddity. I have been told the reason behind it is because women tend to be more “warm”, which can alter the texture of the sushi being prepared. Regardless, this roll was better than your mass produced one by miles and that is despite I don’t necessarily like California rolls.

I won’t go in detail as to how each one tasted because, truth is, all of them were good – with one exception. Size-wise, it was well portioned, i.e., there wasn’t a piece I had to struggle to fit it in my mouth. Some pieces were oddly cut (for example, the tuna was quite “square”) but, otherwise, the freshness was there. The rice might be looser than how some people are used to but I guess they had some expectations I would use my hands rather than chopsticks. Still it was well prepared, not mushy, not dry and had enough vinegar in it. As for the one piece that went sideways, it was the ika, aka, squid. It somehow ended up rubbery and, despite I don’t mind slimy food, it started to stick in odd ways between my teeth. It wasn’t a pretty sight, let me tell ya…

One thing I did not take pictures of, but a key element mentioned by Sherman was the wasabi. Specifically that they freshly grate it. Unfortunately, only one of the pictures captured the wasabi. What that has to do? While it is quite different I have encountered so far, it wasn’t freshly grated. Instead, the itamae had a bowl full of it and was adding it to the orders as it went. It is technically possible they were grated before I walked in but… Regardless, it was well “proportioned” in the sushi itself, as you could taste it, yet it wasn’t too much to the point it overpowers you. So, kudos to that.

At the end of the meal, the woman itamae (whom was standing/working in front of me the whole time), asked if I was a journalist or food blogger. As usual, I tried to evade that question. Of course, that questions popped because I took my time taking pictures, yet, in no moment, they felt it was odd. In the end, despite the wackiness of some parts of the meal, overall, I must say I enjoyed it. The interesting point here is that the food isn’t necessarily more expensive than some sushi restaurants. As for myself, I think this is a place I will certainly return.

Tagged under: Cambie • Japanese • Seafood • Sushi