Toyo Sushi

Toyo Sushi
2211 Cambie Street
Vancouver, BC

As I have mentioned previously, one of the perks from blogging in general is that of meeting people. And, in the particular case of food blogging, that of meeting people for a meal. That was the case when Erin (of My Life in the E List) wrote a comment and, finding she is a blogger, one thing lead to another and that meant us meeting for lunch. Of course, that brings the question of where. After checking her blog, I found out she likes sushi and that meant we would originally meet in Ebisu on Broadway. But, alas, it was closed on the day we were supposed to meet for lunch! So, that led us to plan B: Toyo Sushi.

I am aware of Toyo Sushi, even before the construction of the Canada Line; however, for some reason, I wasn’t really enticed to visit the restaurant. That was until shokutsu (of Foodosophy) visited it last year and blogged about it. Furthermore, Elaine (of Parker Pages), recently dropped by and, likewise, her experience was positive. Given all the feedback, it sounded like a good plan B!

When we arrived, we had some bad vibes. It was already noon, yet the restaurant was empty. We were quickly seated and given the menu. Now, since it was the first time for both of us in this place, the eternal question popped: What to order? We both had thoughts on what to order and after a couple of random thoughts, we got…

Edamame. Now, we did not order this; rather, this was complimentary. I was really puzzled at first, as neither one of us ordered it so I double checked. Well, indeed, it was complimentary. Not much to talk about other than it was free. (However, see note further down below).

As mentioned above, we had an idea of what to order but wasn’t sure if we would like the other’s option. So, instead of guessing, each decided to order that one dish we knew we should order, starting with goma-ae, my selection. Actually, these were quite decent. Albeit slightly overdressed, that extra dressing wasn’t overpowering. Still, it had the texture of fresh spinach so, from my perspective it was good.

On Erin’s side, she mentioned she had to have spicy agedashi tofu. I will have to admit, these were quite good. Unlike the ones found in some other restaurant, the tofu had some more texture (as if they were using a firmer version of tofu) than other places. Furthermore, the exterior formed a crust you usually find in fried goodies. And, in what I found to be one of the “best” moves, was that of not having too much broth which would have ended up making the tofu mushy. It was a good choice!

Toyo Sushi does not make any claim it is authentic Japanese and the fact there were Korean dishes most likely meant this place is Korean run, which meant having Korean dishes in the menu. Since we ordered sushi (specifically a roll, details in a moment), we thought of ordering a Korean dish which ended up being dolsot bi bim bap. While the usual vegetables, beef and egg was there, the question was… What the #@^!#@$@ is the krab doing there? Regardless, after some hot sauce and mixing it, it resulted in a hot, savoury rice bowl. A bit more sesame oil at the bottom would have helped crisp the rice a little bit (or maybe I was a bit impatient when I started mixing it) but, otherwise, it was good (hey, we finished the bowl, you know!).

As mentioned, we also ordered sushi, in this case, what seems to be one of their signature roll… OK, I will admit something: while I like nigiri sushi, you can’t really share these (unless you order one piece per person, which partially defeats the purpose of sharing). That’s the reason we went for their crazy dragon roll: unagi + avocado on dynamite roll w/side mayo, spicy and teriyaki sauce.

Once again… Krab… Yes, that is the main reason I try to avoid rolls as it is too oftenly used as filler. However, past that one part, there was the crispiness of the shrimp tempura plus you could notice somewhat the eel. Come to think about it, that was the weak part: it didn’t have too much of that eel taste, nor the sweetness I am used to.

I didn’t really try the sauces as it was quite difficult keep its shape and try to put the whole piece in your mouth. (Sorry, everybody, while I do take candid pictures once in a while, I wasn’t going to incur into Erin’s wrath in this case!). Would I order it again? Well, depends… If I am on my own, again, I would fall back again to nigiri sushi; otherwise, if with somebody else, yes, that might be an option.

When we asked for the bill, we were given this to finish the meal. Notice, we did not order it, rather, similar to the edamame, it was “complimentary”. As for the orange itself, it was sweet but, then again, can you go wrong with fruit?

Because we were the only customers until halfway the lunch, it wasn’t that difficult to notice I was taking pictures. Of course, the fact that Elaine wrote about them recently, there was that feeling I might be a food blogger as well. As a result, the waitress was quite attentive with us. But, then again, it might be my paranoia at work and it is possible that is their regular hospitality (not to mention, the edadame and orange are actually “free”!). Regardless, despite it is not “authentic”, I didn’t find any major faults with the food and, in fact, it is a lot better than some other places I have been. As a result, it is a good option for me and might come back in the future.

Tagged under: Cambie • Japanese • Korean • Seafood • Sushi • Vancouver