Monthly Archives: March 2014

Tomokazu

Tomokazu Japanese Restaurant 友和日本料理 on UrbanspoonI remember when I was a student that people would mention Tomokazu as a great sushi place because it was cheap. We thought we’d give it a try to see how it would live up to our expectations.

The restaurant is on the second floor with paid parking on Broadway. It is spacious so it can accommodate a large group. It was extremely cold and I had my coat on the entire time. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one freezing as other customers were also wearing their jackets.

idearabbit-tomokazu idearabbit-tomokazu2

The host was friendly, and our server was also kind, but was hard to understand his English. He didn’t seem to familiar with the menu, so I wondered if he was new to the job.

idearabbit-tomokazu3I ordered a negitoro roll $3.95 which were terrible. Presentation was ok, but the rolls were slimy and the rice was hard. The fish had a fishy taste to it – definitely not fresh! Blah. I can’t believe they were charging $3.95 for those. There are much better ones for less.

I also had the salmon nigiri from Sheepie’s Assorted Sushi $11.95. The salmon was hard, stringy, and thick. Tasteless. Blah.

idearabbit-tomokazu5The Yakitori $4.50 was two skewers of chicken that were flavoured in curry? Never had a chicken skewer with curry before. It was soft, but most of it was fat… The salad’s dressing on the side was way too sour.

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The only thing that was satisfactory was the Agedashi Tofu $4.50.

Perhaps it’s a good restaurant if you’re a starving student. I know our class use to go to BC Sushi to do the all you can eat (which Tomokazu is well known for). But I can’t eat that much anymore (must be the age…lol) And the price for the a la carte is pricey for the poor quality. Overall, it was not a pleasant dining experience, and we wont be returning ever again! Do NOT recommend.

 Taste: carrot     Price for Value: carrot

Atmosphere:  carrot    Service:  carrotcarrot
Location: carrotcarrot

Purple Olive Grill

Purple Olive Grill on UrbanspoonI had a Groupon once again for 50% off (how can I resist?) This voucher however had the choices narrowed down. It was for two people, with soup, salad and main each.
Sheepie and I arrived on a Sunday evening without reservation. The place was packed, and we got seated at a high table with high chairs right by the entrance. It wasn’t too pleasant watching and having customers come in and wait in front of our table. At least there wasn’t much cold draft coming in every time the door opened.

idearabbit-purpleolivegrill idearabbit-purpleolivegrill2 idearabbit-purpleolivegrill3broccoli cheese soup (usually $4.95) idearabbit-purpleolivegrill4clam chowder soup (usually $5.95) idearabbit-purpleolivegrill5chicken caesar ($8.95) idearabbit-purpleolivegrill6

chicken souvlaki & prawns ($15.95) uhhhh….I can’t believe they’re charging $16 for this dish! And it’s not all that superb either!

I ordered the clam chowder soup (usually $5.95), while Sheepie had the broccoli cheese soup (usually $4.95). I enjoyed the soup. It was quite tasty and good portion.

For the salad, we both had chicken caesar ($8.95). Nothing special…just chicken on top of some greens. I thought it was pricey. I wouldn’t ever order it for the normal price. Not worth it.
Then came the main. I ordered the chicken souvlaki & prawns ($15.95) which was one skewer of chicken, tiger prawns which was boiled not grilled and 2 bread pieces and 3 potato pieces. I was really disappointed. This for $16? The food itself wasn’t amazing, nor the presentation. I was hoping for grilled shrimps too – ok, so I guess that’s my preference.

Sheepie ordered the grilled salmon & prawns ($15.95). Again it was the same as the chicken souvlaki, with prawns, potatoes and bread. The salmon was dry. Not impressed with the dishes.
Our server was very friendly and was excellent. The atmosphere was good and cosy – perhaps only if you didn’t sit by the entrance.

At regular price, our bill would have been $61. I would definitely not pay that much for what we got. I don’t understand how it’s always so full when we pass by. We will certainly not be returning.

 Taste: carrotcarrot     Price for Value: carrot

Atmosphere:  carrotcarrotcarrot    Service:  carrotcarrotcarrot
Location: carrotcarrotcarrotcarrot

Tsuki Sushi Bar

Tsuki Sushi Bar on UrbanspoonMy friend was raving about this place so we went for dinner before our Lego movie (which was surprisingly “awesome!!” btw) at the theatre in International village (aka Tinseltown mall).  The restaurant was new. Modern, clean with a high ceiling which made it very open and airy. The cool, modern furniture also complimented the contemporary slick-ness. My friend wanted to sit at the big table with benches in the middle of the restaurant.

idearabbit-tsuki idearabbit-tsuki2 idearabbit-tsuki3kanipon $6.25 idearabbit-tsuki4 idearabbit-tsuki5negitoro roll $3.50 and 2 aburi salmon nigiri $2.15 each

I ordered negitoro roll $3.50, 2 aburi salmon nigiri $2.15 each and kanipon $6.25. So this is the first restaurant that I’ve seen where you had the choice of making your choice of nigiri into an aburi (flame-searing) for an extra 25 cents. I was extremely disappointed with the kanipon which was 1/3 crab meat, 1/3 cucumber and the last third seaweed. I am not sure what kind of fancy crab the crab meat came from but the portion was really small. I could have gone to T&T and bought a fresh whole crab for under $10. Nothing special to note about the flavour. The ponzu was a bit overpowering…

The negitoro was slightly disappointing as well. From the top it looks fine, but when you flipped it over, there weren’t that much rice and tuna at the other end. This means that when they made the role, they didn’t cut the ends off. This is not the only place that I have seen this, but I guess I noticed it even more after the disappointing kanipon. Taste wise was satisfactory though. The salmon aburi was interesting. It was flamed, so it shrunk. I was hoping for something that tasted like the oshi sushi but it didnt. I guess it’s not really the same thing…haha. Pricey for $2.40 each…

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idearabbit-tsuki7My friend also raved about the washroom a lot. He is studying interior design and said if he could design rooms, it would be the washrooms. He made it sound like it was the best washroom ever. With all the hype and raving, I was expecting to be blown away. When I went to find the bathroom, I got a bit confused and thought it was the staff bathroom because it was not what I was expecting. Clean, yes. Ok, there are mouthwashes and Q-tips available, but this is not the first time I have seen this. The shelf and small cupboard is vintage with candles as decor, but other than that, it’s a pretty normal bathroom. I have seen far greater bathrooms that this, so I couldn’t quite see what my friend saw in it. For the price of the food, I would just expect the washroom to be tidy and clean.

The service was excellent, but food didn’t really impress me, mainly for the outrageous price. After reading other reviews, perhaps I need to order something different off the menu. But it’s unlikely that I would return, unless my friend really wanted to go back.

 Taste: carrotcarrotcarrot     Price for Value: carrot

Atmosphere:  carrotcarrotcarrotcarrotcarrot    Service:  carrotcarrotcarrotcarrot
Location: carrotcarrotcarrotcarrot