Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 257 Eglinton Avenue West
Website: http://sakebarkushi.ca/
Type of Meal: Dinner
Now this is
what I expect from an izakaya – semi closed off tables allowing patrons to get
a little rowdy. Loud enough so that you feel you don’t need to whisper yet
quiet enough so you can still talk and unhurried service so you feel
comfortable getting multiple rounds of drinks.
Sake Bar
Kushi proves that you can still get the izakaya experience without having staff
members constantly scream at the top of their lungs; we were greeted in unison
by a couple of people as we entered and left and personally I felt this was
more than enough. Moreover, they should be recognized for their willingness to
take reservations, which makes visiting with larger groups easier. Really, isn’t that the whole point of an
izakaya – an easy-going casual atmosphere to hang around and drink?
With 30
bottles of sake to choose, drinking can easily be accomplished. With prices ranging
from $9 to $380 per bottle, there’s selections for all. Staying at the lower end of the spectrum, we
ordered the Kinmon ($24) which was dry and light tasting, great for sake
novices like ourselves. Afterwards, we continued on the night with pitchers of
Sapporo which were only $19 each.
In terms of
food, there were some hits and misses but with such an extensive menu
(literally four different ones) we likely could have missed their house
specialties. To begin, we ordered a round of skewers to go with the sake. The majority of them being offered were
grilled (yakitori) rather than the deep fried kushi I was expecting. This just
seems a bit strange given kushi is in their name, but to be honest, I wasn’t
that involved with ordering the skewers so we could have misunderstood the
options.
The yakitori
selection arrived with negimi or chicken with green onions ($2), hotate or
scallop ($4.20), shrimp ($3.50) and buta bara or pork belly ($2.60). Note: prices are per skewer. To be
honest, none of them were impressive as they were a tad over cooked (especially
the scallop). The pork belly was extremely
fatty and could have benefited from being breaded and deep fried.
The katsu
($2.80) or deep fried breaded chicken was spot on - juicy and succulent with
the right amount of flavor from the tonkatsu sauce. If only all the skewers
were this delicious! Considering it was the best skewer of the night, Sake Bar
Kushi should consider dedicating more of their menu to kushi. We also got a
single sausage ($1.80), that I didn't try, but judging by my friends’ comments
it appeared mediocre.
Not in the mood
for their set dinner ($37 a person), we ordered a mix of tapas to share. The
first dish to arrive, the tuna tataki ($11), was an amazing start and my
favourite of the meal. Lightly seared so that a thin ring circled the fish, the
tuna was fresh and just flavoured enough from the ponzu and garlic chips
without being overpowered. A bed of grated radish laid below and added a fresh
crunchiness to contrast the tender tuna.
The lobster
roll ($13) was decent with pieces of meat rolled in rice and more lobster on top.
The meat itself was rather bland and lacked the natural sweetness you’d expect,
so any flavouring came from the spicy mayo and soy sauce topping it. All in
all, it was good enough but rather tame for something that features
lobster.
Meanwhile,
the kaki fry or deep fried oysters ($6) was better. What appeared to be freshly
shucked oysters had a seafood essence to it and benefited from being just
lightly breaded. Served with tartar sauce it is a simple but tasty dish and
quite good for the price.
Continuing
with the ups and downs, the grilled pork ($11) was poorly executed. I found it
so over cooked that it became tough and barely edible; sadly, the quality
reminded me of some barbequing experiences I’ve had where I’ve left pork chops
on the grill and forgot about them. Given its sole flavor came from salt (even
then there wasn’t much of this), little could be done to improve the dish.
The most
disappointing dish of the night was the gindara or grilled cod ($11). Perhaps
it’s because this is generally one of my favourite dishes, I eat it often and
have high hopes. Sake Bar Kushi’s was overcooked, bland and slightly bitter
from being burnt. That tender, flaking apart, buttery texture I’ve come to
expect was nowhere to be found.
As long as
you’re not squeamish about tentacles, the kadako karaage or deep fried baby
octopus ($11) may be a tasty option. Given they used baby octopus it was tender
and an interesting combination between the soft chewiness of the body and the
crispy tentacles.
The last dish
we ordered, kimchi pork ishiyaki bibimbap ($14), ended off the night quite
well. The heated stone bowl was a flavourful cacophony of ingredients and
sauce, which thankfully helped mask the overdone pork. I’ll admit, it’s not the
best bibimbap I’ve ever had, but compared to some of the other dishes we had
that night was a pleasant ending.
After the
food, we decided to stay for more beers and as the night went along the chef
presented us with two complementary dishes. The first, a salmon tempura topped
with greens, was very nice. The cooked salmon was tender and covered with a
light crispy coating. Tons of chopped scallions topped the fish and really
brightened up the dish. Even the sweet
and sour type sauce was a nice change compared to the mostly mayonnaise based
ones from earlier dishes.
The second, a
take on poutine expect without the gravy, was a miss. The fries, although made
fresh with potatoes, were limp and slightly hard and needed to be double fried.
Since there was no sauce, the melted cheese was congealed and hard by the time
it reached the table. Even so, we appreciated the chef’s gesture at giving us the
dish and ate most of it. The waitress advised us the fries weren’t part of
their regular menu; some changes should be made before its ever added on.
Our waitress
for the night was extremely nice and pleasant to be around. The dinner brought
me back to memories of dining in Japan where my experiences with service are
similar - attentive, respectful and always doing everything they can to ensure
the customer is pleased.
Overall,
although not all the dishes we had were spectacular, there were some good ones
including the tuna tataki, katsu kushi and salmon tempura. Generally, I found
the grilled dishes poorly executed (primarily on account of everything being
overcooked), so would suggest ordering the fried, stone bowl or stir fried
items instead. However, it’s the overall experience that shines through. Maybe
one day the chef will adjust the cooking time for some of their dishes and the
experience can be improved that much more.
Overall mark - 7 out of 10
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____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System
- Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
- 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
- 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
- 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
- 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
- 10 - absolute perfection!
