Wasabi :: Credit Card Roulette with Trevor, Trieu, & Jenn

Strings Ramen :: Meeting the Littles

Umai :: Dinner Time!

 

 

 

Kameya :: Dinner Round #1

Orange Moon Roll ($13.50)

unagi, crunch, avocado, cucumber, top salmon, green tobiko, wasabi mayo, unagi sauce

Kameya Roll

White Ocean Roll ($13.50)

shrimp tempura, cucumber, avocado, with s.w. tuna on top of wasabi mayo, unagi sauce

Kameya

806 W Webster Ave

Chicago, IL 60614

773.935.3474

website

Neo Coffee Bar :: Waiting for Departure

Kyoto Matcha Latte (~$6 with tax)

I've been meaning to visit NEO COFFEE BAR for quite some time and finally had a chance to do so when I was downtown exceptionally early for my flight back to Chicago. While my visit was a very quick detour to the airport, I did enjoy my time there and would definitely return. I absolutely adore matcha green tea lattes and it's no secret that it's my staple order for Starbucks (ask my fellow team mates at my office!). However, NEO COFFEE BAR does matcha lattes traditionally. It's not some sweetened powder that's prepackaged and mixed such that one or two scoops added to steamed milk and it's good (like Starbucks) but the baristas here take their time to make a quality matcha latte by properly whisking the Kyoto matcha powder with the bamboo matcha whisk and slowly steaming the milk to the correct temperature. The Kyoto Matcha Latte was very smooth and didn't have any matcha powder clumps. I look forward in returning to try it again, along with the cafe's assortment of sandwiches and Japanese inspired desserts.

NEO COFFEE BAR

Unit 100-161 Frederick Street 

Toronto ON M5A 4P3

647.348.8811

website

Izakaya Mita :: Restaurant Week #1

RainbowSashimi Avocado Salad

tuna, yellowtail, salmon over avocado and spring greens in a special wafu dressing

I enjoyed this dish but it was quite small and on the salty side.

Kani Ankake Tofu 

blue crab in a thick wafu-chuka sauce with carrots, onions, kale and shiitake mushrooms served over silken tofu

I personally didn't care of this. It was small and soup like. Didn't taste the blue crab and the sauce was too overwhelming. Considering it was a tofu dish, there wasn't much tofu.

Niku Katsu Panko 

breaded beef sirloin served deep fried with special ponzu dressing

I liked this despite it being very oily and not very crunchy. Note ponzu sauce was had hints of wasabi.

Kamo Misozuke 

cold smoked duck breast marinated in a miso and ginger sauce served with a special ume pickled plum puree

Pretty disappointed with this as it was pretty bland and the meat was very chewy.

Robusuta Slider 

rice slider topped with deep fried lobster and drizzled with spicy mayo

Was also disappointed by this. The slider was soggy and couldn't taste much of the lobster as the batter was overwhelming.

Mama Mita’s Matcha Green Tea Cheesecake 

the owner’s homemade matcha green tea cheesecake steamed in a custard bowl, topped with whipped cream and served with 2 green tea chocolate pocky biscuits

I really enjoyed the green tea cheesecake but wished it was bigger!

Came here for the first time during Restaurant Week. As an izakaya aficionado, I was pretty excited to try it after looking at the Restaurant Week menu and the 4 star ratings on yelp. Unfortunately, Izakaya Mita didn't meet my expectations and left underwhelmed. Despite arriving for the Restaurant Week menu, I also looked/considered the restaurant's regular menu. Despite the numerous menu items, I didn't find anything that caught my interest and I noticed it was slightly on the pricy side. As such, I stuck with my choice in trying the Restaurant Week Menu. One of the deciding factors in choosing Izakaya Mita over any other Japanese establishment for Restaurant Week was that there was more courses than the others (6 courses for $44). Don't let this fool you! The portions for each course was quite small and I left the restaurant pretty hungry. Since the portions were small, I was planning to split a ramen with my friend but the waitress never came back so we never ordered it. In terms of the food taste and quality, I was a little disappointed. Ingredients are good but average. Taste missed the mark as some items were either overly salty, overly bland, or overly fried. The one thing I did really enjoy was the matcha green tea cheesecake! Service is prompt and friendly, but not very attentive. We initially ordered the Restaurant Week menu to get the food order started and told the waitress to comeback after we decided on some additional dishes from the regular menu and she never came back. I also asked for some hot water in addition to my friend's beer, but only the beer came. Overall, I wouldn't say Izakaya Mita is a bad restaurant, but I've definitely had better experiences elsewhere.

Izakaya Mita

1960 N. Damen Ave

Chicago, IL 60647

773.799.8677

website

restaurant week link :: menu

Yuzu Sushi & Roberta Grill :: BYOB Dinner with Brian

Tuna Poke ($11)

Hawaiian tuna marinated in soy sauce

Chicken Sausage Truffle ($4) 

brushed with truffle garlic

Tempura Udon Noodle Soup ($12)

Monster Spider Yuzu Roll ($10) 

whole soft shell crab, kani kamo, cucumber, spicy mayo, avocado, black tobiko, sweet soy sauce, served with pepper yuzu sauce

Dragon Yuzu Roll ($15) 

shrimp tempura, unagi, avocado, cucumber, tempura crumbs, spicy mayo, sweet soy sauce

Mochi Flight ($10) 

three house flavours

Yuzu Sushi & Robata Grill

1751 W Chicago Ave

Chicago, IL 60622

312.666.4100

website

Kai Sushi :: Post Studying Dinner with Brian

Daily Special - Avocado Shrimp Soba Salad

Sushi Deluxe Platter ($24.95)

seventeen pieces. includes one piece of tuna, salmon, yellow tail, escolar, fluke, sea bass, albacore, shrimp and octopus with a spicy tuna roll. served with miso soup.

Ocean Roll ($12.95)

shrimp tempura and avocado topped with tuna, tempura crunch, masago and sweet soy sauce

Kai Sushi

1255 S State St

Chicago, IL 60605

312.583.0567

website

Zakkushi on Carlton :: NYC Planning Dinner with Tiffany & Nina (Missing Taylor!) + Trying Something New!

Hey guys!

I thought I would give video blogging a dinner a try for fun - let me know what you guys think.
It's my first time filming (Canon G7X - new) & editing a video (all on an iPhone 6) - I think it turned out pretty well and I'm quite happy with the results.

Click here to watch in HD!
Dishes Ordered Sapporo Pitcher ($9.99) Kura Buta Bacon Caesar Salad ($6) Waygu Beef ($6.8/skewer) Horenso Ninniku Foil Yaki ($5.9) Ebimayo ($7.5) Mé Maki ($1.9/skewer) Mochi Maki ($2/skewer) Scallop ($3.1/skewer) Chicken Gizzard ($1.9/skewer) Tomato ($1.7/skewer) Negi P-Toro Don ($7.5)
This was my second visit to Zakkushi, my last visit being when they first opened a couple years ago. The food at Zakkushi was delicious and I would definitely recommend going. Even after opening a couple years ago, it's still quite busy so reservations would be a wise choice. I would highly recommend ordering the Mochi Maki, Chicken Gizzard, and the Waygu Beef as those were my favourite skewers. Also, all the main dishes that were ordered, including the Kura Buta Bacon Caesar Salad, Foil Yaki, and Negi P-Toro, were full of flavour so I would definitely give those a try as well.

Zakkushi on Carlton

193 Carlton Street

Toronto, ON M5A 2K7

647.352.9455

website

Mi-Ne :: After Lab Dinner with the Parents

Complimentary Salad & Miso Soup with Mi-Ne Special Dinner

Tako & Salt Spring Mussel Udon ($18)

CD-8 Mi-Ne Special Dinner ($28.95)

4 pcs of shrimp tempura, 7 pcs sushi & maki, 12 pcs sashimi and teriyaki with beef

Mi-Ne Special Dinner - Shrimp Tempura

Mi-Ne Special Dinner - Beef Teriyaki

Mi-Ne Special Dinner - Sushi & Maki

Torch Rainbow Dragon Roll ($18)

torched rainbow dragon roll with spicy sauce

Mi-Ne Sushi

8865 Woodbine Ave D5
Markham, ON L3R 5G1

website

Kim's Ichiban :: Late Night Dinner with Vince & Joey

Medium Sushi & Sashimi Platter - 40 pcs ($40)

Although the increments of sushi & sashimi platters are medium (40 pcs), large (80 pcs), and extra large (not sure), they are always more generous with their portions than verbally advertised. Meaning, that if it's a medium tray of 40 pcs, they will usually give you about 45-50 pcs. If not, they usually give complimentary hand rolls which is really nice of them. Although it's common practice for them to give out hand rolls or extra sushi, it's not always consistent - so order what you think you can eat opposed to anticipating that you will get complimentary food. Plus for an extra $20 from medium to large, you literally get double the amount.

The restaurant is mainly a take-out restaurant, but if you do dine in, you will get a complimentary bowl of miso soup and unlimited free tea (self-serve). The menu is simplistic, but you do have a view of the sushi bar prior to ordering so you can see what they have (and it's great for accessing the quality of uni they have that day).

The quality of the sushi is average and you won't get as much unique fish varieties (they mainly give out salmon). The restaurant seating is a little cramped, but the extremely jolly service makes up for it. Despite these two points, I still highly recommend individuals looking for a quick bite to check Kim's Ichiban out as it's a great value!

Kim's Ichiban has been my go-to restaurant to come with friends (ever since high school... and the prices haven't changed ever!) and to order trays to bring over to parties. 

PS: Kim's Ichiban is cash only.

Menu Image Courtesy of Zomato

Kim's Ichiban

550 Highway 7 E Unit 99 Building E 

Richmond Hill, ON L4B 3B1

905.881.2583

Le Modern Japanese Cuisine :: First Impressions

Lobster Miso Soup ($5)

Nothing particularly special about the Lobster Miso Soup aside from the fact that there's a lobster claw in it. It would have been nicer if the miso soup was boiled with lobsters such that every of sip of the soup broth is laced with lobster flavour opposed to having to literally bite into the lobster to get it. In addition to the standard miso soup, the lobster itself was slightly dry. I would skip this appetizer.

Tuna Carpaccio ($16)

This is just your standard tuna carpaccio - but I did enjoy it. I did like the sauce and how it was slightly on the sour side. However, for the price, I wouldn't order it again as it was quite pricy and wasn't outstanding enough for the price ($2.67 + tax = $3.02 / piece). Traditionally, I've seen tuna carpaccio ordered at other restaurants with more garnishes - such as scallions, daikon crisps, or chopped green onions - in addition to sesame seeds.

Beef Short Ribs ($14)

The beef short ribs were nice, and they were quite large ribs pieces. These had more flavour than majority of the dishes that was ordered. They were nice and buttery, but a little chewy. I would definitely recommend this over the tuna carpaccio for flavour and value.

Avocado Oshizushi ($10)

This is the first time I've ever seen avocado oshizushi and ordered it because I was quite intrigued by it. It was ok, but unfortunately, I was underwhelmed by it. The avocado flavour was overwhelmed by the mango/tangy sauce (which kind of tasted like salad dressing?) and there was too much bland, dry rice in each bite which superseded the avocado. Considering that the entree is called "Avocado Oshizushi", it should be expected that avocado would be the "key" ingredient opposed to the sauce. I love avocados, but I wouldn't order this dish again.

Salmon Oshizushi ($15)

This was the main reason I decided to try out Le Modern Japanese Restaurant. I was hoping for a Markham alternative to my favourite Japanese restaurant's, JaBistro, signature aburi salmon oshizushi. Although the salmon oshizushi was tasty, I still think JaBistro's aburi salmon oshizushi is better (especially for the price difference of $1). What separates Le Modern and JaBistro is that JaBistro tastes as though the entire oshizushi, including the moist rice, melts with flavour in your mouth.  Similar to the avocado oshizushi, I feel that there is a lack of attention paid to the rice component. The rice is a little dry. The salmon can be delicious (like it was here), but the level of  "umami" can be brought down by the dry rice component. Although it's never really the centre of attention, the rice component of oshizushi is just as important as the topping.

Carbonara ($12)

I was interested in trying the carbonara udon as my all time favourite dish at Han Ba Tang is their Creamy Rice Cake, which is essentially carbonara sauce and Korean rice cake. Like the rest of the dishes that were ordered, it was alright. I felt that the carbonara sauce was a little heavy for the udon noodles and the shrimps tasted although they had been boiled in water and simply added to the dish after the udon noodles and sauce was plated.

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Overall, I felt that the dishes at Le Modern Japanese Cuisine were on the bare basics/simple side (perhaps even slightly bland?). However, because they are a newer restaurant I see plenty of room for improvement (so new that I couldn't even geotag my photo on Instagram!). The restaurant's ambience was quite relaxing and the wait staff was courteous. A small detail, but I also noticed that in all dishes that I ordered, pieces came in multiples of six. I did like the restaurant, but for the price point, I rather dine at JaBistro, Kingyo, Guu, Han Ba Tang, or Ten-Ichi (an all you can eat restaurant with decent salmon oshizushi). If the level of flavour improves, I would definitely return as it's location is much more convenient. Perhaps a second visit in a couple of months may prove me wrong.

Le Modern Japanese Cuisine

8920 Woodbine Avenue, Markham, ON L3R 9W9

(905) 604-7800

website :: email