Yuji's Japanese Tapas
Yuji's Japanese Tapas
2059 West 4th Ave.,
Vancouver, BC
Ph: 604) 734-4990
We were going to see Paradise Garden at the Stanley Theatre and decided to check out Yuji's about a ten minute drive from theatre. Although it was just before 6 PM, we managed to get a parking spot almost outside the restaurant. It helps if your companion has great parking karma - which he does!
I was not sure what to expect - the words Japanese and Tapas are not usually associated in my mind but I anticipated a sort of fusion of Spanish style small plates with sushi.The menu listed many items under the tapas heading including the usual Japanese dishes like miso soup and sunomono salad but also included items like grilled duck breast and fried Halibut cheek.
We opted to start with the Maguro avocado crepe - fresh albacore tuna and avocado wrapped in a crepe and served with a sweet and a spicy sauce. It was tasty and the crepe was soft without being chewy. We also got the roll sushi platter with three pieces each of California, BC and spicy tuna roll, all of which I enjoyed.
When the spicy curried calamari rings arrived just as we were starting on the rolls and crepes, we asked our server to slow down but the last course, Yuji's Fish (white fish) and chips (sweet potato) - both very lightly battered - arrived shortly after. I guess it had already been prepared and would not have done well standing around.
My companion ordered a small sake. I wanted a clear head for the play so did not order wine or sake but instead asked for tea as well as water.
We had planned to have a relaxed meal leaving plenty of time time to get to the box office to pick up the opening night tickets As it was despite having dessert - we shared the citrus ice cream - tart and delicious - we still had an hour to spare before the show started. So my advice is that unless you are in a hurry, mention to the server that you do not want all your dishes at once.
The food was tasty and the price reasonable - about $45 before tip, but it's really a casual dining restaurant. As someone who is a bit of a sushi purist it would not be my first choice for a future meal.
Comments
Yuji's has the best sushi in town
If you are a sushi purist you have sushi and if not you have the tapas. Yuji's sushi is really good although I usually get full on the tapas so don't eat the sushi as much as I would like. Now of course if your meaning of sushi is Salmon and Tuna then might as well go anywhere but if you want something that you might get in Tokyo then Yuji is a good bet. This comment reminds me when my brother (who I thought was quite worldly) and I ate at Yuji's and although he enjoyed it he said next time he would take me to his local sushi place in Whiterock which he said was great. I went with an open mind but the real funny thing was when the waiter came back and told us that the UNI we had ordered would be short a peice because the rest hadn't thawed yet. Frozen UNI! You don't freeze uni! I told Yuji the next time I ate at his restaurant and he couldn't believe it. We both wondered how people judge good sushi and if Vancouverite's really understand what good sushi is. I found out the answer to this late last year when I bought a Japanese restaurant frequented by businessmen downtown. There were many regulars who loved the place and thought the sushi was great. The truth is the sushi that was being served was watery and tasteless and looked like it had been hacked with a butter knife. As I am not a chef I didn't know why and I wanted to serve something better so I asked Yuji to take a look at how the present owner was doing things. This is what he said: The owner's knife was dull and hadn't been sharpenned in months. The sushi had been defrosted and frozen again so when it was defrosted again it became watery leading to a drop in taste. He said he never refreezes fish. I dont know why I decided to write this except for I wish Vancouverite's could understand what good sushi (Japanese food) is. I do not profess to be an expert though.
I appreciate your spirited "defence"
I appreciate your spirited "defence" of Yuji's although I think my remarks about my dining experience there, really did not necessitate a defence. I wish more people would write back with their own dining experiences, so thank you.
The sushi experience in Vancouver I believe is as good as anywhere in the world I have eaten sushi including early morning at the Tsukiji Fish Market in Tokyo. An amazing experience that has stayed in my memory for years.
And being a "sushi purist" - well maybe not such a great choice of words - in my mind does not preclude you from enjoying fusion style sushi or sashimi with the best of ingredients from other cuisines enhancing the subtle flavours of the raw fish. It certainly does not limit you to salmon and tuna - how dull life would be without uni and saba and hamachi although I admit the rich buttery taste of a piece of really great local tuna sashimi is to die for. Oops - another poor choice of words.
But seriously, the essential requirement for a reviewer whether in commenting on a restaurant, a play or other cultural event, is absolute honesty to oneself as well as for one's readers. That means describing your experience as it is. Sometimes that means negative as well as positive comments. And believe me, it is much much harder to write a critical comment than to heap praise.
So thanks again for your comments.
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