Sushi for a Calgarian

I don't really use this site much anymore... oh well. For those interested in the sushi/food aspect of the blog please head over to www.pragmaticpp.blogspot.com. For pictures and the likes I will try to keep this one up to date. Heres one of the last sushi posts I'll have here.

 

Globefish sushi in Kensignton Calgary

Sushi Ichiban 39th and Macloud TR Calgary

Right beside Marlborough station in Calgary is a little gem of a Japanese restaurant. Taketomi Village might not look like much from the street, but once inside you're pulled into a peaceful classic style Japanese sushi bar environment. Mani the sushi chef is very talkative and enjoys having the company. He even makes a special piece for us, but I'll get to that later.

After getting stuck in traffic and making many detours we see the Village. I had passed it a few time on my adventures but never stopped in. I am not disappointed that we ended up going here over any other place I even returned a few days later for a snack. Anyways on to the restaurant.

I ordered myself a piece of each of the following: ebi; tamago; inari; white maguro; toro; sake;unagi; hokekkai. Can you see a certain level of consistancy in the ordering? This has been a good time for tamago, the past few places I have tried have good tamago, this place was no diffrent. A little sweeter than the other places but it worked well on its own and with a bit of wasabi and soya.

The tuna, both the maguro and the toro were so succulent and soft, I didn't even feel the toro. When they say that toro is meant to melt in the mouth, they mean it, this was one of the best pieces of toro I've had in a while.

Before leaving Mani, the chef, gave us a little something special, what he called mamashita. There was a wide variety of meats on it, there was ebi, toro, scallop and samon with some roe on top, a little bit of avocado paste, topica. This piece was very interesting it offered a cool taste with many diffrent textures that mixed very well.

We had a very pleasant time, the service was good, the restaurant itself was appealing and the food was great. All in all I give this restaurant a 8 out of 10. I expect that once I try some more of their food it will fluctuate, but just for their sushi they received this high mark. I docked a few marks for not adding wasabi on the pieces, which at this point is almost becoming my problem, I must start asking all the chefs to add their own to the pieces. It gets a bonus though because Mani grated some fresh ginger for me. I wanted to ask for grated wasabi but thats not how it worked out. Also gets an extra point for presentation while loosing points for the unagi even though the Unagi and the Mamashita was very nicely presented and each got their own plate. "Very nice".

But thats it for now folks,


Thank you all, Mata ne!

Otafest, just like everything else in Calgary has gotten bigger! If your new to the concept of OtaFest I'll give ya the skinny. It's basically a festival for the anime obsessed,  Ota being short for Otaku, which is the Japanese word for "Obsessed". It's a yearly event that happens at the University of Calgary where they show anime, have a vendors room, do cosplay and even teach you Japanese and sushi making!

 

Theres always something of interest playing in the multiple theatres that they have running, and if you get bored of watching you can always make your way down to either the Go Room or the Video Game room, neither of which ever seem to be very empty. The popularity of this event has soared over the past few years, and so has the enthusiasm. More artists than any other year and far more costumes than I was expecting to see. This was a great event and if I'm not travelling next year I'll be there again with bigger better cameras and technology.

 

For those of you who were there or plan to attend, say hi, and don't forget to check my gallery for pictures of all the great costumes that were there!

 

Mata ne!

Sushi Zeal 101-227 10 Street NW Calgary

Entering this quaint and familiar spot, I recall its fresh décor and modern feel. Illuminated by lanterns and natural light it gave the entire restaurant a very calm feel. The entirety of the setting is very inviting and appealing. It’s amazing location adds to the valued cultural experience, and fits into the community perfectly. Being nestled between The raging belt line and SAIT College, Kensington is full of bright and modern businesses, this one is no different.

I was also impressed with the quality of the service. The waitress was very kind and even asked the chef about pickled pieces or Hikari-Mono. This item is not yet popular in the West, but I’m hopping to find it eventually.

As usual I kept my order fairly simple, yes I had been before but I had not written much about it. I tried a few pieces of a friends roll, they called it a caterpillar roll. This was a nice roll, it had alphalpha sprouts, unagi, cucumber and topped with avocado. It was really nice, the different textures mixings and interesting tastes. First real “new / unique” roll I’ve had and I was impressed. I’ve found a new avenue to venture down during this trip.

From left to right. The Mackerel was simply amazing! I was looking for aji( a type of hikari-mono) but instead I got this, a very pleasant surprise too. It had a very thin slice of lemon on top of it which added so much to the piece. The citrus mixing with the shoyu, sabi and fish underneath left me very impressed. The maguro was also very pleasant, melting as it should. The sake was of a nice thickness, little bit bigger than the mouth but a healthy serving. Then there was the ebi, and a very well balanced tamago, place number three to have good tamago. The Inari was alright and the unagi was, as in the caterpillar, amazing.

With all this and a little more in mind I would give this place a 8 out of 10. It gets its points from location, décor, service, taste, ingenuity, selection and creativity overall. They also get points for having very fresh, home made miso soup. Applause to the miso!

That’s all folks! Mata ne!

Alright this is just a quick one, and I'll start this one with a story. My buddy KV comes to bug me at work every so often, we've known each other for so long and my boss is leniant towards him. He wants to go grab a quick bite down at Wa's on Center St. which has amazing sushi, a little pricey but well worth it. It's closed. So we try the Shakiji... also closed, at this point were wandering in and out of upper china town and through shopping centers, when it dawns on me, theres that little place beside the fish store in that strip mall. Off we go to The Osaka Sushi House. We walk in and are greeted by a larger Chinese man. We sit down in this quaint cafe style little shop. It advertises classes, sell gear and even have books on sushi.
After a little confusion over drink we peer over the menu. Right away we were both blown away by the prices! Most of my favorite pieces were 99 cents! Tamago, inari, Hokki, etc. Cones didin't go over 2.20$! So we get to ordering I'm not very hungry and plus I didn't have my camera so I go light. 5 pieces: Tamago; shake; Inari, Unagi and masago. Right off the get go the shake was not all that fresh. I also noticed a lack of freshness with the masago. The unagi was small and a little too crispy(overcooked/burned) and the inari wasn't nearly sweet enough. How ever, the tamago was not overly sweet, which was nice, but it wasn't quite sweet enough either. It did not mix well with the shoyu.  The ginger was pink as well...
The presentation on the other hand was amazing! KV got his on a glass dish, a small 1 roll green plater and his cone in a 3 cone holder which looked really nice and displayed it very well.
All in all I'm not particularly impressed but at the same time I'm not dissapointed. Taking everything into account I am going back to take picture and to take his class. The price was right for the quality, and the portions were good. It's not a good place for a date but for a hungry man on a budget it will satisfy. I give this place a 6.5 out of 10. It looses points for quality but gains in price. It gets points for the set up and creative design, but looses points on freshness.

Till the next! Mata ne!

Hey all time for a new recipe. Lemon pepper, dill Havarti salmon on a bed of sprouts with a side of hot an cold veggies. Ready?

 

You will need

 

[u]Salmon[/u]

 

1lb skinless salmon fillet

1 lemon thinly sliced

1 cup of alfalfa/broccoli/ any small sprouts

1 cup of grated Havarti cheese

1tbs of black pepper

1 tbs of dill

drizzle of olive oil

 

[u]

Veggies

[/u]

1 cup of your favorite veggies. I used shanghai buk choy, tomatoes, asperagus spears and red peppers.

1 shot of sake or white wine.

 

 

And heres how we do it. Wash your hand thoroughly. Drizzle about 2 tbs or oil on a skillet, put to low heat(bout 3/10). Take the fillet and turn it so that the flattest side is facing you, rub half the dill on that side. Add to pan dill down. Add the pepper to the opposite side, top with lemons. While its cooking make the Dill Havarti cheese.

Add grated cheese and remaining dill to a small corning wear or along the lines, heat on low(no higher than 2/10). add dill, stir often.

Check on  salmon, usually take about 8-10 minutes on each side. Flip, let cook for about 7-9 minutes on that side, checking the cheese often. once creamy and consistent lower temperature.

Once cooked, remove salmon lemon side down. wash hands, apply a layer of cheese to the dilled side, level cheese with knife or fork, top with a good number of sprouts, flip salmon fillet on sprout side.

 

Veggies. In separate or same skillet, heat up to medium low (4-5) add veggies and shot of wine. cover and let crisp for about 3-4 minutes. Add to plate in decorative and creative fashion. Serve.

 

As a side dish I also included a sandwitch.

soooo.

 Kaizer buns(or any type os sandwich bread.

Oka cheese

mayo

tomatoe

red onion sprouts and spinach.

In which even order you like. :D

Pics!!

 

 

Another dawn, seeping into oblivion

Raising its way to the heavens

Overcast and shadows make up this life

Yet also fill our rivers and light our lives

 

Beauty on the horizon, multiphasic illumination

On a panel of chocolate, speckled with milk

Dew forming on the cheeks of flowers

Blooming , releasing the heart ache trapped inside

 

Higher still, trapped behind heavens security gates

Large graying passing portions of pivotal proportions

Blocks us from believing in breeching boarders

Only when we fly might we truly see the sky

 

Rain is always to be expected, umbrella handy or not

Nature runs it’s own course much like the creek in the meadows

Flowing on and on, never stopping, unless we dam it

Beside the trickling torrent, flowers, trees and reeds grow.

 

Eventually all that comes must pass

Clouds may idle by and drift as the wind lets then

But nay, let us be the wind, the water

Let us erode a new path, one worth taking

A winding road besieged with perpetual flora.

Alright, this is going to be the second photo critique I have posted and I though I would start by explaining a few things. 1: I am by no means an expert. I like good food, I like photography and I especially like getting new ideas from the place that I go. 2. Most of the places I go to are going to be in Calgary. I will how ever be adding one or two extra-city restaurants in the next few months, namely e\Edmonton and red deer. 3. I like to stick to what I know. I've been studying Asia since I was young and am particularly interested in their cooking and their way of life. This doesn't mean however that I won't post blogs about other style of cuisine. I also love to hear about other peoples experiences with restaurants. So if any one has any good suggestions as to the next place I should try please please please let me know and I will give it a try.

 

 

 

Now that that’s out of the way, on to the photo blog! It took me two trips to the Shikiji to fully appreciate both the environment, the music that they played and their amazing food. Like a lot of places there were ups and downs. But by far this noodle house has more ups than anything. Its location is very well though out. It’s just a little off of the trans Canada Highway and on center St. N. This is a prime location, just a little off of the expanding china town but far enough away from any other reputable sushi places. Note also this isn’t so much a sushi place, their a noodle house that also offer sushi. The exterior is very nice. Plastic plants and bamboo blinds are very inviting. Passing the customary overhanging curtains on your way in, you arrive in front of their large drink and pay island in the middle of the restaurant. On the left  and going back are a few small table and two bars, one facing the window and one right in front of their stainless steel kitchen. On the other side is a little alcove of tables. It has a very earthy feel to it, lots of plants and wood decorating.

 

Although this is apparently a Japanese establishment I highly doubt there are many Japanese people working there. Their service and attitude where excellent none the less and I do not hold the false advertising against them.

 

The first time there, we had just finished ordering when a small experimental sushi trial was offered to us. It was an odd kind of tamago roll. It’s the first time I’d been offered a sample or one of the chefs creations before.

 

I was impressed to see that the miso soup was not only very authentic looking but that it was also very much so home made. I could tell by the little pieces of fresh cut green onions. So far this has been the best miso I have tried. It took a long time for it to loose it’s cloudiness. This to me is a sign of a good mix of ingredients and proper cooking. If you over cook miso soup it can really ruin the miso.

 

 

 

We both started with a few pieces of sushi. Just the regular to try of course; Shake, toro, ebi, tamago, maguro and piece of inari. Inari, it’s a bean curd paste mixed with rice and then deep fried. A very tasty little piece that’s both sweet and oily while still having a firm texture. A must try. I was more than impressed with the maguro, more so than I was the toro. It’s a lot nicer and just melts in your mouth. The tamago was a little too sweet for me. It had a nice fluffy ness to it, but it still just didn’t taste right. All in all their sushi was par with an excellent selection and a great piece of maguro.

 

 

 

Next I had a soy ramen with bbq pork. Right off the bat I will say that their cut of pork was far from lean, which is good because it offers a lot of taste to the soup, but on the flip side, fatty pork also makes for grisly pork. I could not finish the pork because of the amount of fat in it. The broth was great. It’s a lot more similar to the ramen broth I make at home. Not as strong as Hibiki’s, and I really liked it.  The noodles were great, not over cooked at all. They still had a good strong consistency to them. The topping were great. A half piece of baby bok choy and some chopped green onions. The taste of the broth was really absorbed into the bok choy. It was very enjoyable.

 

 

 

Next item on my list was the bento box with sukiyaki beef, mixed tempura, home style salad and teriyaki chicken. Of course eating salad with chopsticks would seem weird to everyone else but I feel that since they didn’t offer a fork I would muscle through it and still have a little fun. I swear their salad dressing had a little bit of miso paste to it. It was a very unique sauce with lots of taste that really accentuated the fresh ripe tomatoes carrots and cabbage. The sukiyaki beef was a little stringy. I didn’t enjoy it as much as I would other sukiyaki places. There was less sauce than others I had tried which left it dry. The onions how ever were very nicely caramelized. The BBQ chicken was beautiful. Nice lean pieces, the onion very much bringing out the bbq taste.

 

 

As a side note, they used a lot of onions in their cooking. I even had onion tempura which is ten times better than onions rings in my opinion. I really like onions so having a full meal with onions was delicious. The tempura was very well done. Shrimp and squash with onions. Although the onions were all bunched together, their taste was still amazing, just required a little work to break them apart.

 

Christy had the Shikiji style soba noodles warm. The broth was very similar to the ramen that I had last time, but with a little variation. It was a little sweeter, that might be due to the little pieces of sweet soy that was scattered in the dish. The buckwheat noodles were very good, firm and not sticky.

 

 

 

Both time were very pleasant dinning experiences. It’s a little one the pricy side but it won’t break the bank. I would definitely recommend this place to any one wanting to try some “Japanese style” noodles. We all enjoyed ourselves and will probably make a return visit to have some sashimi.

 

This has been another food blog by moi. Mata ne!

Wow I am terribly sorry everyone. I've been totaly awal working this last job. I did however find some time to live it up and have some fun. The latest bout of restaurant madness comes in the form of this beautiful little Japanese Sushi place just down the hill from me. Sushi Hibiki is in a great little location. On a major road that accomodates thousands of people everyday. Just off of a highway going into downtown, and nicely tucked away in between two eatries in the same strip mall.

 

When first entering this restaurant do not be suprised if they politely welcome you in the door using this term, Irasshaimase, which means, Welcome to our store. I love to see places that do that. We were quickly accomodated as our party was the only one in the store. Not a bad sign, considering we were also the last to leave.

 

When we recieved our sushi platter I was happy to see healthy helpings of both sabi and gari. Sadly when I asked "Guru sabi desu ka?" (asking for grated wasabi) she sadly hadn't. I have yet to find a place in calgary that has some. But my quest goes on. Although, they are deffinitivly a step up from the places with pink ginger.

 

We ordered a little bit of everything. Myself sticking to what I knew I liked I ordered some; shake, toro, hokkekai, ebi, gyu and tamago. Off of advice given at http://sushifaq.com/sushiotaku/ 's blog I began trying out tamago, and just after a few shops I had seen the diffrence. Tamago at a larger place, which I am never returning to, was very sweet, but the tamago here was light, fluffy, not too sweet, and was quite good with a little bit of soy. All the other pieces were good. The guy was lightly seasoned which made it very nice, even had a little sabi on the underside, was suprised at the combo. Notice the little piece of green onion, mmmm.

 

We also had a mixed tempura bowl which was to the satisfaction of everyone.

 

The design that went on the terriaki chicken was apealing to the eye. Little pieces of red bell on a blue and white plate. I really liked that. And the chicken itself was so moist and well grilled. The taste wasn't overpowering and the sause was dryed and cooed on, nothing sloppy.

 

Now, usualy im very gun ho about ramen. I love the stuff. Make it at home all the time. But I think I might have missed the mark a little. Now I like my bonito flakes, and my nori (chopped into slivers) and a little shot of sake and as much soy as you like. But when I taste his, I was blown away. It was a very strong bonito flavor with just a little soy. It was very good, but it entirely changed my view on ramen.

 

The udon was as I expected it would be. Added some hot salts and away we go! A little soy for taste.

 

All in all a very good meal. Love the enviroment and being able to practice a little. I will be making this my signature place for the moment and I hope that the Itamae-san will eventualy make me a very enjoyable omakase.

Till the next!

 

 

 

 

As of Novembre I’ve become a vegitarian. Heh. Go figure. It took a while, but I knew that eventualy it would happen. It was nothing really planned, it just kinda happen. . I like that. I don’t like the pressur of rapid change, but I do like the idea of proggression. I’m not one to stay in one place long, I like change... slow... gradual...change, lol. And it's not like I'm exactly fully vegitarian either. I call myself a non-strict vegitarian. I won't eat any red meat, but if offered white I will eat and I will only go out of my way for fish, cooked or raw I just kinda figured with my parental unit away on vacation(hunting ironicly enough) that I would not buy as much meat. Which turned into almost no meat. Basicaly the way I see it is, being a vegitarian is cheaper, go look at all the restaurants and compare their meat prices to their veggie prices. 2 “I don’t like picking cow outa my teeth” (Quote Elaina Kauffman 1998ish). At this point I have to thank my friend Elaina for first introducing the concept to me. I didn’t know much then but over the years I’ve developt my own ideas and learnt enought about healthy eating to know what I want. Thridly I do like the health options. I may be weight training but I know its going to leave me hjealthier than I’ve ever been, already I feel alot better.