Tag Archives: Japanese

09.19.13
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Trying to find the Silver Lining at Japanese Village

The Japanese Village Restaurant
734 Broughton St.
Victoria, B.C.
(250) 382-5165

Yes, I’ll admit it. I have a life mission to try every Japanese restaurant in town, and one of the good places used to be Japanese Village. If this establishment can get past its modern trappings and a reduction to their ridiculously high prices, then maybe it could be something. This place flaunts its teppenyaki style of food over the traditional offerings and some of the staff must have forgotten that there are old souls like me around.

I was the odd man out in a party of five preferring to eat raw fish over cowboy meat. Is that bad? No. Technically, this style of cooking western food on a grill was introduced in 1945, conveniently after the United States occupied Japan. According to one source, foreigners preferred this style of cooking over other methods since they can see what is being made. Other than the soybeans, I think every other ingredient is Western Civilization in origin.

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08.06.13
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Erito’s High Rise Aspirations Are Super Low

Erito Sushi
103-3531 Uptown Blvd.
Uptown Shopping Centre
Saanich, B.C.
(778) 433-3328

Erito Sushi in Uptown is no Ebizo on Boughton when it comes to quality or affordability. This latest entry to the center of the Uptown-verse is basically a cover for putting more Japanese style restaurants in malls that do not need it. This place is basically an overpriced fast food joint.

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07.11.13
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Million Dollars Can’t Buy You Happiness at Itami

Note: For some strange reason our previous host provider, eBlogger, loses some of our posts. Despite our best attempts to keep regular backups, even this article disappeared from our archives. This piece had to be ‘republished.’

Itami Sushi Japanese Restaurant
708 View St 
Victoria, B.C. 
(250) 381-8868

J: Wow, I mean really wow. Maybe really wow just doesn’t say enough on how nice Itami Sushi looks. They spent roughly one million on the interior alone. The Japanese garden at the front entrance should’ve more care and attention paid to it. And that chandelier above the serving desk, yes I thought that was excessive but there was very little else I could find wrong. I just have to wonder what their washrooms look like. But with all of this eye candy, the restaurant was barely populated on a Friday night. I asked myself why.

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06.12.13
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Serving up Victoria’s 1st Foodie Film Festival! Jiro Dreams of Sushi Reviewed.

Victoria Foodie Film Festival
June 7-9, 2013
David Foster Foundation Theatre
Oak Bay Beach Hotel

E: I like to think that I helped the Victoria Film Festival go in the direction of having more food related events after my little post about their lunch-time shorts, but they most likely had the idea brewing for some time.

I missed going to see Jiro Dreams of Sushi in February and to make this film the one to kickoff this foodie event at the Oak Bay Beach Hotel was a good idea. I enjoyed the stroll to get to this swanky part of Victoria. Just down the hill is the Victoria Golf Course. James labored up a hill to get here.

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04.23.13
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Kamei … or Royale?

Kamei Royale
#211-1030 W. Georgia St.
Vancouver, BC
(604) 687-8588

The Kamei Royale is a restaurant that certainly lives up to its namesake, but is it authentic? When there are three locations, I get the sense the upper management wants to franchise out. But in a city as large as Vancouver, to spread the sushi love does need to be done. And this establishment has the decor of upscale dining.

The fashion sense of the architecture is more modernistic than traditional, and the average working man would have to give up two paychecks to dine here for a week. The food is tasty, and just looking at the menu was enough to make me drool buckets. The selection of food is vast and I doubt I could eat the entire maki selection in one go.

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03.27.13
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Getting Splashed with Sockeye Sushi

Sockeye Sushi
726 Johnson St.
Victoria, BC
(250) 388-4338

E: I honestly should not leave the decision-making to James and his frugalness to suggest that we try out Stone’s Throw Restaurant. One look at their small buffet table and I was ready to high tail it out of there. It was not because of the food, but I don’t see three buffet warmers to be a shining example of what a buffet should be.

I’ve been to enough to know that a smorgasbord of visual delights be offered to entice diners in, not something out of an archaeological dig! And between the two of us, we’d most likely clean their taco offerings out in no time and be kicked out afterwards.

J: The buffet was much like the old Atlas ads in the comic books. Well this buffet could’ve had sand kick at it and not do a damn thing in return.

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