Ramen Raijin

Address: 3 Gerrard St E, Toronto, ON M5B 2P3

Phone: (647) 748-1500

Website http://zakkushi.com/raiji:n/

Ramen became very popular within the last few years, with many eateries opening and gaining popularity around Toronto.  What differentiate each ramen joint is the variations of broth and the type of noodles.   Therefore, a wide variety of ramen exists in Japan, with geographical and vendor-specific differences.  Each individual chef will have its own style!

Discovered another ramen restaurant in the Downtown Toronto core, located on the border of Ryerson University.  Raijin in Japanese, apparently, means the God of Thunder.  With such a powerful and domineering name, I must try a bowl of ramen to see if it lives up to the godly standards.

Everything inside the interior was natural wood colours.  It followed the energy and vibe of the Japanese culture, where everything is simple, clean and highly respect the environment.  It was helping us connect to the nature and that everything originated from mother earth.

The restaurant has a big open restaurant and we watched the chefs and assistants hustling bustling away on every order.

The moment we enter the sitting area, we watched by the towering Thunder God statue.  We paid our respect to the god and patiently waited to be seated.  At some point, it felt creepy because the statue was watching everyone’s movements and listening to every single word exchanged within the restaurant, as if there was nowhere to hide.

I question the hygiene or cleanliness of the restaurant because our server took us to a table with mega wet and dirty floor, probably from accidentally tipping a broth filled bowl.  The chair was also appeared wet.  I asked the servers to clean the floor and chairs for us before we seat.  I was aghast that she used newspapers to wipe the floor with her bare hands.  Then, she covered the floor with newspapers for us to step on, which turned soggy in no time.  I barely ate with my feet touching the ground.  But I am uncertain if she sanitized her hands immediately after.  Our cups of water were taken from readily filled ones on the kitchen counter-top.  These activities kind of threw me off or gave the restaurant a bad first impression.

Their tonkotsu soup broth is made in house, with pork bones, a Japanese fish dashi stock and vegetables in a pressurized pot, creating a rich creamy texture.

Tonkotsu Tsuke-Men Combo ($14.50) comes with a small rice bowl and a salad.  The rice bowl is actually Japanese curry, which tastes like the readily made sauce from Asian supermarket.  Salad tastes typical.  The ramen is topped with pork shoulder slice, seasoned bamboo shoots, canola flower and a soft boiled egg, green onion, nori seaweed, sesame seeds and served with a rich tonkotsu shoyu-dare dipping sauce.  You can eat the noodles two ways, dipping or mixing style.  This is the first Tsuke-men style ramen I ate and it is quite memorable.  The thick dipping sauce was really salty and somehow had a smokey flavour to it.  It was interesting, however, the more I dipped, the flavour began to alter, to a bit sour.  The noodles were softer than I usually like it to be, in between al dente and soggy, as if over boiled.  The pork shoulder was thickly sliced and the texture was tough and slightly hard.

Tonkotsu Shio Ramen ($9.95) is a salt flavoured ramen topped with pork shoulder, green onion, canola flower, kikurage mushroom (black fungus), cabbage and half a soft boiled egg.  I enjoyed this ramen more, mainly because the hot broth kept the noodles warm and I liked the creamy, salty and smokey flavour.  I like to slurp up the broth while I eat my noodles because it adds amusement to the meal.  Additionally, I also liked heap of the raw green onions they used to garnish the bowl of noodles because the half cooked-half raw texture cleaned my heavily salted palate.  But, I find the use of cabbage as a topping a bit cheap or shabby.  The same complaint of the pork shoulder as the other ramen, thick, tough and hard.  Same complaint about the noodle texture as the other ramen we ordered, over cooked and soft.  I am also missing the dried seaweed garnish too!  Because I like how the seaweed soaks up the flavour.

Overall, I did not think the ramen tasted that great; I definitely tasted better ones in the city.  I like the pork shoulders a bit fat because that softens up the texture and it is easier to steep the flavours into the meat.  I am unsure if the chefs were having a bad cooking day, but I am feeling moderate and a bit less to this ramen joint.  The hygiene really scared me off and I do not think I will visit the restaurant a second time.

Ratings

Food 3/5

Service 3/5

Ambiance 3/5

Millie Creperie

Address: 161 Baldwin Street, Kensington Market, Toronto ON M5V3H9

Phone: (416) 977-1922

Website: http://milliecreperie.com/

Summer is the season for random exploration in the city and staying out late because the temperatures accommodate us to do so.  It is also the season where a lot of stores grand open, meaning, new places to probe.

Millie Creperie is a cafe tucked in Kensington Market, right off a side street in Chinatown, probably a two minute walk from Spadina Ave.  But we kept on missing it because it does not stand out colourfully or highly decorated like other cafes and is extremely small in size.  I am not sure when it opened but its popularity is spreading around the city, thanks to Instagram and Facebook.  The owners advertise by urging customers who are these interface users to post photos onto their public profiles.

The shop itself only has three simple dining tables and roughly around 8 chairs.  It is extremely tiny that most of their customers order take out.  The “kitchen” or fridge area is extremely tight that the servers or girls were squeezing through one another or angling themselves a certain way to get things or to pass by one another.  No exaggeration!

The cafe offers wide range of products from dessert crepes to savory types, cakes to parfait to ice cream.  I am sure there must be something that fits everyone’s taste buds.  Price is competitive and reasonable for the handmade on the spot products.

The girl servers were polite and sweet.  But I could not comment on their service because it was sort-of take out style.  I was not there long enough where they had to assist and serve us.  However, the outlook of the cafe is very clean and maintained good hygiene by switching gloves, wiping counter tops, or glass doors.

Green Tea Matcha Crepe Cake ($7.60 + taxes) is a meticulously built cake of at least 20 layers of crepe with matcha powdered whipped cream spread and layered in between.  The cake was delicious and not sweet at all.  It was also very delicate and soft, offered a melt in mouth texture.  I think I am addicted to this.  Is matcha caffeinated?  Since matcha is an antioxidant, hence I feel quite healthy devouring this cake.

I will be back to try the rest of their menu.  Open somewhere uptown, so I do not need to travel so far!

Ratings

Food 4/5

Service n/a

Ambiance 2/5

Shiso Tree Cafe

Shiso Tree Cafe

Address: 3160 Steeles Ave.  Unit 1. Markham, ON, L3R 4G9  *Located in J-Town*

Phone: (905) 479 – 9319

Tucked in the hidden J Town Alley in Markham, Shiso Tree Cafe serve Japanese style pasta and comfort foods.  We were welcomed by humble, polite and relatively shy Japanese waitresses, who smiled warmly at everyone.

Credits: The Food Files

 

The restaurant was quite busy for a Tuesday evening, filled with youths, young families and full grown families.  This cafe is quite a hub for different age groups to set up gatherings, dates and reunions.  The place was relaxing and decorated with simple fixtures, felt quite down to earth and homey.  Piano music played through the speakers, and laughter from different tables filled the lighthearted environment.

The menu shows hint of Japanese and Western fusion.  All dinner pastas are served with a salad and garlic bread.

I like the homemade Japanese vinegarette or salad dressing, had a hint of sourness and sweetness to it.  The bread was toasted crispy and had a strong garlic-butter flavour.

Miso Vongole ($14) is a spaghetti made with miso based sake ginger sauce, served with fresh Manila clams, garnished with nori and green onions.  Together with nori and green onions, the spaghetti had a spirit, giving it additional crunchy texture, flavours and a portion of vegetables.  However, the spaghetti was extremely salty and was sitting in oil or excessive melted butter. The clams were fresh and chewy, had a slight hint of the sake. The sauce itself was not that strong to begin with.  I barely sensed it in the dish.  I assume the chefs used the sauce to make the clams and then when it was cooked, the residual liquid was mixed into the spaghetti. However, the butter overthrew the flavours. So, clams were good but spaghetti was not.

Wafu Seafood Spaghetti ($18) has fresh clams, shrimp, squid in shoyu and dashi sauce, garnished with yuzu, micro daikon, nori, shiso and green onion.  It had a similar appearance to the miso vongole, garnished with nori and green onions mainly but with a spoonful of shiso and yuzu on top, which has added a slight tangy flavour to the spaghetti, making it less salty.  I definitely enjoyed the wide array of flavours this dish had.  A generous amount of fresh seafood was served and was done to perfect texture.  Therefore, I liked this dish more than miso vongole.

Presentation was beautiful, organized and aligned properly.  It gave me the feel that the chef and assistants cared about the quality of their food and the happiness or satisfaction the food can bring to the eaters. But I feel like I am the only one who was not overly impressed by the taste of the meal.  Nonetheless, Shiso Tree Cafe is a place to experience Japanese style pastas and a great quiet place for studying or gathering.

Ratings

Food 3 / 5

Ambiance 3.75/5

Service 3.5/5

Gonoe Sushi

Gonoe Sushi

Address: 5 Glen Cameron Rd.  Thornhill, ON L3T 5W2

Phone: (905) 597-0176

Website: http://www.gonoesushi.com/

When I was small, Glen Cameron Plaza was a place my family always went to for lunch and dinners every weekend because there was a Chinese cuisine restaurant there established for as long as I can remember.  Twenty years ago, there was limited selection on Asian restaurants and development in the city.  Twenty years later, the present, there is an influx of different Asian cuisine, showing the multicultural Canada and acceptance of different ethnic groups within the country.  At the same time, I also sense the perseverance of authentic foods, for acceptance and recognition.  What is the best way of understanding a culture?  Food, a form of visual and sensory education.

Getting back on track, Gonoe Sushi is located on Thornhill’s bustling Yonge Street, 15 minutes north of the well known Korean Town in North York.  The newly built World on Yonge condominium is the plaza’s new neighbour.  Being on bus route and in well developed neighbourhood, it is extremely easy to find and attracts diverse clientele.

On a Tuesday evening, the restaurant was a full-house, servers hardworking, bringing out dishes and dishes of scrumptious looking food.  The interior decor is quite standard and similar to other Japanese restaurants, with wooden framed booths and stone floors.

Service could be faster and prompt because I had to remind the servers a few times about seating and orders.  The girls seem to have their priorities wrong.  They rather get take out boxes to package unfinished food, get a pot of tea and clean a table when there were no line ups than taking my order that has been ready for at least 10 minutes or bring my bill.  They also kept clearing our plates of unfinished food, to a point we verbally notified them to not touch our plates and bowls unless they were told to.  In a way, I got a bit frustrated and annoyed with their service.

Gonoe Sushi restaurant is in reality owned by Koreans.  Therefore, they serve Korean stews and dishes, other than the typical Japanese rolls.  A special sashimi menu is available; all seafood is imported from Korea, with a selection of some flat fish, sea cucumber, sea squirt, abalone, squid and sea intestine.  I find it quite intriguing because I have never heard of these marine creatures except sea cucumber and abalone.  Everyone ordered something from this special menu than the book.  We wanted to be safe because we drove quite a distance to come here.   If you have a huge party, I suggest trying this special side menu because it looks really fresh, according to the neighbouring tables.

Other than the items we ordered, we get miso soup, cold noodles and side dishes of kimchi, spicy beans, baby bok choi and Korean style coleslaw on the house.

Wakame ($4.95) is a Japanese seaweed salad with miso dressing.  Seaweed salad is a standard appetizer and tastes like any salad from other Japanese restaurants.  Seaweed mixed with sesame oil and garnished with sesame seeds.  The portion size is quite large for the price and quite filling.

Small Sushi & Sashimi “Boat” ($44.95) comes with 12 pieces sushi, 20 pieces sashimi, and 6 pieces maki.  Obviously not served on a boat, but it was organized nicely with some artsy skills.  Everything was very fresh.  I liked how all the sashimi were thickly cut, fat and soft.  Not too much rice, making the rolls and sushi not that filling due to excessive carbohydrate.  The sushi and the roll were very intact and great bite sizes.  The variety of fish can be more diverse, but what was served were stapled fish selection.

I really recommend everyone to try this restaurant in Thornhill because the quality of food is fresh and delicious.

Rating

Food 4/5

Service 3/5

Ambiance 3.25/5

Sansotei Ramen

Sansotei Ramen

Address: 179 Dundas Street West. Toronto, ON M5G 1Z8

Phone: (647) 748-3833

Website: http://www.sansotei.com/

I finally made it to Sansotei Ramen after numerous failed attempts.  Well, mainly because every time, I travel to Downtown Toronto on a Sunday, which is their “closed day”.  I can now rightfully say, I HAVE TRIED SANSOTEI RAMEN!
It was easy for us to find the restaurant because of the long line up in front of the entrance.  The systematic and first come first serve attitude was fair to everyone.  The store was managed in an orderly fashion. Extremely tight space inside, where they can only sit 35 customers each full round.  A large entwined rope was hung down the store ceiling to mimic the nature of the noodles.  The reflecting black surface on the west wall made the restaurant appear wider.  A modern minimalist decor, made the space look down to earth and comfortable to sit it.  This is no romantic date night, or long chats location.  Fast service and convenience of food made the turnover rate fast.

Zan Gi, Deep Fried Chicken ($4.50) is served on a straw basket lined with paper towels to absorb the oil on the chicken bites.  The chicken pieces were juicy and full of natural chicken flavour.  I was expecting a dried crispy surface though, hence I was a bit disappointed to find it oily, with a moist surface.  A slice of lemon was served with the chicken bits, and the squeezed juices add a hint of tartness to the chicken bites.  The sourness dissolved the chicken fat and oils, making it more refreshing.

Tonkotsu Black ($9.85) was served with pork belly, black fungus, egg, green onion and black garlic oil.  Soup base was very creamy, with a lot of pork flavour.  The  black garlic oil did not do anything particular to enhance the soup.  In fact, the oil tasted bitter by itself and tasteless or nonexistent when mixed with the creamy broth. I did like the crunchiness of the black fungus, as it complimented the texture in the noodle mixture.

Spicy Tan Tan ($9.60) was served with pork belly, ground pork, bean sprout, bamboo shoot, and egg. The creamy broth had a hint of spiciness. I expected something more spicy or hot, but it was so subtle or weak that the ramen should not be named SPICY Tan Tan. Maybe they should have variable levels of spiciness for the customers to choose. The lack of spiciness just made the bowl of ramen less interesting because it tasted similar to the Tonkotsu.  The ground pork seems to have added more fat to the overall result of the noodles.  It failed to give extra texture or flavour. Ground pork and bean sprouts made the overall result seem messy and was too soft at the bite.

The more broth I drank and the more I ate, the saltier it tasted. In fact, the broths’ after effect was almost unbearable.  I was so thirsty and continuously hunted for water to clear my throat.  It had an after taste of eating chips.  I find it annoying that the restaurant charges you for tea and hot water while everywhere else automatically serves you one.  I just thought it was unusual.

I must praise the quality of the pork belly. It was so soft and had a melt in the mouth texture. Upon a closer look, the pork belly was lined with a layer of fat in between the meat (fat-meat-fat-meat). Also, the pork belly was very rich in flavour, very well marinated.

You can choose different widths of noodles – thin or thick. I personally like my noodles slightly harder than usual because it has room to become soft after absorbing the heat and moisture from the broth. Though, the noodle was not soggy but was on the softer side of my spectrum.

We both ordered extra Cha shu or pork belly, which is $2.00 per portion and extra noodle, which is $1.00 per portion.  I do not recommend ordering extra pork belly because we only had 3 slices each.  I am not sure what the standard amount is, but for extra $2.00, I cannot justify the small amount of pork belly we each had.  70 cents per piece of pork belly, that is some expensive meat, when I can buy a slab of it at the grocery store for $5.00.  However, the extra noodle was worth it.  Bowl of noodles felt limitless, and never ending; extremely filling.

Ratings

Food 3.25/5

Service 3.5/5

Ambiance 3.5/5

Mi Ne Sushi

MiNe Sushi

Address: 10815 Yonge St. Richmond Hill, ON L4C 3E3

Phone: (905) 883-6616

Website: www.minesushi.ca

It was one of those days where no one at work wanted to eat their home packed lunch.  Boss tempted me with the idea of having sushi, and it has been 3 months I have had it.  How can I turn down the offer.

Mi Ne Sushi  is located in a plaza at the busy Elgin Mills and Yonge St intersection. Surrounded by industrial and residential communities, they have a steady and fast growing clientele.  Parking is limited in the plaza, but I noticed the business the restaurant generated.  They were extremely busy and had a fast turn over rate.

It has a typical sushi or Japanese restaurant decor made of wood panels and a sushi making bar.  No surprises and funkiness to the outlook.  It is more realistic than being creative.

The ladies and sushi chefs were extremely helpful and nice. I was studying the menu , trying to make a decision on what to order.  A server came to introduce the combo lunch menu which has a mixture of different rolls for a better price.  She also gave me a cup of tea while the chefs were preparing the lunch.  Very polite.  Smiles and thank you gestures were in the air.  Grateful~

Miso Soup and Green Salad came with the lunch combo set.

Maki Set D ($11.95) came with 3 pieces of California Roll and 8 pieces of Dynamite Roll.  California roll is made of avocado, crab meat, tobiko and cucumber.  Dynamite roll is made of shrimp tempura, avocado, tobiko and cucumber.  Tobiko is fish roe.  Standard textures and tastes.  Ingredients were fresh and crunchy.  The tempura was not that crispy, mainly because it took us another 30 minutes after receiving the food to officially start eating.

To the left Spicy Scallop Maki Roll ($6.95) and on the right Avocado Maki Roll ($4.95).  The ingredients used are quite self explanatory.  I enjoyed the soft and melt-in-the-mouth avocado roll.  The roll was really fresh and sweet.  Tangy spicy scallop roll was enjoyable.  I find the sauce stronger and more flavourful or distinct than other sushi restaurants.  The spiciness really exists!  However, I do not think I will order spicy scallop roll again.  Scallops were diced, which I thought was a waste of the scallops; they felt nonexistent.

Watching the sushi chefs make the rolls instantly guarantees the freshness of the sushi.  I was definitely not disappointed.  I really enjoyed the sushi lunch on a work day.  It was so rewarding that physically, it gave me energy to continue working.  The sushi, psychologically, brightened up my day!  The flavours were standard, no surprises there.  However, they serve generous roll portions.  They were big!  Eating these rolls will make you look like a goldfish, bloated cheeks and continuously chewing.  Sometimes, 2 bites recommended.  I admire the amount of rice used to make the maki rolls.  A very thin layer of rice and seaweed (1/10th of the roll) wraps the large filling portions.  With these proportions, successful crunchy and chewy maki rolls were produced.  Low sodium and MSG levels, since I was not thirsty nor had a sore throat after the meal.

For some economical fresh tasty sushi, I recommend Mi Ne Sushi!

Ratings

Food 4/5

Service 3.75/5

Ambiance – cannot rate since I ordered take out

Santouka Ramen

Santouka Ramen

Address: 91 Dundas St E, Toronto, ON M5B 1E1

Phone: (647) 748 – 1717

Website: www.santouka.co.jp/en/

A 5 minute walk west of Eaton Centre and Yonge- Dundas Square, outside the Ryerson University Campus, Santouka Ramen has found its prime location on TTC route, serving students and young adults.  The restaurant is obvious, as it is the only building that has the red brick structure, large glass windows, along with Japanese and English words painted in white on the external wall.  The designers have revamped the building in Old Toronto and gave it a modern contemporary appearance.  It was cute how there were plastic bowls of ramen displaced at the windows; kind of clever, to show everyone what to expect from the menu.

Storefront is incredibly small and cramped.  With the assistance of the drop down windows, light fixtures and the contrasting wall panels, the restaurant space appears larger, since more light is coming through and steer attention to the outside environment.  My only complaint is there is no privacy in the restaurant.  Your neighbour is literally half an arm’s length beside you and expect to hear each other’s conversations completely.  Even if you do not plan on eavesdropping, it is inescapable.

Due to lack of seating, there is always a constant lineup, at least a 30 minute wait.  Despite not taking reservations and a first come first serve policy, the wait is more bearable than some of the other places I have been to.  The pro is how it is a ramen restaurant, Japanese style of fast food, the turnover time is fast relative to bars or sushi house, where the environment is more sociable.  In such a fast paced environment, the service was speedy and responsive.  Twas friendly enough, no special feelings or dislikes about it.

Spicy Miso Ramen and flaked salmon don combo set ($22.50) was a good deal in a way.  Portions were adequate and filling, sort of similar to McDonald combo size.  Salmon Don was dry and bland.  The rice went wrong, was in a paste-like texture.  However, the ramen was delicious, had many levels of flavour.  Initially, it was sweet miso soup, slowly progressed into the fresh ingredients salt mixture and into the spiciness.  Enjoyed the dimension of flavours the soup base provided.  Though, I do not mind it being more spicy.

Toroniku Ramen ($12.95) is their signature ramen, where the ramen and toppings were served separately.  Toroniku is simmered pork cheek (jowl) meat.  It has rich flavour – fresh, sweet, soy sauce saltiness and soft, melt in your mouth texture, like fat.  By dipping the meat in the broth, the meat absorbs the broth and brings out the character of both parties.  Shoyu soup is made from a mixture of pork bones broth and soy sauce.  It takes 2 days of boiling and simmering to complete, making the soup extra sweet, creamy, smooth and rich in pork aroma. you will not get sick of this broth.

Overall, both soups were not salty and can continuously drink it, thinking it is the healthiest thing ever.  It did not feel fat and did not notice a layer of oil floating at the top.  Definitely has a better soup base than others.  The thick strands of noodles Santouka used benefited the soup base.  Other than being al dente, texture was firm, the noodles swam in the bowl of delicious soups, absorbing the essence of the soup base. It was a scrumptous meal, that was comfortable, satisfying and warming after a day of activity. Santouka, keep it up!

Ratings

Food 4/5

Service 3.5/5

Ambiance 3/5

Konichiwa~

Konnichiwa Japanese Restaurant

Address: 31 Baldwin St, Toronto, ON M5T 1L1

Phone: (416)  593-8538

Site: konnichiwa.ca/

Konnichiwa means hello or welcome in Japanese.  Located in Baldwin Village, with a little courtyard and resemblance to European Cafes, it is hard to believe that this little restaurant serves traditional Japanese cuisine.   The entrance is too cute to resist and upon entering, we were welcomed by the warm smiles and greetings of the Japanese waitresses.

The intimate little restaurant feels rustic, as the interior is decorated fully by wood floors and paper-replica pane walls.  Wood is a very important element in Japanese architecture, to unify as one with the natural environment because it is believed everything is created by the one God.  The white walls and the artwork contrasts one another.  The art on the walls were a mixture of colourful hand drawn artwork, origami, or traditional Japanese props.  The white walls seem to replicate the sliding door panels in a traditional Japanese home,  The little restaurant space, overall, is very heartwarming and fun to look at.  The wood benches have electric seat warmers or heaters built under it.  IT IS SO WARM, as if i am getting a massage.

The sashimi appetizer platter ($16) had 6 types of fish or seafood, with 3 pieces each.  They were a mixture of salmon, mackerel, surf clam, yellowtail, red tuna, and octopus.  I felt like I was in heaven just by eating this.  It was SO fresh, fat and sweet, no fishy taste at all.  The sashimi was thick cut and followed the muscle coordination, so I was not biting at the connection points.  I am sure majority have ate mackerel at all-you-can-eats and did not have good experience with it because it tastes sour or have a strong salt fishy taste, BUT I have to especially praise the mackerel here because there was no weird smell or taste, it was pure sweet!

The wasabi used is REAL wasabi root, as opposed to the supermarket ready-to-sell tubes; therefore, it was strong and exciting.  I used the lemon piece to clean my mouth between trying different pieces of sashimi.

The shrimp and vegetable tempura buckwheat noodles ($18) was quite a typical Japanese style comfort food.  The noodles was al dente.  The soup base was the usual Japanese soy sauce type base, which was not too memorable.  It was not a salty or oily course but my only complaint was I wish there was more shrimp, only had one piece and a few more pieces of yam.

Ahi Beef ($15) was beautifully and nicely organized on the plate.  There are various ways of eating, with a couple drops of lemon juice or with scallions or by itself.  The course was not what I expected, I was picturing a rare piece of beef steak, lightly seared, thinly sliced and soft.  However, it was thin cut strips of beef that was used in shabu shabu.  Despite my wrong concept, the taste of the beef was fresh, but a bit overcooked. There was no excess fat on the beef strips and was lightly marinated with salt and black pepper.

It was concluded that the 3 course meal was not enough and was craving for more sashimi.  We decided to go all out and ordered a dinner sashimi platter ($28), comprised of 8 types of fish or seafood, 3 pieces each.  It had exactly the same selection of sashimi as the appetizer, but with addition of scallop, squid, and fish roe.  It was exactly as fresh as the appetizer.  I absolutely love it.  (I am not sure why it came with a bowl of rice.)

My Japanese cuisine crave was happily satisfied by Konnichiwa.  Everything was so fresh and delicious, that I would recommend anyone who is looking for a good quality fast meal to give this little place a try.  I guarantee it is market fresh and definitely handled in a traditional Japanese way.  I give the restaurant a 3,75/5.  Keep in mind, Japanese cuisine is known for small portion sizes, and focus more on enjoying the natural freshness and flavours of the ingredients.

Konnichiwa, I WILL BE BACK!