Sushi Nanaimo

So it is another Tuesday night, Meko and I were just debating where to head for dinner. I suggested an inexpensive place, since I just order some snowboarding gears. Meko was really craving sushi, though he insisted that we will both be poisoned by mercury one day from our high level of raw fish consumption... I hope not... haha. I simply love sashimi too much!!

One of our favourite cheap eats is Sushi Nanaimo! Great service and great food. Perfect spot to get our daily fixtures of large pieces of sashimi, california rolls, etc. I think this place is very comparable to Sushi Garden. But I personally prefer Sushi Nanaimo for dinner since the wait time is less and it is easier to find parking.

Salmon Sashimi, 9 pieces ($8.95)
Mmmm... your classic quantity over quality sashimi! I don't always eat expensive, I still enjoy my cheap sushi eats.

California Roll ($2.95)
They have used a good amount of mayo. I enjoyed it.

Spicy Chopped Scallop Roll ($3.75)
It was alright, but not my favourite roll. Not very fresh.

Yaki Udon, panned fried with beef and vegetable ($7.95)
Very good flavour. Their yaki udon is more moist than other places. They don't cheap out, there is a lot of beef and green onion. But I love my carbs. I ended giving most my beef to Meko and ate most of the udon.

Location: Nanaimo Street and Hastings Street. There is a bus stop right in front of the restaurant. For those who are driving, there are parking on Nanaimo Street. Be careful of the no parking times. Note: they are closed between lunch and dinner.

Food: Solid, cheap sushi eat.
Service: Excellent. Every time I leave the restaurant, one of the waitresses always held the door for me and thanked me for coming in.
Price: The total came to $26 with tax for two people.
Recommended? Great for a quick, cheap dinner. I am almost a regular here. We visit this restaurant at least twice a month. Great to dine in and take out.

- Hippo


Sushi Nanaimo
350 Nanaimo Street
Vancouver, B.C.
Phone: 604-876-9200

Lombardo's Ristorante and Pizzeria

Today is my day off, so I spent it by sleeping in, relaxing, blogging, and grabbing lunch with a friend. He suggested Lombardo's Ristorante and Pizzeria. I have been meaning to come to this restaurant for a long time now, ever since my auntie mentioned to me almost 5 years ago. I was excited to finally try it!

For those who have been to Lombardo's previously, you will notice that they have actually gone through some renovations. I have passed by this restaurant before and from my memory, I much prefer the old design. It had much more character and felt more family oriented. The new design is quite nice, but appears as any other fine/casual dining restaurant. Anyhow, only the atmosphere has changed, it is still the same owners, same menu, and same wood oven.

Tuscan Salad: organic greens, candied pecans, goat cheese, grape tomatoes, dried cranberries, extra virgin olive oil, drizzled with Lombardo's own balsamic reduction ($13)
This salad was surprisingly good!! Topped with a couple slices of goat cheese with balsamic reduction = delicious. The candied pecans definitely highlighted the salad. Next time I am on a diet, I am definitely ordering this.

Ai Due Formaggi: two kinds of cheese, salami, ham, and mushrooms ($15)
Everyone knows Lombardo is known for their amazing pizza. And I can confirm that this pizza was really yummy! Great flavours. They feature thin crust pizza and the crust of the pizza had a good chew to it. It's also nice that they didn't over dry the mushrooms like Pizza Hut. But this made the pizza a little moist if not consumed right away.

Newly renovated Lombardo's Pizzeria

Interior of Lombardo's Pizzeria

Overall, I will recommend Lombardo's Ristorante for their pizza. They have a very wide selection of pizza; quite a few for vegetarians. My friend and I shared the salad and a medium pizza. We found it to be the perfect amount for lunch.

Location: Commercial Drive and 1st Avenue. Restaurant is inside the Il Mercato plaza. You can find parking underground. They do have free parking for 45 minutes.

Food: I really enjoyed the pizza!
Service: Superb. Very friendly staff and was always there when we needed them.
Price: The total came to $31 with tax for two people.
Will I come back? I will to try another one of their great pizzas.

- Hippo


Lombardo's Ristorante and Pizzeria
1641 Commercial Drive
Vancouver, B.C.
Phone: 604-251-2240

Let's Roll Custom Sushi

Ever since Let's Roll Custom Sushi Bar opened at English Bay, my friend has been telling me how amazing it is. So I looked it up, the concept was new and interesting. You essentially make your own sushi with ingredients of your choice. My initial perception of this was: overrated. But after having it for lunch, it actually wasn't bad for the price. Good value and was very filling.

This is like the "Subway" of sushi rolls. You first choose the wrap (traditional seaweed or soy paper). There are three options of rice (white, green, or mixed grain). The green is spinach, which the chef told me goes really well with soy paper wrap. The mixed grain is a purple mix and is the healthiest option. When the sushi chef begin the sushi creation, you can choose 2 vegetables and 2 fresh meats. I was actually overwhelm with the variety of selection. I was thinking about the special sushi rolls I would order from other restaurants and try to replicate that. Not only do you stuff up the roll, you can also choose 2 toppings. That is a lot of ingredients! Lastly, they will finish off the roll with sauces of your choice!

Hippo's Custom Sushi: I chose traditional seaweed with white rice. I stuffed it with avocado, cucumber, spicy tuna, and unagi. The unagi was actually grilled on the spot! When he rolled it up, he placed the roll in a 10 piece sushi cutter to yield exact size of each piece. I actually would prefer him to hand cut it. But I guess it doesn't matter. When he placed it on the dish, I then topped it with crab meat and tempura crunch. Lastly, it is drizzled in spicy mayo (my favourite!).

Meko's Custom Sushi: He chose traditional seaweed with white rice. I dared him to choose mixed grain, as he hated any sort of grainy texture, but he refused. He stuffed it with avocado, asparagus, smoked salmon, and chopped scallops. Topped with crab meat and yam chips. Finally, drenched in delicious Japanese mayo (actually very yummy). This Japanese mayo is recommended by Hippo!

Custom Juice ($3.95): Choice of 3 fruits or additions or signature milk. We opt for 3 fresh fruits: honeydew, mango, and orange. A very tasty combination!

Overall, the roll was much better than expected. Although the tasty sauce had a lot to do with it. The raw fish do not appear very fresh, so I will probably opt out of those stuffing. The imitation crab meat was actually quite good and they were very generous on the topping despite giving us so much stuffing already. Definitely worth the $7.95.

Location: Near the intersection of Denman Street and Davie Street. Very close to English Bay, so you can grab some sushi and enjoy it along the beach on a sunny day. In terms of parking, it will be paid meter parking in the 3 block premises. If you wander off,  you may be able to find free parking.

Food: A huge selection to suite your taste buds. However, can be overwhelming.
Service: Sushi chef was very helpful and patient when I was unsure which ingredient to choose.
Price: The total came to $22 with tax for two people. Very reasonable.
Recommended? 3.5/5

- Hippo


Let's Roll Custom Sushi Bar
#104-1184 Denman Street
Vancouver, B.C.
Phone: 604-569-0058

Sushi by Yuji

Anyone enjoy small, cozy sushi bars as much as I do? Sushi by Yuji is a new sushi joint catered to the Kensington neighbourhood. It opens doors to public mid-January 2013. When you step into this restaurant, you are greeted by Yuji, the sushi chef. He is friendly and very personable.

Nigiri: Wild Sockeye Salmon ($1.75/piece), Engawa ($2.50/piece), Hamachi ($2.75/piece)
Fresh selection of nigiri. You can actually choose the size of the sushi rice (S, M, or L).

Chopped Scallop Gunkan ($1.75)
California Roll ($3.75)
Not like the typical American California Rolls. I found it a little bit too moist. But then again, Yuji probably never needs to make a California Roll in Japan.
Spicy Tuna Roll ($3.75)
I really enjoyed it. Not overloaded with spicy sauce and mashed up tuna. This roll has a decent portion of tuna, paired with some spicy sauce. You can still taste the full texture and flavour of the tuna.

Negitoro with Egg ($2.50/piece)
Overloaded with negitoro!! Love the egg addition.
Salmon Carpaccio ($1.50/piece)
Recommended. Generous portion of wild sockeye salmon. Topped with ponzu, green onion, and a light dash of pepper. I will be ordering this again!

Ika & Uni Roll ($6.50)
On today's special menu. Good combination in terms of texture. However, a tad too much rice.

Overall, I really enjoyed this dinner. I love supporting new restaurant owners who are passionate about food. Vancouver's dining industry is very competitive. Props for Yuji for being such a enthusiastic sushi chef. AND, Meko loved the fact that he gave us Pocky at the end of the meal as a thank you.

Location: On Kingsway. There is parking in front of the restaurant. Closed Mondays.

Food: Fresh and delicious. Authentic.
Service: Excellent. Tea is always refilled. Even the chef himself came out to our table to see if we were satisfied with our meal.
Price: The total came to $44 with tax for two people.
Will I come back? Definitely.

- Hippo


Sushi by Yuji
2252 Kingsway
Vancouver, B.C.
Phone: 604-434-0003

Beaver Tails

After a morning of snowboarding on fresh powdery snow, we needed lunch to charge up for the afternoon. We've both been to Grouse Mountain before from the grind, but it was our first time boarding on the mountain. So we stumbled across Beaver Tails! This little hut in the middle of nowhere was great, so we did not have to head back to the Peak Chalet.

Beaver tail is a fried thin slice of dough, often coated with cinnamon and sugar. Very similar to elephant ears and churros - snacks that you can find in the PNE. What Beaver Tails feature is a wide variety of toppings, such as chocolate hazelnut, chocolate banana, maple, oreo, and skors. We opt for the classic cinnamon and sugar, since it was a really cold day and last thing I want is to make a mess eating on the mountain with my snow gears.

Classic Beaver Tail: cinnamon and sugar ($4.75)
Freshly made and delicious!! We downed it really quick and was craving more, but we needed real food. This was only a snack. So we actually went for a few more runs before heading back for some lunch/dinner. It is a bit over priced, but so are all elephant ears.

Overall, I definitely recommend it for a spring/summer time snack. You can enjoy the gooey chocolate spread on a warm sunny day! They also serve hot chocolate - perfect combination.

Location: On top of Grouse Mountain. Walk pass The Cut. It should be down Chalet Road, located at the beginning of most blue runs. Approximately 5 minute walk from the main building, Peak Chalet.

Food: It was great! Freshly fried and tasty dough.
Service: N/A. Fast food.
Price: Each beaver tails is approximately $4-6, depending on the toppings.
Recommended? Yes, on a sunny warm day!

- Hippo


Beaver Tails - Grouse Mountain
6400 Nancy Greene Way
North Vancouver, B.C.
Phone: 778-847-4799