Lunch at Tojo's

Ryu-san preparing flounder sushi at Tojo's

Earlier this week I with some family friends went to Tojo's Restaurant to have an omakase lunch. It's considered not only one of the top Japanese restaurants in Vancouver but also one of the oldest started by Hidekazu Tojo 34 years ago.

"Scallop sandwich" with tamago, avocado puree

He trained in Osaka at a ryotei, a high-end traditional restaurant, but according to the restaurant's website, Tojo felt limited by the strict traditions of Japanese culinary arts and moved to Vancouver in 1971.

The website also claims he created the "inside out" Tojo roll, now known as the "California roll".

His creativity explains the various items his protege, Ryu-san or "Dragon" presented to us which are not very traditional in combination and presentation. 

Tojo's Restaurant is not usually open for lunch, but from Tuesday to Saturday, Ryu-san will open the restaurant just for lunch and for only 10 people seated at the sushi counter.

Local spot prawn and sweet potato tempura

On the day we went it was our party of six, along with a Taiwanese couple.

The meal costs CAD$150 (HK$916) per person, which by Vancouver standards is very expensive -- but we couldn't swallow the cost for dinner so we went for lunch. When we booked we also had to put down a deposit with our credit card.

The ingredients are very high quality -- fresh sweet scallops, delicious otoro, striped jack, Miyazaki M5 wagyu, spot prawns that are now in season, but they are used differently than what you would find in a traditional sushi restaurant.

For starters each piece was presented in a separate plate or bowl, instead of him serving the sushi at the counter. Also some were very big in size, like the scallop "sandwich" with a slice of tamago inside and topped with avocado puree so it was impossible to eat it all in one bite, let alone with fingers!

Cucumber and seaweed wrapped in squid

Nevertheless the combinations were interesting, like the spot prawn tempura with sweet potato tempura, thin slices of cucumber and seaweed wrapped underneath squid, marinated tuna with Japanese green onion, and otoro donburi topped with caviar, and lobster salad with slices of mango and Japanese pear.

Our last savoury item was uni, cucumber and asparagus on a shiso leaf with uni on top with rice and nori, and we had to make it ourselves, which was a bit odd, but perhaps to give us an opportunity to put it together ourselves. 

Dessert was matcha creme brulee with matcha ice cream, a bit of red bean and some fruits. 

Otoro donburi with caviar on top

Ryu-san talked mostly with the Taiwanese couple who were there for the first time to celebrate their anniversary. The husband, probably in his early 70s, was keen on telling the chef that he appreciated Japanese food and that he went to Japan once a year during his visits to Taiwan.

He wanted to make sure the chef would not cheat him and give him inferior food to eat! Ryu-san joked that if they saw someone mixing wasabi with soy sauce together then they would just get the ordinary cuts of tuna.

In any event it was quite the experience to go to Tojo's Restaurant because it's not somewhere you'd go everyday, though Ryu-san told us he has a regular who comes almost everyday for lunch or dinner. The restaurant is usually closed on Sunday, but if this customer texts him that day, he will come in to open the restaurant just to serve him.

Lobster salad with slices of mango and pear

Talk about big spender...

Tojo's Restaurant

1133 West Broadway

Vancouver

604 872 8050