Sushi California: New menu, poor execution

BigBlackBab00n was back in townnn! Time for long overdue lunch =D Joined by LittleWeed, we hit up our fav jap place in the area, Sushi California. They had a new menu and looks renovated, quite nice now!

Restaurant: Sushi California

Location: 501 North Road, Coquitlam
Cuisine: Japanese, Sushi
Price range: $10-15 per person



Date of visit: December 27, 2014
Atmosphere: 4/5
Staff/service: 4/5
Food variety: 5/5
Food quality: 3/5
Buck worthy? 4/5

New to their menu was Hirame ($1.60). I found it a bit too fishy and "veiny". Tasted like a combination of Tai and Hamachi. Rice was cooked and seasoned well. Also got Kanpachi ($2.00), it was fresh and tasty. Flavors are light and the fish was flakey. Also a Chopped Scallop ($1.35) which was overflowing with scallop. It was a bit too saucy though. But fresh and delicious =D (all the nigiris were large size)

Also new to their menu were Fresh Oysters ($4.95). These were poorly executed. They were hit or miss. 2/4 were fresh, 2/4 were not parted from the shell, and one had a broken shell. Only one had no shell bits in the oyster.

They were slimey-- like they hadn't been cleaned at all. Flavors didn't go well with the oysters. Kinda sad, but what did I expect from a place like this? The other stuff was still great (rolls, noodles, etc).

Either way, I enjoyed my kanpachi and chopped scallop. Also ate some of LittleWeed's sushi =P Delish!

Sushi California: Sushi-comfort-food

Been feeling a bit mopey and stressed lately, glad Little Teemo and Eggtart pulled me out to dinner =) Great company and sushi therapy? Golden.

Restaurant: Sushi California

Location: 501 North Road, Coquitlam
Cuisine: Japanese, Sushi
Price range: $10-15





Date of visit: March 9, 2014
Atmosphere: 3/5
Staff/service: 4/5
Food variety: 5/5
Food quality: 3.75/5
Buck worthy? 4.5/5

I forgot how LARGE their nigiris were so I went ahead and ordered a Salmon ($1.20), Ika ($1.25),  Hamachi ($2.00), and Chopped Scallop ($1.35) nigiri =/ Way too much food. Fish was fresh, the ika was meh though, too gummy and not enough crunch to it. Seafood to rice ratio was too low-- there was too much rice!

I also ordered a Crunch House Roll ($4.50), which was basically a deep-fried house roll! It was nice and crispy, didn't feel oily at all! The salmon and tuna became rather cooked after sitting for a while (residual head I presume), but otherwise it was delish!

Little Teemo ordered a Hot N Roll ($3.95). I didn't get a chance to try the Hot N Roll, but it looked really pretty and fancy for a roll of that price!

She also had a Spicy Tuna Tempura Roll ($3.95) and an Alaska Roll ($3.95), of which I tried the spicy tuna tempura roll. I felt it was a nice texture, not too oily but could use a bit more kick to it ^-^

Eggtart ordered a Crunch Cali ($3.95) aka a deep fried california roll, and a Bills Roll ($3.95), which contained yam tempura. So much rice he almost had a carb coma xD

I tried Eggtart's Sweet Mango roll ($6.95), it was light and fresh, but I wish it were sweeter with more mango flavor to it (he felt it wasn't sweet enough either).

I found their rice to be a bit tasteless, but the texture was good. It was actually quite full for such a late hour (for Coquitlam this is a BIG thing-- most places are closed early haha). I guess for the price paid, it's a great deal =)

Photo credits to Little Teemo

I was in the presence of amazing company. Always nice to know you have people around you supporting you regardless =) *forever grateful*

Sushi California, Coquitlam: Brings back fond memories...

Last dinner before RL goes away on vacation! Haven't been here in a long time, and many things have changed--- for the better =)

Restaurant: Sushi California

Location: 501 North Road, Burnaby
Cuisine: Japanese, Sushi
Price range: $10+




Date of visit: August 5, 2013
Atmosphere: 4/5
Staff/service: 5/5
Food variety: 5/5
Food quality: 4.5/5
Buck worthy? 5/5

Noticed a few items I've never tried before, so I was adventurous (as always). RL was here just last night, so he ordered something he enjoyed, which was the Tuna Gomae ($4.50). It was very average, nothing super special about it besides the tuna sashimi in it, which was fresh. Interesting combo.

He also ordered a Smoked Salmon Garlic Roll ($4.50), which I considered ordering too =D So happy I got to try. Garlic was deep fried and placed on top of the roll, crunchy and very garlic-y. I didn't taste much of the shrimp, but the avocado was delicious.

Of course, I ordered Takoyaki ($3.95), which was quite fresh and very crispy. I loved it, wished there was a bit more tako in it and bonito shavings on it.

Also got nigiri, Salmon ($1.20) and Chopped Scallop ($1.35). Both were fairly fresh, but I found the chopped scallop too chopped up. Portion size was large, typical for a restaurant like this.

I also ordered a Yellow Town Roll ($3.95) because of its name. I think this roll is really good for the summer because it was so refreshing. The topping was a mixture of onions, smoked salmon, mayo, and something else that was crunchy (coudn't figure it out). Either way, it was cold and complimented the whole roll well. Lots of avocado in the actual roll.

Satisfied with my experience, I will be back soon to try out more of their stuff! =)