571503 Tue Nov 11 18:28:10 -0800 2008 16 23 Ontario (including Toronto) 0 4166092 So after putting it off for a month I finally went for dinner to Grand Ichiban Sushi at Spadina and Adelaide. The space is nicely decorated, really clean looking space, the decor as much as the actual place setting and chairs etc... Unlike the other Ichibans in the city, Grand Ichiban has a different menu with items you don't see a lot of in Toronto. We started off with the spicy white tuna tataki which is a dish that just lightly sears the fish or meat just on the outside while keeping the inside raw. While we were still deciding what else to order after the Tataki our waitress came with a Sukidashi which she said is a complementary starter. It was just two pieces of spicy salmon roll that was deep fried then topped with calamari/cuttlefish salad. It was reaaaally nice and I asked what it was called and she just told me that it was a work in progress that the owner was thinking of putting on the menu. So after that we ordered from the Contemporary Rolls section Lobster Fantasy Roll, Volcano Roll and the Black Dragon Roll. So firstly, the presentation for all the dishes were a definite hit for me. I'm seldom ever impressed with Japanese restos in this aspect(except for Kaji) but I was pretty wowed. You could definitely see the fusion influence on all of the dishes. But anyways to the most important part: the taste. The tataki was seared nicely, great texture too and the spicy sauce added a nice edge to the tuna. It was served with yuzu sauce, but neither of us used it cause the spicy sauce was plenty. The Lobster Fantasty was a little heavy for me but my friend really liked it, basically it's a tempura-ed lobster tail with avocado served with a kewpie mayo sauce. If you like the dynamite roll and spider roll chances are you'll like this one. My favourite was the Volcano Roll which was actually pretty explosive with flavours. It had spicy scallops inside with tempura bits and I think it was avocado. The maki is then wrapped with salmon which is then broiled then has cheese melted over it and drizzled with spicy sauce and caviar. By the time the Black Dragon got to us we were both pretty stuffed, but we ate a couple pieces each anyways. The Black Dragon was a Dynamite roll wrapped with unagi and avocado with unagi sauce and a mayo based sauce. For all of the rolls my biggest compliment would have to be the rice, it wasn't too vinegary or too wet or dry. The whole thing for both of us came up to around $60 but we were both really full. I would definitely go back and try the sashimi and sushi (especially the amaebi) and the tempura icecream sounded pretty awesome too. In general, great place to eat downtown.. service was good and fast, our waitress was also pretty cute as an added plus. Tue Nov 11 18:28:10 -0800 2008 225112 moonflow 1 4166351 Wonder if you have been to Crazy Sushi, Akasaka, Blowfish and Japango ? They all got a pretty good and big fusion sushi list just like those you mentioned in Grand Ichiban. How does Grand Ichiban compare to the fusion sushi in these restaurants ? Thanks. Tue Nov 11 20:35:02 -0800 2008 4166092 62525 skylineR33 2 4168828 I would have to say that out of the three that you've listed, blowfish is probably the best but that's just my opinion. I liked how they balanced sweetness from fruit flavours with the heaviness of the savoury items, but I did also think that at times it got a little bit too funky for me... but that's also because I prefer flavours that are spicy and rich opposed to sweet. I had the blue snow, kiwi lobster, kobe arugula rolls there and i liked the last one of the best. (Blowfish also has lovely clean presentation as well) As for Crazy Sushi... I've been there a couple of years a go but I have yet to return. While they have some interesting rolls I didn't much like the presentation or the quality. It might just have been me, since my friends have gone there before and have had good experiences, but on my trip I found the rice to be a little dry and the fish was not at its optimal freshness. Japango is one that I have not tried but I hear that they are more famous for their noodle dishes than they are for the sushi menu. I would say that Grand Ichiban's fusion menu predominantly is spicy and savoury. The flavours that they incorporate are different from the traditional style of maki but also have familiar aspects to them so it doesn't throw people off from giving it a try. For instance, while I tried the Kiwi Lobster Roll at Blowfish and liked it, my date just wrinkled his nose at it and passed on giving it a go. Another thing was that the dishes at Grand Ichiban don't just taste lovely but they look nice as well. It's a pretty big thing when a sushi place with a mid-range pricing takes the time to appeal to other senses too which is a compliment I can't give to many Japanese restos that Toronto is riddled with. Wow.. that turned out to be a really long response.. but I hope that helped (: Wed Nov 12 16:46:42 -0800 2008 4166351 225112 moonflow 3 4169118 Eventhough I don't really see anything special from your description of the fusion rolls at Gtand other than the familiar ingradient used and formation in fusion sushi roll, but Looks like Grand Ichiban is a nice addition to this kind of sushi. Regarding Japango, their fusion sushi is also very good with nice balance of mayo used, such as the Japango Roll which has a great presentation, nice aroma from the seared scallop and nicely prepared rice. Wed Nov 12 18:47:21 -0800 2008 4168828 62525 skylineR33 4 4169384 I'm not a big fan of fruit+cooked+mayo maki or anything like that (even after having eaten Jeff Ramsey's strange assortment at Tapas in Tokyo), but Grand Ichiban definitely does not satisfy. It's pretty much the exact same quality as the other Ichiban locations, though, as the OP noted, there are different options. Maki options don't really work for me (unlike the ones Jeff Ramsey does), and, for instance, fish quality isn't really superb, flavours are muted to bring on stronger flavours (eg: cheese, spicy mayos, etc.) that essentially mask whatever flavours you'd actually find appealing in sushi, and, well, are generally used to cover up poor quality seafood and rice. I personally found the rice underseasoned (as is typical with Korean places, as kimbap tends to use a much less seasoned rice), and definitely not the right texture or temperature (especially after being broiled with cheese or sauces on top). Presentation is nicer than the generic sushi joint, but because it's just sexed-up for the crowd it is intended to appeal to, it seems to be just another way of masking a sub par sushi product.. I wouldn't recommend it for those seeking high quality sushi, but if you're the type who enjoys a bunch of weird spicy mayo-y gunk maki with cooked ingredients and whatnot, you'd probably enjoy Grand Ichiban. Wed Nov 12 20:54:10 -0800 2008 4169118 202405 tjr 5 4169419 Wow... sorry to hear that your experience wasn't as great as mine... guess everyone has their own tastes, Wed Nov 12 21:16:56 -0800 2008 4169384 225112 moonflow 5 4169438 not all of that came out... yea so anyways, you sound like a purist.. have you tried Hashimoto on Dixie? they do a great Kaiseki (: Wed Nov 12 21:31:39 -0800 2008 4169384 225112 moonflow 5 4169468 I have not tried the fusion sushi at Grand, so I cannot say much about their quality. But I don't think one can use the normal seasoning, temperature, texture on the rice as with traditional sushi in fusion sushi as fusion sushi always has a stronger taste that comes with different kind of ingradients such as mixture of mayo, spice, fruit, cooked food, raw food ... it really need to be done in a way to match with the ingradient and sauce used in different kind of fusion sushi. Wed Nov 12 21:49:10 -0800 2008 4169384 62525 skylineR33 6 4170839 Yes, I have been to Hashimoto, and it's excellent. I have had excellent fusion sushi in Tokyo; the maki at Grand Ichiban were bland or one-note, with pretty standard maki flavours for Toronto. Usually the flavour of the fish/shellfish was drowned out by fairly typical sauces like spicy mayo. The rice was bland, usually overcooked, too hot, etc. I agree that seasoning, temperature, etc. need to be adjusted when you're taking sauces (however incomprehensible they may be at times) and strong flavours into account, but this was pretty much the equivalent of eating an over-steamed rice roll with lobster tempura and mayo. The rice was also the exact same in each of the maki we ordered, so I doubt they are adjusting it according to what ingredients they are using. Ichiban can't get basic nigiri or maki right at their other locations, so I didn't go in expecting anything extraordinary, but I guess I was pleasantly surprised that the food wasn't as bad as it would be at their regular restaurants. I also had a lot of trouble deciding whether or not it was inventive fusion (ala Tapas), or whether it was just regular maki with nicer presentation and extra ingredients. Most dishes were along the style of a regular maki, with upgrades, or more ingredients added, or a combination of two rolls (eg: tempura shrimp maki -> tempura lobster avocado maki, with mayo; black dragon was a combination of a dragon and a dynamite roll, etc.). I didn't see a unique combination of flavours that really blew my mind, it was all pretty much standard ingredients put together in a slightly different than usual way. Maybe I'm being a bit negative, so here are some positives: - The restaurant itself is pretty nice looking, and it's spotless (very clean) - It's much better than the other Ichiban locations - There are many options for people who don't like eating raw seafood - People who normally order fusion maki at budget sushi joints will probably enjoy Grand Ichiban (though they probably won't like the prices). Thu Nov 13 11:00:54 -0800 2008 4169468 202405 tjr 7 4171255 Ichiban is a franchise, each restaurant is run independently, so do not expect any consistency between them. Thu Nov 13 13:01:00 -0800 2008 4170839 13182 Teep 7 4171262 Thanks for the reply, I too think it will be great if Japanese restaurants in Toronto can come up with more idea and interesting ingradients other than all these familiar ingradients and formation for the fusion sushi. Thu Nov 13 13:02:57 -0800 2008 4170839 62525 skylineR33 3 4169320 japango for noodles? could you go into more detail? that's a bit of a surprise to me and i've never ordered them there but it'd be good to know if they're doing something exceptional in that arena. Wed Nov 12 20:21:59 -0800 2008 4168828 10634 pinstripeprincess 4 4169338 I want to know more too. I have tried their Nabe Udon at Japango which is pretty good, boiling hot in a claypot, but other than that, any other kind of noodle that is good there ? Wed Nov 12 20:30:19 -0800 2008 4169320 62525 skylineR33 1 4170899 Cheese with Fish!?!? Am I the only one that finds that disgusting? Thu Nov 13 11:16:37 -0800 2008 4166092 156403 Sadistick 2 4171198 Agreed. Some might argue that there are a few cooked fish and seafood dishes that incorporate cheeses and are good, but I'll never choose them in a restaurant or cook them in my kitchen. Fish is too delicate for cheese. Raw fish and cheese together are horrid. I'm a lox purist -- no cream cheese for me. I've tried a Philly roll in Mexico, but only because it appeared unannounced on my sushi platter. I tried one, was totally grossed out and wound up poking the cream cheese out of the remaining maki pieces. Thu Nov 13 12:41:32 -0800 2008 4170899 239809 1sweetpea 1 4172005 I don't know about 'this' Grand Ichiban. But three days ago, I had the WORST yakitori at an Ichiban at Leslie and 16th Ave in Richmond Hill. Instead of charbroiled, the chicken pieces skewers were grilled with butter to cardboard dryness and with no accompanying sauce or glaze. Absolutely tasteless! The chef should head downtown to Japango and learn a lesson or two from them!! What a rip off! Wonder whether the place is run by Koreans instead of Japanese has something to do with it?! Thu Nov 13 17:38:43 -0800 2008 4166092 10810 Charles Yu 2 4172361 It is amazing that Ichiban still in business after so many years, when the other Japanese restaurant adjacent to it, which used to be a pretty nice Teppanyaki place changed hand many times ! I last visited it 4 years ago. Thu Nov 13 20:33:53 -0800 2008 4172005 62525 skylineR33