Ari Sushi — Restaurant in Calgary

I’m not sure what to think. or if the owners found my personal email and are no longer allowing me to leave reviews from my own account. I was going to call to the owners and speak with them to apologize and say thank you again, but it seems that they’ve misdirected their anger…

I was going to say thank you for letting me stay in the lot, but upon reading the reviews I can see that someone else is being blamed for my car being parked there after hours VIA google reviews…….. just because someone left reviews after my visit doesn’t mean it was one person??? they have no proof whatsoever and i’m starting to think they’re just crazy people. I don’t know where the logic is there and now we have a problem again.

it was towed by AMA roadside assistance (I have proof) and the owners got my first/last name to help out BUT AFTER the commotion, I felt a bit rushed with them standing there watching, constantly checking to see when i’m leaving, and the lady ultimately calling someone to give me a parking ticket when I said my car keys GOT STOLEN she still called someone to ticket me and make the situation worse… she still called a parking guy to give me trouble. if you heard when I said I got my keys stolen…. please don’t talk about fair from a regular customer. he then came outside and asked for my information AFTER giving me all of the trouble so don’t act like a saviour……

should do better overall. I can call the tow company and verify the owners had me double check CALL THEM AGAIN to see if they were coming or if I was lying about getting tow so I could selfishly park there!!!! because they were so impatient about the car being moved, I guess because people walk off often which is not my problem though I feel bad….

they could see I was stressed about the keys being stolen out of my bag yet called parking authorities who I had to argue with to dismiss the ticket (the restaurant did not do this on their own, they originally tried to give me a ticket until I explained for the FOURTH TIME my car keys were stolen). the owners dramatically watched the car get towed and waited for us to leave.

I again was going to say thank you, but there’s no gratitude needed when they’re being plain rude and taking it out on others in their google reviews. it’s bittersweet. I used to be a regular, but this is just a turn off and unprofessional. whether it’s take out or dine in, you can’t threaten law suits for people telling the truth (I can counter suit!) also that’s probably why there’s good reviews they threaten everytime there’s a bad review.

I have everything on record per the incident as well as my calls with the tow company and mechanic, and proof of you rushing me out of your empty parking lot with 1 other car so...

AMAZING quality food & presentation. This is not one of those sushi restaurant that sells 10 pieces of California rolls with 5 pieces of basic sashimi when you order “sashimi platter”. If you're looking for legit sushi experience in Calgary, this is the place. I find price to be very reasonable for what you see & get (similar to Sushi Bar Zipang)

Now, the only reason for 4 star is how slow the service was. Here are some feedback:

#1A. We ordered Tempura Udon and I even wrote it down on the paper. But I guess the lady punched in tempura only. About 45mins into receiving tempura only, I checked if our udon was coming soon. Then they kindly entered another set of tempura + udon. ** In a formal restaurant like Ari Sushi, there should be just one server per table. It was getting a bit overwhelming to interact with several (about 3?) servers and getting my order mixed up. #1B. Communication issue. Often times, it's better to keep the conversation simple. I think the issue with mixed up order from 1A is related to this issue. I feel bad for commenting this because staffs were all VERY kind. But in reality, most of customers are not there to chat. Introverted person like myself, I prefer to enjoy my food and quickly leave the restaurant. (Pressured) Small talk + Broken English, not a good combination unfortunately.

#2. Slow (food) service. “unexpected delay” due to COVID is one thing. But it was weekend + Valentine’s day. As a restaurant owner, high order volume could’ve been expected. Again, I feel bad for commenting this because chefs were working so hard and very apologetic about the delay. Perhaps, having extra assistant chefs to help with ingredient prep could benefit this restaurant a lot.

Also, it would've been nice if we were informed that order is going to take 45min~longer. Truthfully, we wanted to order more food but ended up eating mcdonalds afterwards lol. Didn't have patient to wait another 45mins.. ☹

Regardless of slow food service, we will be back to this awesome +...

Ari's been on my bucket list for a long time and when a colleague offered to take me for lunch, I jumped at the chance. We had reservations for noon and arrived a few minutes early and they don't open the door until exactly noon- this is an annoyance; I hate it when restaurants open at noon for lunch instead of, say, 11:30. Anyway, we were seated promptly. We both ordered the sushi lunch special, which comprised 10 pieces of nigiri, most of which were delicious, some spectacularly so, but one had a bone and not a tiny one- this should never happen. That said, the unagi was amazing, the spicy tuna gunkan perhaps the best I've ever had, and they took something as simple as inari and made it this masterpiece. We also got miso soup, which was devastatingly rich in flavour and a perfect temperature; a beef tartare which I loved but which my dining companion thought was underseasoned (I didn't, at all), and two disappointments: first, the agedashi tofu, which was really bland and which I've had tastier versions of at far cheaper sushi places. Second, I asked for iced tea and my server brought me canned Nestle iced tea. I was expecting something more artisanal, at least a freshly brewed tea, and she said that they do have a green tea that they serve on ice...now, why did she bring me this sugar-laden soft drink when they had this glorious green tea as an option? She did get that for me and I LOVED it, but I can't understand why I wasn't offered that...