Ryuko West - Japanese Kitchen + Bar — Restaurant in Calgary

The food is very good. We ordered quite a bit of food, including the premium nigiri platter, kaiseki box, ebi katsu udon, pork katsu teshoku, tori no karaage, surf and turf roll, and the yuzu drink.

Our highlight was the surf and turf roll, where the wagyu beef blends with the shrimp tempura very well, it is one of the best rendition of surf and turf rolls we have had. The yuzu drink was quite unique and our family enjoyed it very much. Within the kaiseki box, we loved the sashimi, ebi katsu, the mini chirashi bowl, and the fish with rice dish (sea bass maybe?). Of the premium nigiri platter, engawa and the ama ebi were the best. The engawa was lightly seared, which is a great way to bring out the flavor of a white fish. The ama ebi is plump and juicy, perhaps the largest ama ebi I've ever had (it was 2 pieces of shrimp but both were bigger than typical). Unfortunately the blue fin akami and chutoro fell short for me, the former was a bit irony/sour (perhaps it's the way it's aged), but the latter especially was very lacking in fat, it didn't even really looked like chutoro.

Needless to say, the Ebi Katsu Udon was great, the way they did the ebi katsu was really nice. the batter was very fluffy and light, and isn't a typical tempura batter. We also loved the tori no karaage, although a bit pricy, it was probably the best Japanese style fried chicken I've had in Calgary.

Finally, the dish that could use some improvement would be the pork katsu. It was really dry and fell short in quality compared to the rest of the meal.

I would encourage the waitress to know the dishes better. It took her a while to introduce the fish and the kaiseki dishes to us, some I had to tell her what they are instead. The introduction took a very long time and I was starting to worry that the food was going to get cold, good thing half of it was raw. Still, the waitress was friendly and attentive throughout the meal service and we really enjoyed the ambiance of the restaurant. Will definitely...

Went to Ryuko for the first time today. I was shocked to see how busy it was on a Wednesday afternoon. For drinks, we had the Hokicha tea-good flavour and a Yuzu Mocktail, which was really good but a bit sweet. The presentation is like the alcoholic version with the smoke bubble, which was cool. The overall food presentation was great. Had the magurocamole, which was tasty and visually stunning with smoke coming out of the dish when the lid was lifted, but alas, it was a small portion. The waiter advised that we could have more taro chips for free if we ran out (we didn't). We also had the hokkaido scallop, which was tasty, too. The chicken katsu was crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. The flavour was really good. The lunch set portion was great with miso soup, rice, and salad. The Tonkotsu Ramen was nothing special. The broth was a bit bland, not as rich as I normally like, and the meat was quite fatty, but it was fine. I probably wouldn't order again. Food came quickly, which was great. The poor server was the only one there, so he left us alone with very little follow-up. He didn't offer us dessert or more drinks and really only touched base with us when we were ready to leave, but it was ok since we were chatting anyway. They have an extensive menu with a brunch menu that looked great. One thing is that they have brunch from 8:30 am to 11:30 am, but not every day. I think they said Wednesday to Sunday? This is nowhere on the website or menu, so you wouldn't know unless you go or call. I liked the ambience and the open kitchen concept. Overall, though it was a good experience, I will...

My family and I have been to Ryuko on multiple occasions and are always excited to try anything and everything on Ryuko's menu. Today being Mother's Day, my mother and I without hesitation chose to try a new experience: The Ryuko brunch.

We ordered the 100% apple juice from Aomori apples which had a beautiful blend of sweetness, the mimosa with yuzu-orange juice, the choushoku tray, avocado toast, and yuzu pavlova dessert. Having just come back from Japan I was excited to try their Choushoku tray which had the nostalgic taste of Japan with a modern twist, which Ryuko is famous at executing. The avocado toast was delicious, blending so many flavours into one dish making it THE avocado toast to have. The yuzu pavlova was as delicious as always, blending sweet and tart in an artistic display.

The highlight was the yuzu-orange juice mimosa. I ordered this as a surprise for my mum and when I taste tested it.... let's just say I may have drank more of it than she had. The yuzu gave an incredible tangy/zesty flavour that was balanced with the orange juice and prosecco. An absolute must-have and I look forward to trying this without the alcohol too.

Atmosphere-wise it was perfect. Not too loud but not too quiet; a balanced atmosphere for discussion. Jin, our server, was incredible. Respectful, kind, personable, need I say more? And Jay was so welcoming and made the day even more memorable. I felt my mum was treated special and that is all I could have asked for.

Ryuko never fails to have it all: authentic Japanese food with a modern twist while beautifully displayed. Artistic and delicious. We cannot wait to...