Zen Japanese Restaurant — Restaurant in Markham

Food: 3 Stars (per Yelp standards, it means "A-Ok") compared to my Michelin-starred sushi omakase experience in Japan (never got around to write that review).

Experience: 5 Stars because I was able to interact with the sushi chef, Vince. As my fellow yelper Chris W said, this interaction made the experience much more enjoyable. It's a much more laid back environment compared to my experience in Japan. If it is just you and another guest, grab a seat at the sushi bar and enjoy.

Overall, the food quality doesn't match the high-end sushi I had Japan. However, the difference in price is probably double.

Summary: a) The temperature of the fish and rice were not at the optimal temperature; b) I'd prefer more vinegar in their sushi rice c) the horseradish in their wasabi is powerful (I told Vince to cut back on it and he obliged); and d) the fish is pre-sliced

Long-review below:

Ordered: Sashimi and sushi omakase

Each course was explained in great detail.

The first two courses were appetizers. First course was abalone with noodles in some soup/dashi. The soup/dashi was cool in temperature which made for a refreshing start. The abalone was tender. I really enjoyed the flower pedals sprinkled over the dish. The floral flavour caught me be surprise.

Second course: (via pictures) On the leaf like bowl: Octopus (normally comes with duck breast but I abstain from meat on Friday), some savoury cake, and some fish. In the blue vessel, fish with crispy skin.

In the cup, baby shrimp with some noodles. The soup/dashi was slightly different from the first course.

All the proteins were cooked well.

Third: Sashimi course I have no idea what I had. There were some Hokkaido scallops, wild tuna from Boston, trout...

There was nothing fishy about any of the pieces. Pure and simple. The highlight for me was the piece of fish that was touching the lemon. The citrus really complimented the fish.

Miso soup: Piece of fish at the bottom had a very meaty in texture.

Fourth: Sushi Chef Vince would explain each sushi piece and the origin of the fish.

The highlight was the seared tuna belly. The smoky flavour imparted from the blow torch and the fat melting in my mouth made for an "Oishii" (Japanese word for delicious) comment.

I also enjoyed the sushi topped with Japanese chives and ginger (see photo for the sushi with green stuff on top). The onion flavour was so pure and the ginger provided a slight warming undertone without over-powering the piece.

Lastly, the uni was simply perfect. Creamy and smooth. The best part was the taste of the deep oceans waters that lingers. Sourcing quality ingredients and treating it with respect. This is Japanese cuisine at its best.

We added mantus shrimp (aka pissing shrimp). The shrimp is boiled. The shrimp was mild in flavour. Its texture and the surprise of the roe were the highlights.

Zen does not end their sushi omakase with the traditional tamago (egg). Instead, they offer a hand rolled chopped tuna sushi. My first bite was mainly seaweed and the rice. Their seaweed imported from Japan is wicked good. I would have been happy if I just snacked on the seaweed.

Fifth: Dessert Imported Japanese melon: It was okay... Soy bean ice cream: Tasty and not overly sweet. Gritty texture, but still enjoyable. Match and almond flour cookie: Crunchy and...

We came here to celebrate our mother's birthday! To be honest, from the outside, the parking lot is dark and dim, you wouldn't think the restaurant is opening. But I guess when you are serving omakase and know your clientele will go anywhere to have good food, the spot is on point. But it does give you an uneasy and sketchy feel when rolling up at the restaurant.

Since we have 5 people, when we called to make a booking, the staff already told us that depending on the evening, there maybe space to put an extra table to give us some more space, but it's not guaruantee, so it was very thoughtful to accommodate us and thinking ahead (when we arrived, they did give us an extra table to provide us with more space, so that's a nice touch).

People, despite made a reservation, everyone lines up outside as to not to distract other patrons who are dining.

We each ordered the "Sushi & Sashimi" combo at $120 CDN. It comes with a home made miso soup, followed by a platter of a variety of 8-9 pieces of fresh raw sashimi for each people. Then comes a plate of sushi that has about 7 pcs with variety of fishes, and finishes off with a hand roll. (You got to eat as quickly as possible as the staff said, it's high quality seaweed). We could taste the difference between this high quality seaweed vs the normal one we ate at ayce.

To be honest, the price proportion at $120 is a bit pricey for a Markham location in a dark parking plaza as compared to places such as Kaji at Queensway. We found Kaji at Queensway brings better value and more food to each patron with their combo than here. But again, if you live in Markham/Richmond Hill, driving all the way to Queensway maybe a drive. $120 with just a miso soup, sashimi and sushi is relatively expensive than even downtown prices.

However, in terms of taste, the fishes served to us were fresh, unique and delicious. We ordered some grilled fish and squid legs as appetizers to share and they were nicely cooked.

I do, however, say, the service, atmosphere were its strongest point. Servers were courteous, patience, knowledgeable, happy to answer your questions and they were hardworking, consistently pouring tea, and iced water throughout the night by default without asking.

Last but not least, when the server asked the table prior to serving us food, she asked if there is any special occasion. We said it is to celebrate our mom's birthday. After we had completed our food, the server came in with candle light, a nicely presented dessert for our mom (free of charge). That's a nice touch and really elevate the entire experience to the next level, bringing smiles to our mom and our family.

All-in-all, we enjoyed our dining experience. It's not the best value for the buck, but the service, quality of food, dining...

I’ll start by saying, yes, this place is very expensive. However, after being to so many expensive restaurants I have to say this one is WORTH IT. If you spend under $200, you’re probably missing out.

The restaurant itself is fairly small and intimate. Lighting is low except for the cooking area, which is the best place to keep your attention as the chef prepares the sushi/sashimi. If you’re lucky enough to book the counter (which costs an extra $10 per person) you can see much more closely as they prepare, and they deliver directly to you. They do coat check for free, and give you a container to place your bag under your chair.

The chefs are really kind, and you can talk to them as they cook. Most of the staff are fluent in Japanese, (and are most likely Japanese if that matters to you) so if you wanted to say a few Japanese phrases or words they’ll respond back in Japanese. The head chef encouraged me to practice with the chef serving us, and it was really fun. Speaking of, our chef was very young and dressed differently so I think he was an apprentice (as were the other 2 chefs; I like that they each had their own colour of uniform).

The food itself is so amazingly hard to describe. You can taste what you pay for and then some with the high quality of each ingredient. For an extra $15, you could have real pure wasabi ground freshly for you. Watching them prepare the food was like watching an artist paint; each movement was so careful and delicate. If the cut was angled oddly or slightly off, they would do it again until they got it correctly. I kept forgetting to take pictures because I was so distracted. Each piece of sushi was a new experience!

I should note that not every piece was necessarily perfect, which is understandable since again I think our chef is in training as an apprentice. But it’s still more impressive than the average sushi chef!

The taste is something you really have to go try yourself; no amount of words can describe how delicious each piece was, and each one told a different story. I’m not a fan of Uni, but I have never tasted Uni quite like it before; there was no grainy after taste, it was creamy, AND it had some kind of magical after taste that had me seeing a clear ocean behind my eyelids. It was a whole RIDE, and that was from one piece of sushi! The seaweed was so fresh; it had such a satisfying crunch as you take a bite, and the taste was so-!!!

I can go on and on about every single piece of sushi but you really need to go try it yourself!! I went for my birthday, and they prepared a small surprise at the end. Overall, I can’t praise this restaurant enough. I definitely...