Choi's Roll — Restaurant in Ontario

I keep telling myself I need to leave a review for this place. So, after 3 years (maybe more?) here it is.

First of all, this is a take-out sushi place. It has a clean and simple interior decorated with quality service. Kevin, the head chef, is the face you want to see when you're hungry. He hits you with a happy hello before your foot finishes crossing the threshold and no time is wasted. You will get your food within 5-10 minutes. There is always one other person waiting for their food with you. This place gets steady business and this is why:

Fresh ingredients: The fish is plump. The avocado is never brown. The cucumbers crunch and the rice is sticky. Every order is made with care and seasoned to never leave you dissatisfied. This is not the best sushi I've ever had (I eat a lot of sushi) but I always go back. It consistently hits the spot and it's GOOD.

Service: When this place first opened, I gave it a chance. The teal paint and big windows invited me in. I ordered off the blown-up menu on the wall and was handed a neatly tied bag with "an extra hand roll for you". That, I thought was clever (and nice). What better way to bring in business than free food. And It was the first time I ever got a free food that wasn't an apologetic back pedal. I at smiled the man with the smile and went back to my office. I ate and knew I would be going back. Since then, every time I've visited Choi's I've always felt like comfortable? Is that the right word? It just feels good to wait there. You hear the soft chatter of the kitchen as the news plays silently on the screen before you. The stools are high and there is a fridge of different drinks for you to look through. Then, your food is ready. It's been three years and today was just a visit to the city and guess what? "Extra roll for you".

Price: It's cheaper. Where a red dragon roll usually costs $13-14, its $10.90 here (called the orange dragon, their red dragon is with tuna). My spicy scallops roll was $4.90.Their small maki boat is $24 and perfect for sharing. And it doesn't compromise in quality.

In sum, go to Choi's if you want to eat sushi at home or feel like some fish on your lunch break. It's fast and it's good and Kevin is the nicest.

Support local...

We just had a super delicious meal, courtesy of Choi's Roll and I had to write a review!

We are vegan, and we got a platter and a half of vegan rolls with various tasty combos, including a shiitake roll, pickled radish, and a veggie deluxe roll - yam, avocado, tempura, sweet tofu, cucumber.

The customer service was exceptional. From placing the order on the phone, to picking it up, we experienced the most friendly and welcoming service. They helped me strategize what to get and was really accommodating and helpful in picking menu items. (For instance, they flagged that the miso soup isn't vegan, which was much appreciated). In any case, it's our first time but DEFINITELY not the last, and very much worth the 30 minute drive into town for pickup.

The food was truly fresh tasting, which was nice, as not every sushi place tastes 100% fresh.

We also noticed that they'd included a few extra rolls, and the rolls themselves were packed full of fillings, with big chunks of buttery avocado (sometimes the avocado at other locations can be a bit lacking).

Oh, and their website was awesome and the menu clearly marked the vegan options.

Big...

I'm afraid I just don't see the appeal — mediocre fish, and inexpensive prices for correspondingly small portions.

Firstly, staff were friendly.

Prices seem pretty low...but the portions are small— accordingly, I ordered a small roll and a dragon roll, and by that time I think you are getting far better value elsewhere for about the same amount of food and money. I guess the difference is that here you can order two small rolls and get a bit more variety..?

But the biggest issues were that the fish was rather flavourless, and the rolls weren't assembled very well— they tended to fall apart (rice not made quite right).

I certainly can't fathom how this place merits 4.8 stars (at the time of this writing) making it the second best sushi in Kingston. It is a far, far...