Sakura Sushi — Restaurant in Ontario

Sakura sushi is the only al a carte sushi restaurant in Norfolk county. Which puts it head and shoulders above any all you can eat disasters which are plentiful. However, it's still very "Americanized". Whether you enjoy that or not is up to you.

Both the salad and soup were excellent. Miso had lovely seaweed inside and wasn't overly salty. Salad had a very similar dressing to Joya sushi in Hamilton (which I love) and both were presented beautifully.

Soya sauce was very good. Not sure if it was home made but it had a depth of flavour and a deep color.

The sushi comes in elaborate boats and the chop sticks were metallic. The whole dining experience was very beautiful.

The wasabi is made "fresh" from wasabi powder. Which is a huge step up from the premade fake tube stuff and one step below the real thing (which I've never had in Canada). It has a nice grit to it and the flavour is complex.

Where my complaints start unforutnaly is with the fish itself. Let's talk about the positives first.

The rice was perfectly cooked and the correct temperature. Firm and held it's shape. At Sakura both the nigiri and the Maki I tried were on the lighter side in terms of amount of rice.

Salmon was fresh and tasted very good. Cuts were well marbled and had great color.

Inside the spicy Salmon roll the tempura was long and very crunchy. This gave it a very different taste and was good.

Now for the negatives.

Overall the portions of fish were smaller than expected. Fish was cut much thinner than expected. For the Maki, I could hardly tell there was fish at all.

The tuna was of a color and consistency I have not experienced yet. I'm really not sure how to rate it because based on appearance itself the fish looked poor quality. It was pink rather than red and got whiter neat the edges. Which led me to question if it even was tuna. The texture was more like tofu than fish. It had a plump firmness to it that also melted like butter once chewed. The tuna flavour itself was very muted. Overall it tasted fine but it was so different from other tuna I've had that it left me unsettled.

Then there was the white tuna or what I suspect, escolar. I had one piece and left the other two once I ate the first I noticed a strong fishy smell and not the good kind from it. It did not taste good or fresh. It may have been flounder but what ever it was it had a spoiled taste to it. White tuna should also not be served. It is illegal in Japan and Canada is behind on this.

The spicy Salmon roll has the mayo on top of the side of the roll in a puddle. This was unappetizing to me and made it feel like there was too much mayo. But once you bite in you realize almost no mayo was mixed with the inside. Which made it strange. It did prevent the tempura from becoming soggy but at the same time didn't mix.

My girlfriend got the vegetarian Maki combo and it was mostly okay except for the avocado. Which was basically liquid. It was very past ripe and really shouldn't have been used. It somehow tasted fine though, just the texture was like toothpaste and as soon as you gripped the Maki with any force it lost its shape and squeezed out the other side.

Now for price. The price was nearly double (43 plus tax) for 10 piece nigiri and a single Maki roll than what you would pay at a similar quality sushi restaurant anywhere else. Everything on the menu was very expensive. And they can do that because they sort of have a monopoly.

Also they were very adamant about no substitutions. It was written everywhere all over the menu. Having the chef ensure you are getting what ever is freshest and in season is one thing but when 30% of my meal is probably escolar I'd have to disagree.

The location is also not liquor licensed. Which was a let down because sushi without beer is a crime in my books.

Overall I did enjoy (most) of the meal but would be very hesitant to return. The high prices combined with the poor quality and choice of fish left me unsettled and hungry.

If you want high quality fair prices you should take the time to drive...

Such a welcome new restaurant in Port Dover that we couldn't wait to try eating in. A very experienced ownership and staff guarantee's the quality of Sushi only outdone by their presentation and service.

We tried to make a reservation but after getting a few busy signals, decided to risk a walk in. Success in getting a table! The entire decor has been upgraded and customized to perfection. Lots of white with black trims, wood furniture, pictures, paintings and lots of flowers.

Kindly seated, we were offered menus with lots of selections that include Appetizers with Salads, Soups, Sushi Pizza and Tempura and Deep Fried offerings. Full Dinner and Combinations, Over 40 House Special Rolls with 6 to 8 rolls individually priced. AND you can order A La Carte!

Only the two of us for lunch so we ordered the salted Edamame Bowl, Spicy Salmon Rolls, Spicy Crab Rolls, Dynamite Rolls and Cobourg Rolls. They are still awaiting for issuance of their liquor permit (coming soon) and I can't wait to try a Sake available hot or cold. Their list also included future availability of some domestic beers.

Our beverages arrived and the restaurant started filling up with many tables having reserved signs. A pleasant surprise to see the cast from the current production offered at Lighthouse Festival Theatre (across the street) coming in for a between shows meal. Needless to say that this place is going to be a perfect pre-show dining location year round! Suggest you get reservations in the Summer and anytime!

Our order arrived with beautifully placed rolls on a large cedar strip of wood, sauces drizzled appropriately, garnished along with a couple of pinches of Ginger and pretty dollop of spicy Wasabi. It really was a work of Art! Other tables also had equally amazing displays including our Theatre friends with Japanese Sashimi Sushi Boats!

The flavours were incredible for each bite. Dipping in the sauces was great but it was obvious that freshly made makes all the difference. We loved everything about our tasting experience. Took a couple of left over rolls home for dinner and they were fantastic.

They also offer take out and massive Party Trays.

So 5 Stars for Sakura Sushi in Port Dover. Priced right. Check their web site for pricing and their full menu. Did I mention to be sure and get...

First time back since the new location and everything was amazing!

Food came out quickly and hot even though they were very busy with large takeout orders. We got appetizers as we weren’t overly hungry, but we’re so excited to have Sakura in Dover that we we couldn’t resist coming in.

As this is a reopening on a smaller scale I wanted to comment on a previous bad review, they are learning to operate on a smaller scale than before and that isn’t easy to do! I applaud them for not “biting off more than they can chew” and taking more orders than they can fill while they’re transitioning to the new location. If you don’t like being a customer during that process simply don’t come in :) the rest of us understand completely! The phone ringing can wait, the customers they are already serving should be the priority and they understand that!

We will be back...