Ni Ji Sushi Japanese Restaurant — Restaurant in Toronto

Had dinner at Ni Ji Sushi a few weekends ago and was not at all impressed. We ended up getting a Rainbow Roll ($9.95), the Green Dragon roll ($12.95) and the Crunch Roll ($12.95)

I was extremely disappointed with the Rainbow Roll. The California roll itself was fine but the assorted fish on top of the roll seemed to be haphazardly placed on top and what really took me by surprise was that the rolls were not cut properly. Normally, I am able to pick apart the pieces easily but when I tried to pick up the pieces of this roll, some of the fish on top would stick together and when I tugged at it, the roll would begin to fall apart. My friend and I had to work together to pull apart the pieces - I would hold down one end with my chopsticks and he would rip the piece from to other end. Definitely not how a maki should be presented.

The Green Dragon roll was made a little better and but I still found the maki to not be quite as tightly rolled as I would have liked.

The Crunch Roll ($12.95) was most disappointing of all - bordering on disgusting. We should have taken a clue from the waitress when she said that she had never tried the roll. The Crunch Roll is a deep fried Dynamite roll. The shrimp tempura inside the dynamite roll is deep fried once and then rolled into a maki with some avocado, cucumber and tobiko. The whole thing is then deep fried again. The result was a very oily roll with warm chewy rice (ewww!) and warm avocado. I would recommend everyone stay away from this roll. Sushi should taste fresh - this one definitely missed the mark.

We also ordered the Sushi - Sashimi Combo ($24.95). The nigiri was ok but I found proportion of fish and rice somewhat uneven. The pieces of fish were MUCH bigger than the rice. The rice looked like it was a kid wearing clothes three sizes too big. The sashimi was a little icy and it seemed as though it was not fully defrosted.

I was quite surprised at my experience given the great reviews from yelp and Google. Pricewise, the sushi here is much more budget friendly, but given the quality of the food here, I will...

In contrast, it makes Ni-Ji Sushi’s weekday lunch menu an amazing deal. Here you’ll receive the protein with way more than two sides since every selection comes with a simple green salad, hot miso soup, and a small bowl of their savoury congee for good measure.

For the indecisive, the lunch combination ($16) provides a bit of everything. Sadly, the chicken teriyaki is probably the most forgettable part of the bento. The poached chicken breast lacks flavour and is a tepid temperature, this seriously needs to be marinated and grilled. If anything, I was more impressed with the shredded cabbage below the fowl, which was at least soaked in the teriyaki sauce.

The accompanying shrimp and vegetable tempura were delicious, the batter just thick enough, crispy, and sizzling hot. And Ni-Ji doesn’t skimp either, with two shrimp and assorted vegetables it’s surprisingly plentiful for something that’s only one part of the “combination”. The last third of the pie is a decent California roll made fresh and an ideal ratio of filling to rice.

While the salmon steak could be cooked less, being an oilier fish, the salmon teriyaki ($14) was at least more flavourful than the chicken. This bento is also more manageable for a smaller appetite, served with a cube of cold tried tofu, lightly pickled turnip slivers, and japchae potato starch noodles.

For something lighter, the sushi lunch ($14) offers enough food to satisfy without leaving you in need of a nap. Small bites of warm rice sit beneath the salmon, tuna, and butter fish in the six pieces of nigiri and a respectable California roll rounds...

I've been here before, for dinner and for lunch, always dined in, but for obvious pandemic lockdown reasons, this wasn't an option this time around so I decided to try their takeout. Ordering was smooth through a quick phone call, they took my name, my order and said it would be about 20 minutes. Arrived in 10 minutes and chilled in the parking lot and this place was busy with takeout orders, which is good. I eventually went in, friendly staff greets you at the door. I said my name. and they bring you your receipt. They respect the current situation with a quick wipe down of the credit card reader. tapped to pay for my order and went about my business. Got home and everything I ordered was there. Man, no complaints about the portions I received. I ordered the Assorted Tempura and Bulgogi dinner. Everything tasted fresh and good. I wasn't expecting that much Bulgogi but so happy I did. It definitely filled me up. The tempura was on point. All I was missing was a tall can of Sapporo and I could have called it a night. It had been just over a year since my last visit but I'll definitely be back sooner than that. Prices are reasonable, especially with the portions I received. Well done Ni Ji.

Missing in my picture is the salad. I was a wee bit hungry and well, scarfed it down before I realized I...