Ebisu On Robson — Restaurant in Vancouver

My wife and I live in downtown vancouver and we have been a long time customer of ebisu. We absolutely love japanese cuisine and we would have it at least twice a week! Ebisu has a happy hour menu on weekdays from 9pm til closed(12am) which is fairly cheap and the food is pretty decent. I would rate the food at 7.5/10. Weekends is really good because they have the full staff who are more experienced. If you go before 6pm , you will notice the food is really bad as the main chef does not start until later in the evening. Anytime before 6pm you will find pre-prep sushi rolls with cold hard rice and old salad that has been in the fridge for too long. Everything will taste bad!

The reason I am giving this place a one star is because good food is one thing, but if the enviroment of where you are eating or the service is bad, it will ruin your whole eating experience. Fair warning to anyone who wants to come here and be treated like a customer. I would not blame it entirely on the servers as they are being told what to do by management.

(10:55pm) Server: Hello, we are doing last call, do you want anything else? We close at 12am

Me: *ordered 2 more happy hour menu.

(10:59pm) server: do you still need soysauce? Pours some on our sauce tray and takes the bottle away along with everyone elses soy sauce

(11:01pm) server: hi can you pay the bill i need to cash out.

#1 - YES I DO NEED MY SOYSAUCE WHEN IM EATING SUSHI!

#2 - NO I DO NOT WANT TO REACH INTO MY POCKETS WHILE IM STILL WATING TO PAY FOR THE BILL. Do you really need 1 hour to cash out?!! This was happening to other customers as well and they were also very upset as they are still enjoying their meal and drinks.

Overall, food is decent, decent price (happy hour menu) but you will be rushed into finishing your food early and being uncomfortable with the service. It will leave a bad taste in your mouth after.

Best...

Wow. I don't know how to possibly describe this place. It's nothing like I thought it would be the interior looks clean and modern. The patio is super great and well maintained. At first when I open the menu I was shocked. Felt like I was staring at a menu that a drunk man obsessed with cheese and japanese food created. I was so wrong and they were so right. Some quotes from dinner included: "I feel like I came out of a Subway, a homeless person came up to me and started screaming only compliments in my face. I was lost, confused but pleasently surprised." "What do you think about this adventure I've understood?"

First up thunder fries. Sweet potato fries and one deep fried cheese stick. Wow these are my new favorite types of fries? And the cream cheese stick just takes the cake. Must try.

Second the gyoza was super delicious they had a great crisp on them worth trying.

Third is the Ebisu roll. Okay this was an experience. I don't know how but the cream cheese on this wasn't the same as the cheese stick I swear. 100% must try

Fourth and fifth I'm gonna clump together. The sushi was okay but very underwhelming compared to everything else. I'd almost say if you try the other stuff don't get the sushi not because it's bad but because it's not as good as everything else.

Sixth was tuna tataki I wasn't a big fan. I couldn't stand the veiny bit. The singe on the outside was great but I couldn't eat the middle.

Seventh was prawn and cheese goyza. I swear this place has 3 different kinds of cheese. The guacamole was so good?? Worth trying once.

Eighth was the matcha lava cake. This was so delicious. I'd...

There are tons of Happy Hour deals here in Vancouver, but in particular, I got drawn to Ebisu On Robson coz I saw the $0.99/shuck oysters! When in Vancouver, I always need to get my fix on sushi, sashimi and fresh seafood such as oysters.

$0.99 CDN a shuck surprises me as it still exist during this inflation era. The lowest I have seen in Toronto is $2 CDN a shuck and that's very rare at that price.

Although you can only order a maximum of a dozen of oyster at $0.99 per person, these west coast oysters are super meaty and creamy and still fill my tummy (at least for now).

I was impressed these oysters were served on a boat along with some signature in-house sauce. They take their oysters seriously even when it's only Happy Hour!

Coupled with $3.99 CDN Sapporo ice cold, I was super glad that I was able to squeeze an hour to indulge this snack before I meet up with my friends for dinner. And yes, I ordered 2 pint coz the beers were so refreshing.

And by the way, this place is pretty spacious and you could sit at the bar area at the front. Sit near the Sushi Chef's prepare the sushi. Or sit at the back or on the side, so many spots to choose from. I really like the Japanese decor and atmosphere, that you feel somewhat you are in Japan.

Special shoutout to the lovely staff, they were courteous and attentive and never judge me even I just ordered happy hour items. I did told them that I have a dinner to go to afterwards. They were so chill and so good a service! Thank you for the wonderful experience.

They have many other happy hour items such as sushi roll, torched sushi, handroll, and...