Sushi Flamingo Kitsilano Vancouver — Restaurant in Vancouver

This place is nothing short of superb. I would say it's the best quality sushi and the best value, with gracious, friendly, attentive service, that I've found in the Metro region while enjoying sushi over four plus decades.

We stumbled on this place following being turned away at Octopus Garden after calling in advance and being told we could be accommodated on their patio and then showing up shortly thereafter, and being told the empty patio tables were booked. I have always regarded Octopus Garden as extremely authentic and of high quality, but not always offering the most friendly service.

A quick web search brought up SushI Flamingo a short walk away on Burrard near 3rd Avenue. We found this tiny place in a small strip mall on the west side of Burrard. Initially approaching the shop, it appeared to be a takeout. There was a fellow behind the counter and two tables off to the side in a clean and modern but basic shop.

He welcomed us in a friendly way and said we could either dine in or takeout. The menu wasn't an endless selection but a carefully curated selection of sashimi, nigiri, rolls, and a few specialties. The owner warned us he was on his own as his assistant was detained in traffic and he said his service might be a bit slow, given the number of takeout orders he had to process. He promised he would take our order and, if acceptable, the dishes might come a little slow.

The two of us ordered quite a variety. Each dish was beautifully presented with much faster speed than we expected, but properly spaced. Every dish was of the highest quality I have ever experienced. The one man band was a gracious server and is obviously a skilled sushi chef. The fish was top quality and extremely fresh, beautifully apportioned with the sashimi consisting of thick slices of sockeye salmon sashimi and albacore tuna. Tempura battered prawns with a warm mayo sauce were out of this world. The rolls were freshly made, with superb rice and tasty, fresh fillings Even the miso soup was of high quality, without an overly salty flavour, as is often the case.

THIS WAS FIVE STAR sushi. The owner even presented a complimentary chef's special - a superb seared salmon belly nigiri .

The tab was at least 20% less than what I would have paid at Octopus Garden or at any one of the top , highly rated, fancy sushi restaurants in the city. The quality exceeded what I've experienced in pretty much all of the top sushi places I've dined at.

Fabulous quality, attentive, friendly personalized service and reasonable prices. What an impressive experience and a surprise, given the basic visual appeal of the tiny takeout style shop. I hope to re-visit Flamingo again soon and only hope this review doesn't create long queues for...

Very Disappointed

We came here after reading the high reviews. However we were extremely disappointed with the quality of the sushi.

First the positives: the place is clean, with friendly staff, and very reasonable prices. The food quality is pretty good meaning everything was fresh However….

The food preparation was terrible. We ordered an assortment of nigiri, rolls, and the salmon Oshi. The biggest complaint is that the rice was severely undercooked with hard bits throughout. That should never happen. This was for all the sushi we ordered. On top of that, the seasoning was way off and the rice had way too much vinegar. It was almost inedible.

We also ordered the ebi mayo but the batter was undercooked and soggy. The ramen was also cooked in a clump and the soup was heavily seasoned with MSG.

It was a weekend so maybe they didn’t have their regular chef? But sadly this will be our first and...

After a recommendation from my brother, we stopped in for lunch. They did not disappoint. We ordered the ebi mayo as an appetizer. It consisted of six large plump fried shrimp served over raw spinach, then covered with a sweet mayo topped with chopped walnuts. These were terrific! If I were to make one suggestion, I'd go lighter on the mayo. A nice drizzle on top would be perfect. We ordered the dynamite combo and salmon oshi sushi (pressed and torched). The nigiri sushi were nicely made with just the right amount of rice. The salmon oshi sushi was well prepared. It was torched lightly without suffering from that butane taste one sometimes get. Although my order did not come with it, our server was kind enough to give me a bowl of miso as well. The service is excellent: friendly and welcoming. They even threw in a complimentary spicy tuna roll! A nice addition to the neighborhood. Will...