Miku Restaurant on Waterfront

Spring Break is over and last night was my final night in Vancouver. Since I was so busy with packing and preparing for my trip back to New York City, I didn't have the time to blog about this event. We celebrated with a bang. Since Vancouver is known for it's amazing and fresh sushi, we went to Miku Restaurant in downtown Vancouver.

The restaurant is found right in front of the ocean, hence, waterfront.

As soon as you enter, you feel the modern and hip ambiance that the restaurant offers.

We were sat at the sushi bar, which surprisingly had a of space.

I didn't really know what to expect. Usually, sushi is sushi. It's either fresh or not. Nothing more and nothing less.

But what surprised me the most was the way they prepared their sushi. This is the first time I've seen Aburi Sushi. Aburi is inspired by the idea of sear-flaming sushi. It really added a new dynamic for the Japanese dish. Typically, they add the sauce then sear-flame it on top of the sushi. Miku Restaurant is famous for being one of the few spots that serve this style of sushi.

Here's a little demonstration:

Our waiter also said that Miku Restaurant sushis don't require any soy sauce for dipping. Each sushi has its own special sauces that is already added within the sushi itself.

Aburi Salmon Oshi Sushi - $16

The first thing we ordered was the Aburi Salmon Oshi Sushi. It had BC Wild Sockeye Salmon, jalapeño, and miku sauce. What is interesting about this is its unorthodox presentation. Rather than the common round sushi, the sushi is square shaped. This was probably one of the freshest sushis I've ever had. The special miku sauce complemented the sushi perfectly and the fact it was sear-flamed made it taste even better.

Miku Roll - $18

The next thing we ordered was the Miku Roll. This was AMAZING! it had salmon, crab, cucumber, sea urchin, and it is rolled in flying fish roe. Also, it has the same sear-flamed miku sauce.Very delicious! It almost melts in your mouth! I thought that having all these ingredients would be overwhelming and confusing, but everything seem to have created a dynamic flavored sushi that held the name of the restaurant.

Pan Seared Scallops - $18

We also ordered the Pan Seared Scallops. It is market fresh orange, watercress, frisée, crème fraîche, and yuzu puttanesca. I don't even know what more than half of these ingredients are, but the scallops were perfectly cooked. It wasn't too chewy or too soft and it was seasoned well. The orange also added a nice tangy flavor that aided the taste of the scallops.

Premium Aburi - $26

Finally, we ordered the Premium Aburi. It is the chef's selection feature seafood, lightly flame seared aburi style, and each paired with a unique house made sauce. It is really difficult to explain all of these, but each one of these sushis had a very unique taste. All of these were also sear-flamed. The only problem was that for its price, I would've wanted more!

Overall, everything I ate was amazing. If it wasn't for its expensive price, I would go here everyday! This place is definitely a place I would go to to celebrate special events!

"Don't dunk your nigiri in the soy sauce. Don't mix your wasabi in the soy sauce. If the rice is good, complement your sushi chef on the rice."

-Anthony Bourdain