Japango
by Emily Kane on May 18, 2011
1136 Pearl Street
They should really make you sign a waiver before you begin eating Japango’s All You Can Eat Tuesday special; as I’m pretty sure my stomach will never return to its natural size. Tucked away on Pearl Street, Japango is a fun and modern sushi den. With a cozy bar and an outdoor patio, it’s great for small gatherings of friends and family.
Their Tuesday special really is all you can eat; from appetizers, traditional Japanese entrees, to sushi you get it all and as much as you can eat for $30! There is one caveat: at the end of the meal anything leftover is an additional .50¢ charge per piece.
We began with miso soup, edamame, gyoza, beef tataki, and dynamite shrimp. The dynamite shrimp, lightly battered in tempura and served in a spicy cream sauce, and the beef tataki were both wicked good.
Next we moved on to our sushi. Together, the six of us ordered around 10 rolls, over 7 different kinds of ngiri, and a few temaki (hand rolled sushi). Their special rolls were all very interesting. The Chicago had tempura coating the outside, giving the roll an extra crunch. The Colorado roll was nicely prepared with tasty strips of albacore tuna on top. I would also suggest the New Orleans, or spicy tuna. It had just the right amount of spice and was topped with salmon roe!
All of our ngiri was fantastic as well. The squid, or ika, had a blue-white color and a slippery texture, but was really quite interesting! The ikura, salmon roe, arrived looking like an orange sherbet ice cream cone and was delicious. Our shake (salmon), maguro (tuna), and unagi (eel) were also great and very fresh. Our only complaint was that they were out of uni (sea urchin). I was looking forward to trying that spiky sea creature!
Although our waitress didn’t believe we could finish it all we most definitely did (although I’m pretty sure it was mostly thanks to the two hungry CU rowers with us). The great 80’s playlist also added to the fun atmosphere. After my first meal at Japango I would say it is a must try for sushi fans and I highly suggest the Tuesday special. With seemingly limitless options it’s really fun to order things you otherwise wouldn’t. But remember to bring your appetite and maybe a pair of your most forgiving pants.
After seeing a sea urchin Iron Chef one day, I went out and got some uni from my favorite sushi place back home.
They say that fresh fish isn’t fishy at all, they’re right but they weren’t talking about sea urchins haha. I’m about as adventurous an eater as one could be and it was so bad I didn’t wanna swallow it!
Although it’s definitely a love it or hate it kinda thing.
Lowell
by Lowell on May 21, 2011 at 8:56 pm. #
The number of “Thai” (really, Chinese-owned “pan-Asian” plaecs that lean more on bad and greasy Cantonese food) plaecs in the Yonge and Bloor area is pretty crazy too. Thank goodness Lee Chen just opened (write-up coming tomorrow)… at least I can get my siao long bao fix without having to go to Markham.
by Rocco on September 13, 2012 at 7:51 pm. #
Solo Sushi Ya (Chef Djo) is comparable to Kaji, Hashimoto’s and Hiro – price wise, a lttlie cheaper than downtown since they are in cheaper location – but their sushi, shrimp sashimi (amebi) and everything else is phenomenal…… and yes – Chef Djo is from Japan and has been serving the North Toronto market for years!The accolades to his restaurant in Newmarket was so good that he had to open another place in downtown Toronto…..
by Jorge on September 13, 2012 at 7:28 pm. #