Guu Garden

You know it’s gotta be delicious if it’s my third time reviewing a place in the span of several months. My eating partners today were my parents. Funny enough, they’re on the opposite sides when it comes to Japanese food. My mom loves fresh, raw seafood – my dad does not like his food raw. Thankfully at Guu Garden, they have a little bit of everything for everyone.

We came for lunch after a day of shopping downtown. My mom ordered the Sashimi of the Day combo – where she got to pick her sashimi. It’s served with a bowl of rice, miso and some pickles and kobachi (cold appies). I love my sushi, but my mom is very adventurous compared to me.

She had spot prawn, sea urchin and the ‘regular stuff’ – salmon, etc. My mom loves telling me the story of how whenever she goes back to her hometown, she stops right out of the airport at a restaurant that freshly shucks oysters for you. Well, she’s got a lot more delicate taste than me, so bravo for her.

To share, I just HAD to get the Ebi Prawn and Karaage. It just seemed like the thing you have to do when you’re at Guu. I was tempted to order the Agedashi Mozza, but had a feeling my parents wouldn’t enjoy it as much as the deep fried goodness I had ordered. My dad is a big fan of prawn (as if you couldn’t tell from our treks to Joe Fortes), but he seemed to enjoy the karaage with mayo much better.

My dad ordered the special of the day, which was Kimchi Rice with Beef in a hot stone bowl. It came with a side of salad. This dish was massive and he and I ended up sharing it. My dad didn’t find it particularly spicy and added some soy sauce into the mix. That being said, he loves his salt and is big on flavour. I thought the kimchi rice was just fine, light and not heavy. I told him if he wanted to get a little bit more of a crispier rice to let it sit for a bit. While we were chatting, we kind of forgot about it and we mixed it together, the bottom was a little too crispy for his liking – BUT I liked it! I really love the stone pot experience and I love crunchy rice.

My parents are picky eaters, so it’s always hard to find a great place to take them but they both enjoyed the food, the view and my company (haha..kidding!). They were a little bewildered with all the ‘yelling’ going on but it was entertaining to tell them why they greet and bid people a fond farewell! I think I’ve made new fans out of them.

Food: