Growing up in and around the Oakridge area meant having some diverse options when it came to lunch time (or skipping time!). Oakridge mall has a decent food court but at the time, I was working in the food court and in search for some good food. Then there was Samurai Sushi. Just across the street from Oakridge, this small family run sushi restaurant was always packed and boasted big portions.

Being in high school was a LONG time ago for me – but I still find myself frequenting many places I did back then. I haven’t been here in a long time, but the prices are generally the same, the staff hasn’t changed much and the rolls are the same as well.

It’s hard to sit down and enjoy your food here because there are so many people – with lineups out the door – so we usually take it to go. Tea is free, so while you’re waiting for your order, help yourself. It’s actually quite good and not too watery.

I’m not sure which combo was ordered (since I didn’t do the ordering) – but this is what my food looked like! 2 tuna nigri, 2 salmon nigiri, 2 prawn nigiri and a smoked salmon roll.

You can’t really tell from the picture but one piece of salmon was easily 4-6 inches long. Holy tamoly. I do appreciate a good portion but I can’t say I like much else than the salmon sashimi/nigiri here. The tuna is off sometimes – being too fishy or too cold – but today it was okay. The prawn was a bit rubbery, probably the result for being over cooked and cold for a while. The rice under the fish was enormous!

The roll itself was fairly big as well, it was basically avocado on the inside with smoked salmon on the top. I love the smoked salmon but I don’t like too much avocado because I find it too mushy.

I like Samurai sushi only because of it’s cheap prices and big portions – but the taste just doesn’t do it for me. They are a great place to order sushi trays from – they’re usually pretty accommodating and a place to share big combos. Be warned, it’s CASH ONLY!

One of my readers on twitter, @richerd and I were trying to figure out whether this one was related to the ones Davie and Fraser. But they aren’t related. Their little samurai man on their logo look the same though. This Samurai Sushi House is part of BanZai sushi in Richmond. Here is their website.

 

Food: 
The portions are big and they have many types of sushi rolls, but the taste is not spectacular.

Value:
Definitely come here when you’re hungry. With sushi trays under $25 and combos from $7-14, it’s worth it.

Ambiance:
It’s a bit of a dive, but fine dining isn’t on the menu when you decide to come here, right?

Service:
The service isn’t so bad, they make your orders pretty fast. But in terms of customer friendliness, they fall into the stereotypical asian scenario.

OVERALL:
Samurai Sushi House on Urbanspoon