Dining Out: Japanese BBQ and Sushi at Gyuyaki

Went with Minji and Daniel to check out the newly-opened all-you-can-eat Japanese BBQ and sushi restaurant, Gyuyaki:

Japanese BBQ spread

Prime kalbi

Spicy miso beef brisket

On the grill: Beef short ribs, black pepper beef brisket, mixed mushrooms with garlic, and clams with sake and butter

Smoked salmon tataki with tamarind sauce

Smoked beef tataki with ponzu sauce

Torched box sushi: Squid, scallop, salmon, and wagyu

The big draw here is that their menu includes AYCE sushi along with Japanese BBQ, so it's kind of like if Shinta and Ichiban had a baby. The only thing is that Gyuyaki doesn't really do either as well. The BBQ-sushi concept is great in theory but not so much in execution. The food is still decent, but we found that their cuts of meat aren't as fresh as Shinta and their sushi options aren't as well-prepared as Ichiban (or another similar AYCE sushi restaurant). That having been said, they do have a great variety of food on their menu, as well as a salad bar (the mango salad and spicy marinated bean sprouts are great as refreshers in between courses), a dessert bar (where, along with the usual ice creams and puddings at AYCE sushi places, you can make your own bingsu), and a self-serve fountain pop dispenser so you don't have to wait for a server for refills. 

The space is a little too cramped for my comfort, to the point where you might as well be sitting with your neighbours. (And hear all of their conversations, too.) Unless you get seated at a booth (which we were not), the tables are separated by plastic partitions on one side and about a foot of space on the other, so bear this in mind if you're a bit claustrophobic. Or want to have a slightly more private conversation. I might come here again once the hype has died down and we don't have to wait an hour (YES, AN HOUR — we literally watched over half of KPop Demon Hunters in Minji's Tesla) for a table. (Again, if you're interested in coming here, don't be stupid like us and MAKE A RESERVATION.) For now, though, I think I'd still go to Shinta for my Japanese BBQ cravings and Ichiban for AYCE sushi. 

One thing they do have over all other Japanese BBQ and AYCE sushi restaurants, however, is their operating hours — they don't close until 1:00AM. In case you have those late-night barbecued meat and sushi cravings.

Gyuyaki

5328 Highway 7, Unit 3

Markham, ON L3P 1B9

(905) 320-9988

Dining Out: A Belated Birthday All-You-Can-Eat Japanese Feast at Ichiban

When my friend Iris asked where I'd want to go for a belated birthday dinner, I was craving Japanese food but also just wanted to eat a lot, so what better place than Ichiban, my go-to AYCE Japanese restaurant?

Assorted sashimi: Salmon, surf clams, sweet shrimp, scallops, and white tuna

Beef tataki

Smoked duck and wagyu aburi sushi

Truffle wasabi tuna roll with jalapeño

Assorted aburi sushi: White tuna, snapper, shrimp, salmon, eel, and wagyu

Japanese-style cubed beef with garlic

Deep-fried scallops

Grilled jumbo shrimp skewer

Cream puffs

Deep-fried coconut custard

There was also steamed shrimp dumplings, pork dumplings, Japanese steamed egg, enoki beef rolls, baked mussels with uni sauce, deep-fried calamari, deep-fried tofu, and a plethora of tempura. Unfortunately, we were too full to even touch the Asian stir-fried and noodle and rice sections, but you know, I think we did pretty well overall. GLUTTONOUS BIRTHDAY DINNER, SUCCESS!

Ichiban Asian All You Can Eat

4261 Highway 7, Unit C-8

Markham, ON L3R 9W6

(905) 305-8825

Dining Out: Holiday All-You-Can-Eat Japanese Feast at Ichiban

Took my friend Iris out for a belated birthday/holiday dinner tonight at Ichiban, where we ate and ate and ate some more:

Surf clams, sweet shrimp, snapper, scallop, octopus, and salmon sashimi
Avocado salmon, salmon, and fish roe temaki
Fish roe, salmon, BBQ eel, snapper, and mackerel nigiri
Shrimp, salmon, smoked duck, BBQ eel, and salmon box aburi sushi
Beef tataki
Shrimp, zucchini, yam, and pumpkin tempura
Agedashi tofu
Japanese-style cubed garlic steak
Enoki mushroom beef rolls
Torched mussels with house sauce
Stir-fried shrimp with vegetables
Cream puffs
Banana tempura
Deep-fried coconut custard

I have a massive food baby right now (twins, actually), but I can conclude from this second visit that Ichiban is officially my go-to Japanese AYCE restaurant. Although, judging from the line-up out the door on this Thursday evening (and the 15 minutes we had to wait even though we had a reservation), it's everyone else's, too. 

Ichiban Asian All You Can Eat

4261 Highway 7, Unit C-8

Markham, ON L3R 9W6

(905) 305-8825

Dining Out: Holiday Reunion Japanese BBQ at Shinta

After a year, I finally met up with my favourite ex-colleagues, Linh and Caitlin, for dinner at Shinta:

Marinated steak, marinated kalbi short ribs, clams in sake, and enoki mushrooms
Prime kalbi short ribs, toro beef, Berkshire pork belly, and miso toro beef
Marinated kalbi short ribs and toro beef

Nothing says SUCCESSFUL REUNION DINNER like gossiping non-stop for two straight hours over unlimited prime kalbi short ribs, toro beef, black pepper short rib strips, marinated steak, sukiyaki beef, pork belly, Berkshire sausages, sake clams, garlic shrimp, king oyster mushrooms, zucchini, pineapple, and an embarrassing amount of cheesy butter corn. 

Shinta Japanese BBQ

280 West Beaver Creek Rd.

Richmond Hill, ON L4B 3B1

(905) 597-0305

Dining Out: An Early Birthday All-You-Can-Eat Japanese Feast at Ichiban

My mom and her best friend took me out for an early birthday dinner at the newly opened Ichiban Japanese all-you-can-eat restaurant this evening and we became absolute gluttons:

Beef tataki
Assorted sashimi: Salmon, sweet shrimp, white tuna, and octopus
Assorted aburi sushi: salmon, shrimp, smoked duck, eel oshizushi, and salmon oshizushi
Assorted nigiri: Eel, white tuna, salmon, and salmon roses
Ichiban Golden Roll
Enoki beef rolls
Shrimp tempura
Fried chicken cartilage
Grilled scallop skewers
Grilled galbi
Grilled chicken skewers
Japanese-style garlic beef

There's a lot of the standard fare that you get at Asian AYCE restaurants, but they do offer some items that you'd typically only find at à la carte Japanese restaurants like aburi sushi and oshizushi. They also have self-serve sections for salad, soup, dessert, shaved ice, and ice cream that also set them apart from the typical Japanese AYCE place. (My advice is to limit yourself at the self-serves because they have so many great offerings on their regular menu.) Quality-wise, I would put it above most of the other AYCE restaurants I've been to; no freshly defrosted fish, no hard sushi rice, no maki or nigiri falling apart, no overly dry or chewy meat. Presentation is top-notch, decor is clean and modern, and service was fantastic — our server, Wendy, was attentive, efficient, and helpful. (She was on it with the water refills and clearing the table.) 

The key here, however, is to make sure you get your server's attention when you're ready to put in your order — they do use tablets here, but only a server can actually submit your order (which, admittedly, negates the efficiency of a tablet) — otherwise, you'll be waiting forever for food that you thought was automatically input into their system. 

Ichiban Asian All You Can Eat

4261 Highway 7, Unit C-8

Markham, ON L3R 9W6

(905) 305-8825

Dining Out: An Early Birthday Dinner at Sushi Kiku

My dad asked if I wanted to have an early birthday dinner at Sushi Kiku, so I obviously said yes because I would never turn down the opportunity to eat unlimited amounts of Japanese food for free.

Salmon, white tuna, octopus, and surf clam sashimi
White tuna, shrimp, cuttlefish, and tuna nigiri, and salmon roses
Salmon, white tuna, and BBQ eel nigiri
Salmon and avocado, spicy salmon, and rainbow maki
Teppan garlic sirloin steak, baked scallops, and deep-fried coconut shrimp
Shrimp and vegetable tempura, marinated beef ribs, beef-wrapped enoki rolls, and grilled salmon steak

At one point, there was so much food that we couldn't even see our table. (What's pictured here is literally half of what we ordered.) What's shocking is that the four of us actually managed to finish everything and still have green tea ice cream for dessert. Basically, we were Chihiro's parents in Spirited Away. (Except we haven't turned into pigs. Yet.)

Anyway, a good start to birthday week dinners!

Sushi Kiku

230 Commerce Valley Dr. E., Unit 10

Thornhill, ON L3T 7Y3

(905) 597-8099