My Sushi Comfort Food in Toronto

I stumbled by this Japanese restaurant years and years ago, Super Sushi House at Kennedy and Ellesmere in Scarborough.  You see, it’s located right beside the Scarborough gym I used to go to.  I would have gym appointments several times a week and when I arrive too early, I kill the time right at this restaurant.  Despite its quite utilitarian appearance and minimalistic approach to decor, don’t let that stop you from stepping in and trying their good food.   Generous with their food and priced reasonably, I would say you would definitely return to this place once you tried it.  I now live in North York and despite my neighbourhood streaming with Japanese and Korean restaurants, I still enjoy going back to Scarborough for my idea of Japanese comfort food.  It is THAT good!

Like any other Asian restaurants, the menu is pretty long.   They have a lot of choices and prices are very reasonable at about $ 10 – 15 for dinner servings.  For anybody having a seriously big Japanese craving, they can choose from 4 gargantuan items on their All Day menu specials menu.  For about $ 15, I can say my sister and I never ever finished everything that was served.   It’s just too much food!   On my own,  I always go for the same thing.   I find myself indulging in Shrimp Tempura appetizer, Kamakachi roll and Salmon Sashimi.  These three items has been my long-standing favorites and they set the bar that I compare to when I find myself at another Japanese restaurant.

Finding myself at Scarborough today, I thought I’d blog about this place.  No matter that I am not a resident of Scarborough anymore, I still come here when I need comfort or when I feel like rewarding myself for any reason.  As I walked into the restaurant, I look for the familiar face of the owner, Cho Cao.  Funny thing about this is that even though I have come here for so long, it never occurred to me to ask the owner’s name.  I rectified that error right away, asking the waiter, whose name is Peter, who he is.  Cho has always been so gracious when you walk into his restaurant.  We had countless conversations when I used to come here often.   Conversations could be anything and everything as I happily nurse the complimentary green tea and miso soup.  He is almost always stationed at the Sushi bar, making those delightful and fresh sushi creations.  For a very busy restaurant, I often wondered if Cho ever gets flustered.  He always have this calm and serene aura.  Very zen, he is.

Peter then brings my food and I start snapping away.  Another patron comes to my table and watches me take pictures with an amused smile on her face.  I let her peek into my camera and she approves.  They don’t just look pretty, they are so scrumptious!  The Kamakachi roll I have never found elsewhere.  It’s this delightful combination of spicy tuna with panko crumbs.  The crunch of the panko crumbs and the slow rise of the heat of the spicy tuna is best followed by a sip of the green tea.  The flavours blend so well, I find almost all the time, wishing that there were more than 6 of those rolls on my platter as I finish them too quickly.  The salmon sashimi is always fresh and sweet, paired with the restaurant’s wasabi, oh so yummy! This wasabi is the REAL thing, just a teeny bit gives you an immediate nasal rush!  Sometimes I purposely take it as it is.  Masochistic it might be, but it’s quite amusing from time to time.  Saving the best for last, I indulge on tempura.  It’s light and airy as always.  There is something so pleasurable with this tempura bite.  Feeling the sensation of the delicate light crunch of the tempura batter followed by the sweet and plumpness of the shrimp within,  I would never tire of.  Would you call me crazy if I say I was waiting for this taste and experience when I was dining in Benihana in downtown Toronto? Yup, I was that crazy if you define it as such.

Finishing my meal and after paying, Peter reminded me to come back soon.  In my mind, I needed no reminders.  Like I said, this would always be my place of comfort, Japanese style ;)