By Amy Van Veen (The Cascade) – Email
Date Posted: August 31, 2011
Print Edition: August 25, 2011
Unit 105 – 33643 Marshall Road
Abbotsford BC
604.854.6205
www.littlejapansushi.com
$1.99 to $20.99 (excludes party trays and sashimi)
In between classes, when students have a hankering for more than a snack, the options can often seem rather bleak. There are a couple of on-campus eateries, but sometimes you just need a break from the collegiate atmosphere, and more often than not those breaks deserve some sushi. The only problem is you can’t just pick any sushi place and hope for the best. It’s different from a bad burger. When you have bad sushi, you remember bad sushi. When you have a bad burger, you can cover it up with French fries or extra ketchup.
The solution to such a conundrum is just across the new McCallum overpass in the form of a little sushi spot that offers both a serene atmosphere and fairly decent fare.
Little Japan Sushi sits at the corner of McCallum and Marshall and though the outside looks a little bland, the inside stands out from other Japanese restaurants. With a sleek interior, it may be presumed that the menu would make many a student’s wallet sweat; however, their prices are reasonable and their portions are plenty. Lunch specials range between $8.99 and $15.99, while combo dinners go from $8.99 to $20.99. For the rolls, though, the prices go between $2.99 and $14.99, with most staying under the six dollar mark.
Whether you would like to swap your textbook reading for the latest bestseller or you’re seeking a quiet little date restaurant, you can take a seat at one of their many tables and wait for a spectacular array of your choice. They offer both regular and special maki rolls, appetizers, and Korean food. If, however, you’d prefer to eat and run, their take-out only takes about ten minutes from order to pick-up, which means you have just enough time to call from campus, find your car and grab your study-break sushi.
The presentation in the take-out isn’t comparable to the presentation of eating in, but the quality of the rolls, especially the special rolls, is enough to make the eight or nine dollars worth it. I thought I would try the volcano roll made up of cooked salmon in lieu of the more common raw, cucumber, avocado and crab. It also had just enough of a spicy kick to wake me up, which was multiplied several times over when it accidentally touched that little green pile of wasabi.
The one dish that I always measure a sushi place’s quality by is the gyoza, but unfortunately this gyoza was a little lacking. There was very little flavour in the dumplings themselves, and though they served a sweet sauce with it instead of the common soy, it just wasn’t enough to save it from being mediocre. Thankfully, the volcano roll did save my dinner.
The service for take-out was quick and friendly, so it’s safe to assume eat-in would be the same or better.
All in all, this is a place I would definitely revisit in between classes to satisfy my Japanese cuisine cravings.
