There's an ongoing campaign on Twitter to make every Wednesday of the week starting April 15, #TakeOutDay in Canada to support restaurants. Instead of using delivery apps that eat up most of a restaurant's margin, give them a call to place your order, and when possible, pick them up.
Right now, there's only a handful of restaurants open in our neighbourhood, so supporting small, local restaurants at this time are crucial to ensure they survive the effects of COVID-19.
For lunch and dinner today, I ordered food from Sushivan Japanese Restaurant. This morning I had difficulty deciding whether to order from Sushivan or from MASA. I checked their online pages and saw the news that someone broke inside Sushivan and stole all their credit card machines. It's sad for them to experience such loss, so I decided to give them a call and place my order for what I planned to be lunch, but way too much so we'll eat it for dinner too.
What did we get from Sushivan?
We ordered the following items.
Soy Chicken Karaage (Large)
It was crispy and delicious when it arrived. I still think it's best enjoyed with a cup of rice, but that might just be the Filipino in me talking.
Soy Chicken Karaage (Large)
Chicken Katsu
We had this the last time we were there, and it was as delicious. More rice, please?
Chicken Katsu
Awesome Special Roll
This is the highlight of the meal. I've been going down the list of Sushivan's special rolls, and this is amazing.
Awesome Special Roll
Korean Style Ramen (with Beef)
This is the first time I'm ordering the ramen with beef instead of my usual chicken. I prefer chicken. Regretting it, but hubby and I split the ramen and ate it with the Awesome Special Roll for lunch, so it's all good.
Korean Style Ramen
Tomorrow or Friday, I need to go out for grocery, so I can cook Chicken Afritada. Hopefully, our local supermarket has all the ingredients I need.
Ash Wednesday's peaceful atmosphere lingers as I write this, reminding me of
the blessings in life and the fleeting nature of our time. While the ashes on
our foreheads serve as a sombre reminder, the evening offered a different kind
of reflection – one filled with shared laughter, delicious food, and the joy
of celebrating love.
Sushivan Japanese Restaurant in South Granville became our destination for
dinner, opting for seafood in accordance with the Lenten tradition. Sharing
the dragon roll, a California roll adorned with unagi, tobiko, and unagi
sauce, was a delightful start. Each bite was a dance of textures and flavours,
a perfect prelude to our individual choices.
Dragon Roll from Sushivan Japanese Restaurant California roll with unagi, tobiko, and unagi sauce
Dragon Roll from Sushivan Japanese Restaurant
My husband indulged in the unagi don, inspired by our favourite anime,
Detective Conan and its character Genta's love for unagi (eel). The spring mix
served as a refreshing base for the flavorful BBQ eel, creating a satisfying
and delicious experience. I can't believe how tender eel meat is.
Unagi Don from Sushivan Japanese Restaurant Spring mix, BBQ eel
Meanwhile, my Salmon Teriyaki & Sashimi Box offered a variety of tastes
and textures. The salmon teriyaki was perfectly glazed and cooked, the sashimi
melt-in-your-mouth fresh, and the tempura provided a delightful crispy
contrast. The California roll and rice complemented the other elements, making
it a well-rounded and satisfying meal.
Salmon Teriyaki & Sashimi Box from Sushivan Japanese
Restaurant Salmon teriyaki, appy sashimi, appy tempura, salad, 4 pieces
California roll, rice
While Valentine's Day often emphasizes romantic love, our celebration extends
beyond that. It was a moment to appreciate the bond we share, the blessings in
our lives, and the simple joy of a shared meal. It was a reminder that love
comes in many forms, and even on a day set aside for reflection, there's space
for appreciation, laughter, and delicious food.
Happy Halloween! Since I grew up as a Catholic, Halloween is the beginning of
All Saints' Day, and All Souls' Day is when we commemorate, celebrate, and
pray for our loved ones and friends who have passed away.
This evening we went to Bed, Bath, and Beyond to buy some candles to light up
on our altar at home. Before heading home, we decided to grab dinner at
Sushivan because I needed their spicy Korean-style Ramen this evening.
Rainbow Roll California roll with assorted fish, tobiko, and sauce.
Korean-Style Ramen
Salmon Teriyaki & Sashimi Box Salmon teriyaki, appy sashimi, appy tempura, salad, 4 pcs California
roll, and rice
My husband is disappointed that I failed to update my Sushivan menu checklist.
Apparently, we ordered the same exact three items last
March.
Sushivan Menu
To prevent future disappointment, below is a list of items we tried from
Sushivan so far.
If you've been reading my post (or if you search for Sushivan in this blog), you will notice that I am going through their Special Roll. I have tried the Alaska special roll and Awesome special roll.
Ika Karage Deep-fried squid
Beef Teriyaki Box with Miso Soup Beef Teriyaki, 4 pieces California Roll, Appy Tempura, Salad, and Rice
Korean Style Ramen with Chicken
If you search my blog for "Sushivan", I always order Korean Style Ramen. When I crave for spicy Korean noodles I go to Sushivan.
My husband and I are flying out of Vancouver this evening to visit London,
England, for the first time. It's our first time in the continent of Europe.
We are excited! Before that, we are grabbing lunch at Sushivan.
We both order bento boxes, and they're such a satisfying lunch. I need rice
before leaving the comforts of home.
Salmon Teriyaki & Sashimi Box from Sushivan Salmon teriyaki, happy sashimi, appy tempura, salad, 4 pieces
California roll, and rice
Chicken Teriyaki & Sashimi Box from Sushivan Chicken teriyaki, appy sashimi, appy tempura, salad, 4 pieces
California roll, and rice
The unagi, or grilled eel, offers a sweet, smoky richness beautifully complemented by crab meat's delicate sweetness. The cool, crisp cucumber and creamy avocado provide a refreshing contrast, while the tobiko, or flying fish roe, adds delightful pops of briny saltiness.
Caterpillar Roll Unagi, crab meat, cucumber, avocado, tobiko, and unagi sauce
To tie it all together, the unagi sauce drizzled over the roll offers a luscious, savoury-sweet glaze that enhances the overall flavour profile. These ingredients create a harmonious combination of sweet, savoury, and umami notes, making the Caterpillar Roll a delightful and well-balanced sushi experience.
SushiVan is one of my go-to places when I crave spicy Korean noodles. Though, tonight, I decided to try something different.
As soon as we settled on a table, they offered hot tea and gave us a copy of their menu. It's quite extensive and deciding what to eat is a real challenge.
We end up ordering a lot, and after a minute of placing an order, they gave us the Miso Soup included in the set we ordered.
Miso Soup
After ten minutes, five pieces of Takoyaki was served.
Takoyaki
As soon as we finished our Takoyaki, the Spicy Chicken Karaage arrived. It's much sweeter than spicy. It is better eaten with a cup of white rice so we didn't finish this and decided to bring it home where I can eat it for breakfast with warm rice.
Spicy Chicken Karaage
Shortly before the Spicy Chicken Karaage was served, our Bento Boxes arrived.
As much as I enjoy supporting food trucks, there's something special and nice from eating inside a restaurant. I was craving kimchi, so we end up having dinner at Sushivan Japanese Restaurant. It's one of our three go-to places near South Granville for Japanese food.
Kimchi Fried Rice Pan-fried kimchi, bacon, and onion topped with a sunny-side-up egg
Soy Garlic Chicken Karage
Instead of getting my usual, Korean-style ramen, I ordered Kimchi Fried Rice. I honestly thought there won't be a lot of meat in it, but there's a good portion of bacon and mushroom that it's so filling. I also got the Soy Chicken.
Love Love Special Roll Crabmeat, cucumber, avocado, salmon, tobiko, and fruit sauce
Chicken Katsu served with salad and steam rice.
I am going through their list of Special Rolls, and we ordered the Love Love Roll today. The Awesome Roll is still the best one so far. After that, hubby ordered what has become his "usual" order: Chicken Katsu.
I can't wait to finish trying all the food trucks that are part of Thank Granville Its Food truck (TGIF) so that I can go back to eating at neighbourhood joints near South Granville and along West Broadway.
It's a cold Wednesday evening and we walked to and from our neighbourhood church for Ash Wednesday Mass. After the mass, we went to Sushivan for dinner.
I had my usual favourite Korean-style Ramen, but this time topped with seafood. Hubby ordered the Salmon Teriyaki & Sashimi Box. I absolutely love the salmon teriyaki and I can't wait to come back and order it for myself.
Salmon Teriyaki & Sashimi Box Salmon teriyaki, appy sashimi, appy tempura, salad, 4 pcs California roll, and rice
Korean Style Ramen with Seafood
As we go down the list of Special Roll, we ordered the Rainbow Roll.
Rainbow Roll California roll with assorted fish, tobiko
My parents went inside our apartment for the first time ever. They usually drop off things, but they don't go inside. Today was different just because my brother needed to use the Healthy Wave Mat I have to relieve the wrist pain he's feeling.
Anyway, after an hour at home, we all went to have lunch at Sushivan. We ordered a lot and my mom is happy with how delicious everything was.
Spider Special Roll (Crab Meat, Cucumber, Avocado, Lettuce, Soft Shell Crab, and Tobiko)
I still think the Awesome Special Roll is the best of the four I have tried so far.
Creamy Udon for brother
Soy Garlic Chicken Karage (Deep-fried chicken coated in soy sauce)
After Mass, we planned to head to Costco, and on our walk, we decided to stop by Sushi Bang for lunch.
Bristol Roll inside: deep-fried prawn and crabmeat outside: salmon
Bristol Roll
It's a good roll, but somehow the Special Rolls from Masa and Sushivan are just better. We also ordered two bento boxes and an Ebi okonomiyaki.
Lunch from Sushi Bang
Box B Beef Bento Box Beef Teriyaki with rice, assorted tempura, 2 pieces salmon and 2 pieces tuna sashimi, salmon maki, and salad
Hubby ordered the Box B Beef Bento Box, and the beef teriyaki was surprisingly delicious, better than others we have tried so far. Though, the sashimi and salmon maki are just okay.
Salmon Bento Box Salmon teriyaki with rice, assorted tempura, BC roll, and salad
The assorted tempura and BC roll are good, but the salmon teriyaki is better at Sushivan. The salmon was cooked excellently, but the teriyaki sauce didn't work well. I'm not sure cause it was good with the beef.
Ebi Okonomiyaki
There is an abundance of Japanese restaurants in Vancouver, but so far, I have only found two others (Hime Sushi and Gyu-Kaku) that serve Okonomiyaki, which was terrific. I'll return for this and to try the rest of the Special Rolls.
If you know of other restaurants that serve Okonomiyaki, please leave a comment below so we can add it to our to-eat list.
To end my day off, we had dinner at Masa Japanese Restaurant and I had my favourite Assorted Japanese Curry. We were also pleasantly surprised to see that they know have a Korean food section in the menu.
From the new section, we ordered the Kimchi Fried Rice and Korean fried chicken. I'm so happy for this addition!
Assorted Katsu Curry
Kimchi Fried Rice
The Kimchi Fried Rice is definitely better than Sushivan.
Korean Yangnyeom Chicken
I haven't had Korean fried chicken in a long time and I look forward to trying all the flavours that Masa has to offer.
It's raining and cold. Solution? Spicy Korean-style ramen.
Korean Style Ramen (chicken)
Spicy and warm ramen is perfect in this rainy Vancouver weather. For sharing, we decided on the Karage. It was delicious, and I like it better than the spicy chicken Karage. However, the Filipino in me thinks I'll enjoy it more with rice.
Soy Garlic Chicken Karage (this is the small-size) Deep-fried chicken coated in sweet soy sauce
Hubby ordered the bento box!
Chicken Teriyaki & Sashimi Box Chicken teriyaki appy sashimi, appy tempura, salad, 4pcs. California roll, and rice