Kaneda closed down a few months ago, and everyone at work was pretty happy except for StevieD. When we found that the new restaurant, Masa, took over the spot, most of us were pretty skeptical about it since we thought that it would probably be the same management team. Since your restaurant choices at lunch start to limit after you’ve tried most of the ones around work, I suggested that we should go give it a try. StevieD and E joined me on this adventure. Masa is located above Mac’s convenience store and next to Joey’s on Broadway.

When we visited, it had literally opened for less than a week or so.

We immediately noticed some changes. They kept the section dividers, but it seems like they have done some renovation on the seats and decor. The cutlery has also all changed and it looked pretty upscale, with your own tray and all. Management has also changed to what seems like a Korean owner and staff. Goodbye to the weird old school music they used to play; they now play more upbeat music.

Sushi Course

The menu has also changed quite a lot, and we all noticed that the prices were much higher than the previous Kaneda. It’s not unreasonable, but you can tell that they are trying to be a more upscale Japanese restaurant. During lunch, they have their so called “lunch courses”. All lunch courses are served with miso soup, 3 side dishes and a “special deep fry”. My 3 side dishes and special deep fry never came, but at the time I wasn’t sure if mine came with it, so I didn’t want to make a nuisance. Looking back at the menu now, my course should have came with those dishes. Well, at least my Miso Soup came… This one had lots of kelp but no tofu.

Anyways, I chose the Sushi Course, and your first choice is between a Sunomono or Salad. I chose the Sunomono, which was nicely presented and had a slice of cucumber, cherry tomato, julienne carrots, and alfalfa. The second dish was a choice of tempura or yakitori. I chose the Yakitori and it turned out to be chicken. This was pretty good with two skewers with two big chunks of meat. Nothing too special with the sauce though

Chef Special Sushi 8 pcs Roll & Nigiri

And then the wait began… We soon realized that everyone’s sushi dishes were not arriving. It was already 45 minutes into our lunch, and we were getting impatient since we wanted to get back to work. They should know that most people coming in for lunch work around the area and need quick lunch services. Well, finally after letting our server know that our food still hasn’t come yet, our sushi arrived. Mine was part of my lunch course and it had 8 pieces. Four pieces were California Rolls and the other four pieces were nigiris that the chef chose to make. This included Salmon, Tuna, Ebi, and a Smoked Salmon Oshi. The fish was much more fresh compared to Kaneda, but it didn’t blow my mind. I would be happy eating at Sushi Van for a similar or cheaper price.

Chicken Yaki Udon

E got the Chicken Yaki Udon which came with vegetables and chicken. This was quite a large plate, but I thought it lacked in ingredients. From the looks of it, it looked like it didn’t have much sauce as well. Nonetheless, E said it was okay.

Tamago Roll

E also got the Tamago Roll. This also took 45 minutes to arrive. Seems like they only have one sushi chef? But seriously…this shouldn’t take long.

Best Top 3 Roll Combo

StevieD got the Best Top 3 Roll Combo. This included California Roll, Dynamite Roll, and Spicy Tuna Roll. It was presented quite nicely and StevieD commented that they were pretty good, but he had to eat all of this in 15 minutes. He also commented that it was quite pricey for similar quality to Sushi Van.

Overall, we were quite disappointed with Masa. It’s not that the food was terrible, but it also wasn’t above average. I’m hoping that the slow service was because they just opened, but if they don’t figure that out, then they are going to have angry customers leaving. StevieD for one has already banned the restaurant it seems… I may give it another try in a few months, but with so many other options around town, it may not be for a while that I return.

Pros:
– Decent eats
– Ambiance has been upgraded compared to previous owners

Cons:
– Service was extremely slow (perhaps they just opened)
– Slightly pricey for the quality of food

Price Range: $10-20

1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent

Food: 2.5 Service: 2 Ambiance: 3 Parking: 3 Overall: 2.5

Roll Combo

Sushi Van is located on Granville near Broadway, and is among one of my favourite spots to have lunch with my colleagues since it’s close by and we don’t really have any other sushi restaurants nearby. It’s tucked away underneath the Vancouver Bullion Currency Exchange, so is a bit of a hidden gem for some. The tiny, but busy restaurant is run by Koreans, but the food is still pretty authentic and there are some decent eats.

My typical order will consist of the Roll Combo, since I find it to be a pretty good deal. For $9, you can choose any of their rolls which are under $6 and you get 5 pieces of assorted nigiri. The nigiris consist of Hokigai (surf clam), Tamago (egg), Ebi (shrimp), Tuna, and Salmon. The sashimi is actually pretty fresh and the rice portion is pretty on par. For the roll I can choose, I usually go for the House Roll, which consists of assorted fish, usually salmon and tuna, crab meat, cucumber, avocado, and masago. You really get a mix of ingredients here, and it works pretty well.

Negitoro Roll

I usually also add on a Negitoro Roll, and then I am filled.

Teriyaki & Sashimi Box

They also offer a variety of bento boxes during lunch hours,and E got the Teriyaki & Sashimi Box. It features beef teriyaki, an assortment of appy size sashimi, appy size tempura, salad, 4 pieces of California Roll, and rice. It’s quite a lot of food for around $12, but the quality is actually pretty good. You get quite a lot of sashimi too, with tuna, salmon, hamachi, and amebi.

Dynamite Roll and Chicken Teriyaki Roll

S went for some of the basics and got the Dynamite Roll which was filled with prawn tempura, avocado, cucumber, crab meat, masago. He also got the Chicken Teriyaki Roll, which is filled with chicken teriyaki and cucumbers. The neat thing about Sushi Van is that they use green tea in their rice, so you’ll find the rice to be a bit tinted in green. Apparently it’s more healthy this way.

Beef Box

Stevie D got the Beef Box, which features beef teriyaki, 4 pieces of California Roll, an appy size of tempura, salad, and rice.

Party Tray A

On another occasion, E and I decided to go all out and get the Party Tray A for just the two of us. It’s designed for 2-3 people, as the menu says, but I guess it’s really ideal for 3 as we ended up having quite a bit of leftover. You get quite a large variety, including the salmon roll, California roll, dynamite roll, spicy tuna roll, calamari roll, and Salifornia roll, which is California roll wrapped salmon and deep fried with BBQ sauce. For around $25, this is a pretty good deal if you share between 3 people.

Overall, Sushi Van offers some decent eats at a reasonable price. It can be quite busy during lunch hours, so service is not always the best. Seating can also be a bit cramped here since it’s relatively small. However, with the limited choices around here, it makes a good spot to enjoy some sushi. Oh, and be sure to try their Tokyo Tower, which is also a favourite!

Pros:
– Decent eats
– Reasonable prices

Cons:
– Service can be lacking during busy hours

Price Range: $10-20

1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent

Food: 3 Service: 2.5 Ambiance: 2.5 Parking: 3 Overall: 3