There’s seems to be a ton of different coupon sites like Groupon and Dealfind popping up all over the internet. It’s an ingenious idea to allow people to try different things that they might otherwise not normally do. Ranging from bootcamp classes, to manicures and facials to restaurant offers. I have to admit that I’m guilty of purchasing more then a couple of these “groupons” myself and many of them having to be food related. What better way to enjoy new restaurants or even some of your all time favourites while saving a couple of bucks? One of these deals brought me to a little sushi restaurant that I wasn’t aware existed just off of the main area of downtown 17th Avenue called O Shima.
Atmosphere: A small casual restaurant, great for quick bites and smaller groups.
Price: up to Mid $10s
Food: Like all sushi restaurants, O Shima offers both a raw menu and a cooked menu (for those who haven’t quite ventured to the realm of uncooked fish). When it comes to sushi, I usually enjoy the traditional nigiri sushi (traditional hand form sushi, what you’d think sushi should look like) and sashimi. However, when I’m new to a restaurant I enjoyed also trying some of their house special sushi rolls.
We ended up ordering several of the special rolls since they sounded quite unique. Starting with the Volcano Roll, this consisted of spicy tuna, green onions, masago, avocado, tempura flakes, fried onion, cucumber and a mango sauce. I’ve had all those elements in separate rolls before but never together and it was interesting. I quite enjoyed the mango sauce, giving the roll a tangy sweet flavour. However, I didn’t notice the tuna to be very spicy. Since I enjoy my food a bit more spicy, the server offered to bring us some additional hot sauce on the side.
Next we had the Mango Roll, it was very similar to the Volcano Roll except it didn’t have the spicy tuna element and used salmon instead. I personally enjoyed this version better, which I didn't expect since I usually enjoy spicy food more. It could be that the spicy flavour didn't really work with the mango for me. I would probably order the Mango Roll again in the future and skip the aforementioned Volcano.
The third roll we sampled was the Fire Dragon Roll and I’d have to say it was my favourite out of the three. Containing shrimp tempura, tobiko, cucumber, avocado, salmon, tuna, masago, chili peppers and a spicy mayo, it definitely had all elements of crunch, spice and flavour. I also enjoyed the variety of fish as well.
To round out our meal we also ordered a seaweed salad (tasted pretty typical), sashimi platter (decently sized) and shrimp tempura (a little soggy, not the typical crunchy batter which I’ve come to associate with Japanese tempura).
My Pick: Fire Dragon Roll
Overall: We had great service at O Shima, the waiter was very attentive (seeing as he was the only one serving the entire restaurant, we were a little apprehensive seeing some of the past reviews) and the food was pretty decent. I would go back for the rolls and maybe try a couple of my favourite nigiri sushi as well and the best part was we got it all at a discounted price. What a deal indeed!
O Shima
1448 A 17th Avenue SW
Calgary, AB
(403) 457-5577
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