Restaurant Review: Misato Sushi & Grill

There seems to be more and more restaurants opening up on the West side of town, which is great to see because not only is Calgary’s food scene growing in the core but its momentum has carried forward in to the suburbs.  Although we’ve always been a fan of restaurants out west, such as Misato, an oldie but a goodie. Especially now with the new renovations, it feels like a brand new restaurant!

Atmosphere: The newly renovated restaurant looks miles different from the Misato of old, where cool tone accents now mesh with stylish décor, really revitalizing the dining room. The long tables accommodate both small and large groups for lunch or dinner.

 

Price Range: Mid $10s - $20+

Food & Drinks: I can’t repeat how much I love dining in large groups. You get to pick and choose what you’d like to eat and if you’re up for it, you can eat a bit of everything! But I digress…so when we ordered, we were able to pick almost a bit of everything off the menu. From tempura to soba noodles, sushi to sashimi, we really had a bit of it all.  I was amazed that our food came out as quickly as it did!

Our starters were the Beef and Vegetable Gyozas or dumplings with a light spicy soy dipping sauce. The gyozas had a good amount of filling with a nice thin outer layer. I prefer the steamed dumplings over the fried version, but they offer both on their menu.  We also had the Prawn, Chicken and Yam Tempura, where the chicken had a sweet chili sauce accompaniment versus the typical tempura dashi that came with the prawn and yam tempuras.

 

We had quite a few rolls that night and it was hard to differentiate some after a while, especially when somebody consumes the ends of the sushi roll with the telltale signs of the ingredients within. I did find a couple favorites though, one being the Special Scallop Roll – Chopped scallop, green onion, cucumber, masago with mayonnaise. Sounds simple, but I really enjoyed the roe mixed in with the mayo providing that extra texture. It was different, probably why it stood out to me. A large crowd pleasure was the Calgary Special Roll.  A large format sushi roll with all the seafood you can think of all combined in to one. It always causes a stir amongst the table when the plate arrives.

Other rolls that I enjoyed include the Spider Roll (soft shell crab), Spicy Roll (both spicy tuna and salmon combined), Anita Roll (avocado, shrimp, tuna with mayo) and the light Negi Toro Maki, essentially chopped tuna with green onion, but there is something about how the flavours combine that makes it one of my favorites.

 

A sushi night isn’t complete without a bit of traditional sashimi. When the Deluxe Sashimi arrived we were all very impressed with the presentation of the platter. A combination of 20 pieces of chef’s choice sashimi beautifully presented in an ice bowl with lovely accents, it was almost too pretty to eat. The platter is a great option when you’re not sure what types of sashimi you’d prefer, the chef would choose the best pieces of fish on their menu making it easier for your dining experience. That night we had everything from red tuna to spot prawns. It was a delight seeing what was all included in the selection.

There’s a good selection of wine, beer or sake, perfect for whatever mood you’re in. I prefer to stick to a hot sake or beer when eating sushi, but a nice crisp white wine always works well like the Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc. 

 

My Picks: Special Scallop Roll, Calgary Special Roll

Overall: Although the atmosphere and surroundings might be a bit different for food quality hasn’t changed. Misato still provides their signature dishes that most probably know well. So they might not be a brand new restaurant, but with the amazing changes but still great food, there’s no reason why people wouldn’t still want to check it out.

Misato Sushi & Grill

1851 Sirocco Dr SW

Calgary, AB

(403) 217-3000

Website: www.misatosushi.com