Umami Sushi

Umami Sushi
3459 Bathurst St

This past weekend was a blast of what we all miss the most at this time of year. Sun, and warmth. Spring, if you will. So when an email dropped into my inbox a few days ago, I decided I’d top my Saturday. Whats a better way to spend the day than having Sushi and a nice long walk in the sun? Tossing Ikea into the mix as well. So before I headed out to buy new stuff for the home I stopped at a place about a 20 minute walk up the street from my Apartment.

Now it’s not exactly a secret that my neighborhood is predominantly Jewish, so it’s not a surprise that there are a fair number of sushi restaurants in the area. For the most part, sushi is kosher. There’s no dairy, so the meat/dairy rule can’t be broken, and Umami Sushi doesn’t have any crab, unagi, or shrimp on the menu. While it’s pretty safe, Umami has been vetted by the Kashruth Council of Canada, so if keeping kosher is a must for you, this place is safe.

However, for someone who doesn’t even remotely keep kosher, the menu is a little bland. But they do try. There is a fair bit of substitution and creativity there. Unfortunately, the newest rolls contain white asparagus, something I’m not that incredibly keen on. Still, if you pop a menu in front of me there will always be plenty I do like. Lately I’ve been on a bit of a Temaki (hand roll) kick. I decided to go as basic as I could with a California hand roll for $4.25. It was quite tasty, but the preparation left a little to be desired. Properly rolled, the avocado should not be slipping out the bottom. A very generous portion of rice though. Next up was one of my favorites, Spicy Tuna for $6.99. This was prepared in the slab of tuna with spicy goodness method as opposed to the chopped with tempura method of the day before. A prime example of how you can have the same thing at a couple of different places and have two different meals. This roll didn’t disappoint in the least, and there was just enough tempura to be crunchy. One thing that struck me was that the rice was fresh, still warm from the pot.

The restaurant itself was tiny though. Just two stools to sit on. So I wouldn’t be dropping by for dinner. Looks primarily to be for take out clientele, the website doesn’t mention anything about delivery.

What I had was good, but not really geared toward goyim like myself. But if you’re looking fro kosher, look no farther.