DowntownJapaneseRating: 5/5

Miku Restaurant- Like I Died and Went To Sushi Heaven

I fell in love with Miku ever since I dined here a year
ago. They have hands down the best aburi sushi I have ever tasted and everything
from the service to their execution of food is always flawless. They are on the
fine dining end of the spectrum though so unfortunately I don’t have the
luxury of dining here more often than once a year. LOL

Yesterday, I took
Meta Knight here for lunch (cause lunch is always cheaper than dinner! :D)
because I really wanted him to try their famous aburi sushi. Miku’s aburi-style
sushi features box shaped sushi that is infused with one of a kind sauces and lightly
seared with a torch.

We came quite late, around 2pm and there were still quite a few people dining in the restaurant. When the hostess was walking us to our table, she
yelled out something in Japanese which initiated all the chefs to smile and
greet/yell at us as well. It surprised both of us at first but it was cool. I
liked it. 😀

We both ordered the Miku
Zen ($23)
which is essentially a “bento box” lunch set. The set comes with
a ‘selection of seasonal items chosen by the chefs, four items from [their]
kitchen, and five pieces from [their] sushi bar and miso shiru (soup)’.

Their miso soup was
good and obviously much better than the ones I normally get at casual Japanese
restaurants.

The left is pumpkin with snap peas, the right is a tofu salad topped with crispy thingy-ma-jigs in
yuzu dressing
. Our server explained each item really fast so I missed some
info here and there. The tofu salad was absolutely delish!! The texture was unbelievable
as the crispiness of the fried thingy-ma-jigs paired so well with the soft and
delicate tofu. It was a perfect starter to the meal! The pumpkin was soft and tasted
delicious. A great palate cleanser when the other items got too heavy.

This was a potato and
salmon croquette which laid on a bed of cabbage and topped with homemade tartar
sauce
. I wish I took a picture of the inside because it was filled with
salmon! Meta Knight absolutely adored this and almost licked the bowl clean.

Now this one was the star of the bunch. The epic pork belly with bamboo shoot and green
onion
was melt in your mouth soft and bursting with flavour. The bamboo
shoot was a little bland but I didn’t care because it wasn’t the focus of the
dish. Meta Knight loved the pork belly so much, he tried to steal mine too.

Now onto their five pieces of aburi sushi. This is what Miku
is known for and what I dream of every time I hear of “torched” sushi. I have
yet to try a single ‘torched sushi’ that is better than the one here and proof
would lie in
my post on Ebisu on Robson.

I believe the salmon
aburi
is their most famous aburi and we were given two of them for our Miku
Zen. They were very generous with the salmon and I especially loved the thin
slices of jalapeno as it provided a nice kick to the sushi. 

I believe this is hamachi
aburi
(correct me if I’m wrong) and it was served with a nice dollop of
guacamole. This was also very delicious but my least favourite of the bunch.

I really liked the ebi
aburi
as well as the sweet pesto mayo that it was paired with. Everything just
worked so well together and  I often
wonder how they know which sauce or mayo to pair each ingredient with. Meta
Knight’s favourite aburi of all was the
tuna aburi (right) and I have to agree. I normally don’t love the taste of tuna
but this tuna was premium grade and melted in our mouths.  

I don’t think I need to say that we had an amazing time at
Miku. The service was great, the food was unbelievable, and we both left
feeling completely satisfied and happy. My determination to land a high paying
job is fuelled by the dream to come and eat here more often!

Based on these reasons:
  • close to Burrard and Waterfront station
  • parking is incredibly expensive!!
  • aburi sushi is a must try at Miku
  • definitely more expensive than other Japanese restaurants but the quality is reflective of the price
Service Rating: 5/5
Food Rating: 5/5
Price: $$$$+ ($30+)

Overall Rating: 5/5

Happy Eating!

Miku Restaurant on Urbanspoon

2 thoughts on “Miku Restaurant- Like I Died and Went To Sushi Heaven

  • Omggggg why have I still not eaten. Ohh right I'm poor 🙁 maybe I'll do lunch, seems like a pretty good deal (still exp but yeah). Or dine out next year. haha

    Was the Bento enough for lunch?

    Reply
  • Yeah, lunch is definitely the way to go if you are not looking to empty out your wallet 😛 Plus, the bento box is surprisingly filling! It didn't look like a lot of food, but trust me, you will leave at least satisfied if not full.

    Reply

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