Go Japango!

"O-i-shi" is how you would phonetically say 'delicious' in Japanese and that's how I would describe this hidden gem as my friend "Heather Margaret Adorable Davies" has taught me! This place is for those in the know and who are lucky enough to get seated for dinner as there are less than 20 spots in the tiny restaurant so either reserve or come early. There were only 2 servers that spoke limited English and 2 sushi chefs behind the bar and perhaps a cook in the kitchen - it's one of the more authenthic Japanese places to eat in the city but the service is a bit slow.


My sister and I had a reservation and were seated near the window, we sat down and I ordered us my favourite sake - Nigori- it's non distilled cloudy sake and while I really think it's smooth tasting and goes down easily, my sister didn't prefer it at all.
We started with the butterfish sashimi- here they use a blowtorch to lightly flavour the oil they put on top of the butterfish so it's creamy and melts in your mouth- butterfish already is my favourite type of sashimi but this treatment of it takes it to a whole new level. A great start to dinner for me already! We then had the tuna tartare which comes served with a quail egg on top of it. I thought the mixture made the tuna creamy as well and I really enjoyed this.
We then had sashimi appetizer served in a martini glass - there were thick pieces of tuna, salmon and some white fish- all fresh and great dish. We had their famous oyster shooters- which came in a shot glass with roe and ponzo sauce- people often rave about this shooter but i felt like the oysters were a bit fishy for my liking and was a bit disappointed in them.
We also had 2 maki rolls- their Japango roll and their Green River maki were amazing!! Their signature 'Japango' roll was spicy but the perfect blend of spices topped off with my favourite sashimi - butterfish which made me extremely happy. Their green river was a combination of avacado, unagi and shavings of spinach on top - really unique! I always look for different rolls at Japanese restaurants because everybody makes a California and Dynamite roll and I love trying new things!
Anyway it was a great dinner as all the dishes came one by one which was a great pace for us - dragged it out so that we could converse and catch up and we didn't feel like they were trying to turn tables around.
Japango - 122 Elizabeth Street, Dundas and University
**** stars