Mega Sushi- Cherry Blossom Roll, Paradise Roll... and MONKEY BRAINS!

I had a lovely reader (Thanks Jarka!) recommend this relatively new restaurant to me. They opened in May and it's called Mega Sushi. It is located in Steveston, close to Garry Point Park.

The location is off the center of Steveston so it’ll be hard to stumble upon this restaurant if you are just taking a stroll around the area.

I came here with my Richmond foodie buddies Janice (from goodeat) and Steph (from krispybites) just a few days ago and we were all slightly surprised and impressed by this place!

The first thing we found intriguing was how the green tea was served. The teapot seemed like it was made from cast iron and the cups were designed to ensure your hands don’t burn from the hot tea. So fancy, right?! The tea was free of charge too which was great.

By the way, Mega Sushi is a little pricier than your average sushi joint. However, given the quality of their food and the fact that every dish comes with remarkable presentation, it is worth it.

The Salmon Sashimi 6 pcs ($7.95) was unlike any salmon sashimi I’ve ever tasted. There were no visible white lines of fat in the meat and it was overall really lean. The texture was also denser than the ones I’m accustomed to eating but I have a feeling it’s because they use wild caught salmon.

The Cherry Blossom Roll ($12.95) was the highly recommended item by Jarka because of the unique combination of ingredients. The roll consisted of avocado, cucumber, crab meat, salmon (which laid on top), apple sauce, and tobiko.

The roll itself is pretty much a standard California roll. However, the addition of salmon, apple sauce, and popping tobiko elevated the roll into something much more refreshing and delicious.

When I saw this on the menu I just knew I had to get it. Luckily, both Steph and Janice are very adventurous when it comes to food so they just agreed with ordering this. This dish is called Monkey Brain ($8.95) and it’s a big ball of yummy goodness.

It’s essentially deep fried avocado that is wrapped around crab meat and cooked tuna. With the greenish colour and the sauce on top, it does kind of look like brains. Alien brains. :P

I went bananas (get it?! :D) over this dish because I  loved the subtle spicy crab meat filling against the soft, ripe avocado. Plus, the added crunchy exterior didn’t hurt either. :D This appetizer is highly recommended!

We also ordered another specialty roll, the Paradise Roll ($11.95). It is a deep fried California roll with seaweed salad, tobiko, and spicy mayo on top. The presentation of this was beautiful as always and I really enjoyed the roll.

I feel like you can’t really go wrong ordering their specialty rolls because it is bound to be visually and tastefully appealing. (I hope there is such a thing as ‘tastefully appealing’ ... but you get what I mean)

Halfway during our meal, we were given three complementary Negi-Hama Nigris by the chef. I have never tried negi-hama (hamachi mixed with green onion) before so I can’t accurately judge how great this was. 

Personally, I thought it tasted a little bland but it was okay. I definitely like negitoro better though.

All in all, it was a great experience but it did hurt my wallet a little bit. It came up to about $18 per person for lunch which is a little steep for me. However, I would still highly recommend this restaurant and I will, without a doubt, be returning.  

Service Rating: 4/5

Food Rating: 4/5

Price: $$-$$$

Overall Rating: 4/5

Happy Eating!

courtesy of http://forum.talknightlife.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=14819