Sushi K Kamizato - Oh. Oh. You're Beautiful

I don't know why but when I saw this picture, the song "#Beautiful" by Mariah Carey came into my head. So there you go, the title for this post is "Oh. Oh. You're Beautiful". It is a beautiful looking piece of toro.

Diana (foodology) and Amy (foodqueen) have often raved about this suburban Japanese sushi joint called Sushi K Kamizato and it was their mission to spread the word to as many people as they could. Curtis (foodobyte) and I were summon by them on a beautiful Sunday evening to give their items a try.

Sushi K Kamizato is located in Port Coquitlam, unusual location for an authentic, modern, Japanese restaurant. I would have imagined this restaurant to be somewhere in downtown Vancouver or Richmond. Nevertheless, I made the long trek up to Poco and to be honest, it is probably the farthest I've ever travelled for food. The journey was a good hour and a half from where I live.

They started us off with some complimentary Salmon and Tuna Karaage. It was nice but I little dry on the inside.

This is called Tuna Four Ways ($9.95) and I don't believe its on the menu (Diana and Amy did all the ordering since they were regulars). Chef Keith prepares tuna using four different culinary techniques and it should be eaten in a specific order. The first preparation was cubed tuna sashimi dressed in a special marinade.

Next is tuna tataki followed by another tuna sashimi mixture, and then lastly, fried tuna. If you are a a fan of fresh tuna, this is a must order item!

Being a huge fan of Miku and Minami, I think you already know that I like all torched sushi, so when I heard Sushi K also torches sushi, I was ecstatic. This Torched House Roll ($7.95) was my favourite item of the night just because of the torched mayo on top. It gave the roll such a smokey, buttery flavour that my taste buds were in heaven. I can easily down two to three of these rolls myself.

The Aburi Toro ($3.25 ea) and Aburi Saba ($2.25 ea) were also lightly torched on the top to seal in flavour.

I don't think there is a better word for describing this piece of toro than 'melt-in-your'mouth'. It LITERALLY melts, in your mouth. No teeth required. Must order item.

They had some fresh New Zealand Tai ($21) available that day so we got it based on the owner's recommendation. The fish was definitely fresh but I didn't find the texture or flavour to be outstanding. Probably wouldn't get this again.

I believe this was the Tri City Roll ($8.95). I liked how all of the rolls have their own sauces so soy sauce is not required.

The Oceanwiser Roll ($9.50) consists of raw ebi, salmon, and cucumbers topped with avocado and more salmon. The dusting of grounded black sesame was a nice touch because it gives it a great textural contrast.

As you know, we food bloggers eat like massive cows so we obviously had more food. The Let It Beef Roll ($10.95) consisted of semi raw slices of beef on top of a sushi roll filled with cream cheese and cucumbers. It tasted very similar to the roll Minami is so famous for. Very delicious and highly recommended.

This beauty is called Tuna Caramel ($2.95 ea) and it essentially is tuna (toro?) wrapped around more mashed tuna and ponzu mixture, topped with course sea salt. The end result is a very earthy, caramely tasting tuna which was really odd considering this was a savoury item, but cool in that you would never be able to get this anywhere else.

Overall, Sushi K Kamizato was worth the drive to Poco and I am very glad to have tried those items out. If I am ever in the area or even semi-nearby like North Burnaby, I may just have to go back again.

Service Rating: 4/5
Food Rating: 4.5/5
Price: $$$-$$$$

Overall Rating: 4.5/5

Happy Eating!