Not too long ago, those of us living in Toronto remember the day when Salad King and Tatami Sushi came crumbling down at the corner of Yonge and Gould streets. Yup, the aged building flipped us the bird and collapsed. Thankfully, (well... depending on WHO cheated a highly probable death) no one was hurt.
When my dad caught wind of the collapse on the news, he called my mother and frantically said, "Karen! A building near Tyler collapsed! And it was a sushi restaurant!" ...as if there is only one sushi restaurant in Toronto.
The next day when I arrived in Hamilton (Mount Hope) to visit my parents, Spring Sushi, the sushi restaurant beside their place, was consumed in a fire. I began to question my luck. Had I become a bad omen for the Japanese? And if I had become a dark energy, where'd it come from? I began to think of places I ought not venture if this kind of shit was following me around. I pondered deeply, then cranked up Kylie Minogue on my iPhone and began lip-syncing to All I See.
The next day I was joking around with Violet, my coworker and part-time muse, about how a place that doesn't cook their food could burn down. Turns out, their freezer breakers shorted and the place burned to the ground.
So here we are nearly three months later. The Toronto collapse is still under construction, but Spring Sushi is back open for business. Diego and I decided it was time to slip into the glutton pantaloons and gorge in their all-you-can-eat. Since we didn't make it to the restaurant pre-fire, it was high time we experience this place.
The place is so far out of the local area's league. Spring Sushi has got to be the most well designed and executed restaurant on the entire Upper James strip. Upon arrival, we were greeted by the hostess, who was dressed in an adorable kimono.
I eyeballed the crowd as we wove through the front-of-house to our seats. I was shocked to see more of my kind of people. There were some who had ventured far out of their element, and I really appreciated them for it. CROWD: 4.5/5
The decor and ambiance was very sleek and modern. It had a fresh, clean feel to it while at the same time calming. White and fuschia, colours of the spring sakura (cherry blossom), seemed to be the inspiration. DECOR: 5/5We laughed maniacally at the length of our order slip. We started off with seaweed salad and salmon salad, the latter of which neither one as ever tried. When Diego's salmon salad arrive, I had plate envy. It consisted of three sizeable pieces of lightly friend salmon sashimi atop a bed of sweet citrus daikon radish, drenched in lemon juice. It was orgasmic! And it's not to say my seaweed salad was bad... it was perfect! The presentation was well thought out and beautiful. Next came our salmon roses, spicy salmon sushi, and white tuna maki. Simply exquisite, to say the least! After several other fresh dishes, we finished off with a crispy salmon sushi pizza, which was arguably one of the best ones I'd ever eaten. It wasn't too salty as I often find sushi pizza to be. We ended our experience with creamy green tea ice cream. FOOD: 5/5
The cost for an adult lunch is $13.99, and dinner, $20.99. Figuring that the Mandarin is across the parking lot and has similar rates, I would find it a challenge to chose between the two all-you-can-eat style restaurants. In addition, this seems to be the going rate for sushi eateries in Hamilton, so I am not in a position to complain. The entire adventure, tip and tax included, cost us each $18.00 ... not bad at all considering the experience was impeccable. PRICE: 4/5
Overall, I would say that if you live on the Hamilton mountain and are looking for a huge leap in service, quality and value relative to the other Asian eateries around town, Spring Sushi is well worth your money. VALUE: 5/5
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