We’ve been talking about trying out Hiro for a long time now. I walk past it pretty much every day, living in the King East area. The online reviews always seem to be really mixed on this sushi establishment. The die-hard fans on one end, praising the sushi quality, and on the other end, those who warn to stay away due to the service. Then our new friend Gregg shot us a comment and an email urging us to visit Hiro and report back. I guess that was the push we needed, so we met up at Hiro on a Tuesday evening at 5:30 after work.

Hehe… Yeah, pretty weak. The inside of Hiro is really nothing to write home about. People don’t come to Hiro for the atmosphere. Actually, how would we know: We were seated in the narrow corridor that is the front of the restaurant, even though, I believe, there were some non-reserved tables available further in. Anyway, service started off well. The green tea and Asahi beer arrived promptly and our waitress poured the beer into the glass at the table — a nice touch.

Indeed. Our waitress left the table in search of an answer to what you would think would be an easy question to respond to. She consulted with another waitress a few feet away from us – in what I assume was Japanese. The discussion went on for at least a minute (literally). True, they could have been talking about anything other than the question at hand (actually, I think I’m convinced of this) but regardless she returned and stated that, yes, we had ordered enough for two to dine.

The nigiri was definitely a step above anything I’ve had in our now fairly extensive Sushi Toronto tour. Just the selection of fish itself was above what we usually experience. Taste-wise it’s the best I’ve had – hands down. Definitely of high quality.

The rolls were a different story however. Huge (I almost want to us all caps, but I’ll refrain) disappointment. Even the ‘how can you screw that up’ spicy tuna rolls weren’t good. I found the tempura rolls were a bit better, but not by much. A definite lack of flavour and too much rice. The rolls that accompanied the nigiri platter were even worse. One in particular was simply uneatable.

Yes… Very much so. We perused the menu quickly again but then just decided to go with what was good from round one – the nigiri plate. We ordered another. By this time, the restaurant was getting a bit more busy and some of those reserved tables were being filled. What it also meant was we weren’t going to be satisfying that hunger any time soon.

… annnnd this is about when our server decided to forget about us. Sure she couldn’t control the speed of the food (our second nigiri platter too forever to arrive, by the way) but just in general we were forgotten about — despite this being a really tiny place. Refill offers? Nope. I spent the rest of the meal rationing the remaining beer I had. Thing is, it wasn’t only us. A table right next to ours was filled by three guys who looked like they were business partners. One of them resorted to flailing his arms to get the attention of the waitress. This happened more than once. The Hiro dining experience just took a turn for the worst.

You’re right… It was as if they knew exactly what was happening but had no intent to improve on it at all. Odd. So, the second sushi plate was a bit different make up than the first, but it was pretty much as good. The rolls on the side were absolutely awful, however. All that’s left is to try to flag down a waitress and get the bill.

…. survey says $39! Thus our meal comes to just over $115 – almost double what we normally spend on a night of sushi. Thing is, I was still hungry after this. So, if getting the bill wasn’t hard enough (we actually had to ask for it twice, by the way), actually getting them to take my Mastercard became another chore. Yep, I had to resort to taking it to them as we were more than ready to get out of there.

Totally… Other online reviews bitch about the service and now we know that’s totally valid. Sooo, if you’re Hiro, why not get people in there that care about the service and then you become a huge draw, no? I mean, why have your restaurant sit empty at 5:30pm on a Tuesday when it could be full with happy, well served, customers. Then again, the maki is a mess, too. Sorry, not good. Sure, the nigiri was incredible but I need to be treated properly when I go out to eat — especially if you’re going to charge a premium and still leave me hungry. I found a thread that states that Hiro doesn’t let the waitresses keep their tips. If that’s the case, that may partly explain the horrendous service. People may say ‘you have to sit at the bar…’ — sooo, if I sit at the tables, poor service is acceptable? I’ll never eat at Hiro Sushi again: 3/10.

We met up on a Tuesday, at 5:30pm, and the place had only one other group there. I was warmly greeted right away and took a table by the window. I asked what their beer list was (fairly extensive, actually) and ordered a Kirin Ichiban, one of two Japanese beers they serve. Oh, John’s Sushi Bistro had the Christmas tree all lit up as well!

Hehe… then who was Akira?—the old sushi chef?

Akira – John: Same thing… I think. Yeah, their menu of maki is different from the regular choices. Right away I spot the Bulgogi Rolls: yep, that’s one of my choices. Reminds me of Gal’s Sushi up in Markham where you can get a sushi lunch special that includes some bulgogi on the side. We also order up Spicy Tuna rolls, the Ninja roll and John’s Special roll (which costed a whopping $16!). Also, we ordered the Salmon Sushi Pizza.

John’s Special rolls had a zillion things in it them, with sauce strewed overtop. My guess is that’s supposed to justify the price. I don’t recall all the items at the moment, but I thought it tasted pretty good. Definitely different from the norm. Now was it double-the-price-good? I’ll have to say no. I enjoyed them but you’re likely better off getting two rolls of something else for the price of one of John’s Special rolls. Credit to them to trying something different, but they have to work on the price point.

Yeah, the Sushi Pizza was definitely saucy as well. John loves his sauce, I guess!? I thought it tasted decent, though. I have no complaints about the Sushi Pizza. Actually, I appreciate places that make theirs different from the typical ‘Yonge Street’ sushi pizza fare. But, yeah, their Sushi Pizza was teeming with ‘stuff’ on top. What else? The Bulgogi rolls I was happy with. Sure, different from the norm but tasty. Nice to see something different on the menu (I’m sounding like a broken record).

Yeah, service was great at the beginning, but once there was more than two tables of customers things went down hill – and fast. How am I supposed to eat the Spicy Tuna rolls w/o a bit of ‘refreshment’? I wasn’t impressed. It was, truly, a long wait too. So, about those Spicy Tuna rolls, nothing special. I agree with you about the Ninjas. Definitely not Ninja-like.

Hehe… note to Toronto sushi restaurants: serve ice cream to get that extra 0.5. Yeah, I enjoyed the free ice cream. Ditto for the appetizer noodle soup that we seemed to not mention earlier in this review. The bill, without alcohol, was $52 (tax included). Add in two Japanese beers and it comes out around $65. This is a tough one for me. Things started off so promising – the ‘non-norm’ menu items, the Japanese beer, the good service at the beginning. Then a massively overpriced roll (which was overrated) and the lack of service heading out. But, free add-ons like the noodle soup and the mango ice cream. I’m going to steal your 5.5 and go with that. 5.5/10. Hit up Sakura Ichiban, about a 5 minute walk away, for a far better experience.

Sakura Ichiban is in my new hood – literally two short blocks from my place – so I had special interest in checking this sushi place out. It was a Tuesday night at 7:30. As I strolled in I was immediately greeted by the friendly staff.

The booths are great, especially for casual business meetings – like discussing the latest sportaholik.com strategy. Also just if you want your group of up to 4 to have a more secluded dining experience. On tap they had a beer that I’d never heard of – ‘Robert Simpson’ – which is a microbrew from Barrie (yes, you read that correctly!). Worked for me. I ordered one.

It’s $30 if you just got sushi and rolls and an extra $10 with sashimi. As per tradition, we ordered up a sushi pizza as well!

Yes, the appetizers were good. After that the boat came out. The first thing that came to mind was ‘fresh’ – especially the sashimi and sushi.

I didn’t read the wrapper as I’m now a professional sushi-reviewer. They don’t give a blog to just anyone, you know… oh, wait. Back to the food. The spicy salmon rolls had a bit of a late kick to them. They seemed not so spicy but then a few seconds later it hit you. However, the spicy trophy goes to the sushi pizza. Easily the spiciest sushi pizza we’ve had. I’m a fan of spicy, so I enjoyed. Let’s just say I made sure to order up a second pint of Robert Simpson. Another thing about the sushi pizza: the nicest presentation of any we’ve had before. It was well stacked, and some time was spent on the presentation side. It beat a typical Yonge Street sushi pizza any day.

We have regular readers? (nice!). I’m going 9/10 for Sakura Ichiban. I’m also liking how I’ve got a 9-review close to home! Everything was very fresh, especially the sashimi. We trusted the chef with the boat, and he did not disappoint. The sushi pizza was one of the best I’ve had – the best presentation wise for sure. Staff were super friendly and service was prompt. I also liked the booth – it looked like there were 3 or 4 of them. Add to that a microbrew I’d never heard of on tap! I’ll be back!