There is a New King of Sushi in Vancouver, and it Checks off All the Boxes – Sushi Hyun Omakase

Audio Deep Dive¹

Last night I had the great pleasure of dining at a new sushi omakase restaurant in Vancouver. To get it out of the way, I should note that it is expensive; $300 a person. I recently wrote about Sushi Masuda, which at the time, was one of the most expensive omakase in Vancouver. It also recently got a Michelin star. I mentioned that while Masuda was good, for the price point, there were other places I preferred to go. How does Hyun change things if at all? Lets find out. As I entered the restaurant, I was met by this corridor, and right away it made a statement. It had a presence that said “you are entering a sacred temple of sushi”. I have written about how important this is in past posts. Hyun, had that feeling.

Then, I entered the beautiful dining room and saw the chef prepping for the meal. In front of him, was a gorgeous cut of tuna.

I should note that one thing I like about Hyun is that there are only 6 seats and two services. Once at lunch and one at dinner. This ensured that the meal flowed nicely versus a place like Bar Maumi which has 18 seats and only one chef, which makes for a super slow meal. Throughout the meal, the chef was extremely proud and passionate about the what he had built. The attention to detail is stunning. For example, they were using a special handmade rice pot from Japan that was custom made, and he literally had to beg the maker to get him on the list for one. He also showed my his basket from Japan which kept the rice at a perfect temperature, and for which he waited 4 months for. Then there was the beautiful warmer covered in Japanese wood that kept the nori at the proper temperature. The list goes on, but this is THE best interior of any Japanese restaurant in Vancouver by far. For the few hours I was there, I felt like I was in New York or Tokyo. Cities with world class sushi restaurants. The meal started with chawanmushi. It was the most smooth and silky chawanmushi I’ve had in a while. The dashi was perfect.

Next, some sashimi starting with grouper and some kelp on the side. The first bite, the chef recommended with just some kelp and freshly ground wasabi. The second with the addition of some soy. The umami from the kelp enhanced the bite and the wasabi was some of the best I’ve ever had.

Next, amberjack with 10 year old Korean salt. Another winner. This dish demonstrated why not all salt is created equal.

Next, some tuna a sashimi which the chef proudly proclaimed came from the top supplier in Tokyo. He told me he doesn’t believe any other chef in the city had the relationship to get this quality of tuna.

The next dish was a perfectly tender octopus in a sweet and savory sauce.

Then, the most perfectly fried piece of scallop I’ve ever had. The coating, temperature, and taste were all 100% spot on. I wanted more of this. So good!

Before the nigiri, he served some clam broth as a palate cleanser. He proudly told us the broth was made without salt, and the flavors which just the pure essence of the sea.

Here is the series of nigiri and also, some action from chef grinding fresh wasabi.

The style of sushi served here is not traditional in the sense that sometimes, other ingredients are added to each nigiri to enhance the flavor, but it is done well. For example, in the first piece, some green onion was used. However, the ingredient never overpowers and enhances the experience. The rice, soy, temperatures, and amount of wasabi were perfect in each piece.

Next, a series of tuna.

After this, a cooked fish was served. Although it was good, I thought it seemed out of place with the meal and was unnecessary. It was also the only dish that was not at the level of perfection. A bit dry.

After some miso soup, the nigiri continued.

…starting with Kohada. According to the chef, this is one of the most difficult fish to prepare for sushi. He mentioned that it will have a very fishy taste if not done properly, and that any chef that didn’t know how to, or want to, prepare this fish was not making true sushi.

The next piece I was handed was first presented uncut.

Then handed to me:

This was one of my favorites bites of the night. It was the perfect combo and balance of many different tastes. Following this were anago and uni.

Once the nigiri ended, the chef presented a pot (the special one I mentioned about earlier) with rice, fish and pine mushrooms.

The simple dish was one of the most delicious of the night. The rice had crunchy bits to add to the texture.

The chef then told us to leave a bit of rice in the bowl, so he could add some broth to it, and make another delicious soup dish.

To end the savory portion of the meal, I was presented with an uncut tamago. The word “gorgeous” immediately came to mind.

Then delicious:

The first dessert was a Hokkaido melon. As the chef sliced it, the air was filled with the smell of sweet melon.

The bite was even better. Words cannot describe the sweetness and almost custard like silky texture of each bite.

It was served with some green tea. To finish, we were served a perfect in house made matcha ice cream and red bean paste.

Overall, this was a near perfect meal. What set this apart from every other omakase in the city was:

1. The venue – a lot of detail and money had clearly been invested in the space. It felt like a temple of sushi and could hold its own in Tokyo or other world class city. This has Hyun beating out Tetsu in this category.
2. The service – the chef, and the serving team provided flawless service. Drinks were constantly refilled, napkins refreshed etc. Although the meal took almost 2.5 hours, the time went by quickly and it was so entertaining to chat with the chef and watch all the food being prepared. Because there were only 6 seats, the pace was perfect. This has Hyun beating out Bar Maumi in this category.
3. The passion, food, meal structure etc were near perfect.

Even though its expensive, I believe its worth it. I would return and highly recommend. If you want to experience the kind of omakase that could only previously be found in much larger cities, done very well, with passion, and very good service, you won’t go wrong at Sushi Hyun Omakase.

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1. Audio created with AI ↩︎